Win each of the first-place bottles from the Gentleman’s Journal 2024 Drinks Awards
From Telmont’s party-ready Réserve Brut to the supremely sippable Sazerac Rye, these winning bottles can be yours with the click of a button
Words: Gentleman's Journal
The festive season is fast approaching: Now is the time to decide which tipples will grace your glass. Or, you could simply leave it up to us. Those who have picked up their copy of Issue 44 will have come across the results of Gentleman’s Journal’s 2024 Drinks Awards, as decided by a blind panel of discerning tasters that included wine editor Guy Woodward; head bartender at The Dorchester hotel’s Vesper Bar Denise Elisei; Crispin and Bistro Freddie founder Dominic Hamdy; and Three Sheets owner Max Venning. To celebrate the results of the awards, we are delighted to offer Gentleman’s Journal readers the chance to win each of the bottles that placed first. Drum roll, please….
Best Champagne (Brut NV): Champagne Telmont Réserve Brut
“Rich and full [with a] great body” and “complex for a non-vintage” is how Max Venning described Telmont’s Réserve Brut, the winner in the champagne category. What’s more, Telmont champagnes are 100% organic, with the Maison committed to being completely climate positive by 2030.
Best English Sparkling Wine: Hattingley Valley Blanc de Blancs 2015
It’s made purely from chardonnay, but this blanc de blancs is anything but one-dimensional. Hattingley Valley’s award-winning 2015 vintage is utterly versatile and will continue to mature and develop for years to come.
Best Rosé: Château La Coste Provence Rosé 2023
Château La Coste, home to 124 hectares of organically farmed vineyards in Provence, took the winning title in this year’s rosé category. Elegant, rich and characterful, wine editor Guy Woodward described the Provence Rosé 2023 as having a “lifted nose of sugared almond, candy floss and a touch of hedgerow”.
Best Rum: Hattiers Egremont Premium Reserve Rum
Devon-based Hattiers is the UK's First B Corp certified rum. The company sources the finest rums from across the globe before blending them and bringing them down to bottling strength with soft Dartmoor water. It’s an approach that clearly pays off.
Best Tequila: Clase Azul Tequila Reposado
Clase Azul may be world-renowned for its iconic ceramic decanters, but there’s more to love about this tequila than its bottle. An eight-month ageing process in American whiskey casks results in a distinctive nutty, vanilla flavour and smooth mouthfeel.
Best Vodka: Haku Vodka
Best Gin: Lind & Lime Gin
Produced in Edinburgh at the Coburg Street Distillery, Lind & Lime epitomises the talent, heritage and industry of Edinburgh and its historic distilling district of Leith. Max Venning highlighted its balanced and nicely floral profile, which he praised for being “smooth and not too overpowering”.
Best American Whiskey: Sazerac Rye
This New Orleans rye balances subtle notes of candies, spice and crisp citrus with a smooth licorice finish. Named after the New Orleans bartender who first used rye whiskey in the Sazerac Cocktail, this uncut and unfiltered Straight Rye Whiskey is bottled directly from the barrel, just as it was over a century ago.
Best Japanese Whisky: Suntory Yamazaki 12 Year Old
Best 12 Year Old Scotch Whisky: The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old
Launched in 1993, The Balvenie’s DoubleWood 12 whisky remains a crowd-pleaser all these years later. Denise Elisei was struck by its “pear, white-flower and woody nose” leading to “honey and pepper notes on the palate”.
Best 15 Year Old Scotch Whisky: Glenturret 15 Year Old
Rich and sweet, Glenturret’s 15 Year Old is distinctly characterful. Dominic Hamdy praised the deep notes of marzipan, the imposing weight of texture, as well as the “fabulously long finish”.
Best 18 Year Old Scotch Whisky: Loch Lomond 18 Year Old
Aged for 18 years in three types of American oak barrels, Loch Lomond’s award-winning single malt is full-bodied and rounded. Denise Elisei noted its “well-integrated spice and minty, fresh nose”.
Best No/Lo Spirit: Pentire Seaward
The no- and low- category just keeps getting more exciting, and it’s all thanks to brands like Cornwall-based Pentire, whose non-alcoholic spirit Seaward is made from local North Cornwall plants. It’s zesty, verdant and bright, perfect as a gin replacement in a G&T.
For more from Issue 44, read our interview with Javier Bardem...
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