The Liqueur Masters 2014 results

Judging liqueurs boils down to one thing: finding a fullness of flavour that, beyond marketing and sleek packaging, speaks for itself, writes Becky Paskin.

Liqueurs which use traditional production methods largely prevailed at The Liqueur Masters 2014

Bartenders are continually recognising the qualities certain liqueurs lend to drinks, whether they be herbal, fruit or cream-based, but it’s those products that demonstrate unique flavours, full palates that mirror what’s written on the label, and an authentic heritage that take centre stage on drinks menus.

Heritage aside – after all, this was a blind tasting – this trend was clearly mirrored in The Liqueur Masters 2014, which uncovered vast quality across a whole spectrum of flavours, but most notably from those with robust profiles that obviously used traditional production methods to dial up taste rather than artificial flavours and colours. With both bartenders and consumers demanding more authenticity, this point marked a clear division between those with medals, and those without.

The blind tasting was conducted this year at the Red Lemon in London’s Notting Hill, with myself as chair. Joining me on the panel were Matt Armitage, co-founder of Craft Cocktail Co.; Harry Bellenberg, head bartender at The Cadogan Arms; and Pritesh Mody, founder of World of Zing.

We began the tasting with Traditional liqueurs; flavours that have stood the test of time that perhaps don’t belong in the Fruit category, which we got to later on. Despite a few examples of producers overdoing the sugar content, the judges were suitably impressed by the category, particularly with Giffard’s Menthe-Pastille, a mint liqueur that, with a nose of crushed Polos and a palate of After Eight centres, scored the only Master of the round. Coming up close behind was Joseph Cartron’s Abricot Brandy, securing a Gold.

Armitage noted: “Used as additives in cocktails to give them an extra dimension, some of these entries were pretty decent. The most important aspect of liqueurs is flavour, and that really came through in most of them.”

Becky Paskin and Matt Armitage examine the look, aroma and taste of an array of sub-categories entered into the competition

Moving into Fruit liqueurs, the largest round of the competition, judges continued to express their delight at some of the more authentic flavours to be found. The stand-out of the round was undoubtedly Joseph Cartron’s Cherry Brandy, which delivered a mouthful of ripe fruit macerated along with its stones, skins and branches. The expression was unsurprisingly awarded a Master, as was Distillerie Bepi Tosolini’s Fragola Spezieria (wild strawberry).

“There were some really complex flavours in this round, especially in the cherry ones,” noted Armitage. “There was also a nice balance of alcohol in the triple sec and I’d happily drink them after dinner.”

In the similar Cassis round, Joseph Carton once again stole the show with yet another Master. A fantastic example of a cassis – rich, viscous and mouth-watering – the judges agreed it would be fabulous mixed with Prosecco in a Kir Royale. The producer didn’t stop at that for the day, but went on to secure yet another medal, this time a Silver, in the Elderflower category.

The next round was something of a crowd pleaser, and despite all entries providing vastly different palates, the judges were both intrigued and impressed by their flavours. Three medals were awarded to the Amarettos – a Master, Silver and Gold, with the top accolade going to Fruko Shulz. “This set was really interesting as there was such a disparity between all three,” said Armitage. “It’s an interesting category with a lot of different expressions.”

That traditional Italian liqueur which has become a stalwart of student hangouts across the world came next. For Sambuca, the sky seemed to be the limit for flavours and colours, with every possibility under the sun now available. The ones that stood out for our judges in this round however were the more traditional, obviously lovingly-made classic and liquorice expressions, both from Antica. Both won Golds for their “rounded palate” and “simplicity”, which all agreed was key in this category to allow the spirits’ inherent anise notes to shine.

The Liqueur Masters 2014 judges (from left to right): Pritesh Mody, Harry Bellenberg, Becky Paskin and Matt Armitage

The penultimate round showcased a collection of Herb and Bitter liqueurs across an impressively wide selection of styles. The most impressive came from the amaros, a category witnessing increased interest from the bartending community at present. Products from Distillerie Bepi Tosolini and Nonino Distillatori both won Masters and were described as “stand out products” by the panel.

Rounding off the day was a set of cream liqueurs, which from past experience can be very hit or miss. However, all those entered were suitably remarkable with two walking away with a Master. Budget UK supermarket Aldi secured a top award for its Ballycastle Irish Cream, which was described as “everything you’d expect from a cream liqueur – thick, creamy and luscious”, while Mozart Chocolate once again took home the grand prize for its iconic product that closely represents dripping molten chocolate in a glass.

“I was particularly impressed by the chocolate cream liqueur for its rich, chocolatey feel and multi-layered flavours,“ explained Mody. “I also enjoyed the classic Irish cream which had a good balance of flavour and richness with no cloying mouthfeel, which can often be very typical of this category.”

The Liqueur Masters is by nature always one of the most varied competitions in the Spirits Masters series, with producers from across the globe presenting a considerable assortment of their own local, traditional liqueurs as well as a handful of more modern expressions. But as our judges found on the day, the one quality inherent to every award-winner in this competition is that essential authentic flavour.

Click through to the next page to see the results of The Liqueur Masters 2014.

Traditional
Company	Product Name	Award
Giffard	Giffard Menthe-Pastille	Master
Joseph Cartron	Joseph Cartron Abricot Brandy	Gold
Aldi	Cocobay White Rum & Coconut	Silver

Fruit
Company	Product Name	Award
Joseph Cartron	Joseph Cartron Cherry Brandy	Master
Distillerie Bepi Tosolini	Fragola Spezieria	Master
Wenneker Distilleries	Wenneker Triple Sec	Gold
Polmos Łańcut	Krupnik Wiśniowy Cherry	Gold
Aldi	Specially Selected Crème de Peche	Silver
Aldi	Specially Selected Crème de Cassis	Silver

Elderflower
Company	Product Name	Award
Joseph Cartron	Joseph Cartron Elderflower	Silver

Cassis
Company	Product Name	Award
Joseph Cartron	Joseph Cartron Crème de Cassis	Master

Amaretto
Company	Product Name	Award
Fruko Schulz	Fruko Schulz Amaretto	Master
Distillerie Bepi Tosolini	Amaretto Saliza	Gold
Aldi	Amaretto Belluci	Silver

Sambuca
Company	Product Name	Award
Antiche Distillerie Riunite	Antica Sambuca Classic	Gold
Antiche Distillerie Riunite	Antica Sambuca Liquorice	Gold

Herbal Liqueurs and Bitters
Company	Product Name	Award
Distillerie Bepi Tosolini	Amaro Tosolini	Master
Nonino Distillatori SPA	Amaro Nonino Quintessentia	Master
Joseph Cartron	Joseph Cartron Thé Noir Fumé	Silver
Aldi	Jagdbitter Herbal Liqueur	Silver

Cream
Company	Product Name	Award
Aldi	Ballycastle Irish Cream Liqueur	Master
Mozart Distillerie	Mozart Chocolate Cream	Master
Mozart Distillerie	Mozart White Chocolate Vanilla Cream	Silver
Aldi	Specially Selected Irish Cream	Silver