Understanding Kavalan’s 2026 Awards｜What Did “Distiller of the Year” and “Whisky of the Year” Recognize?

In 2026, Taiwan’s Kavalan whisky distillery received two international awards in succession: “Distiller of the Year,” announced in London in March, and “Whisky of the Year,” announced in July. Both include the words “of the Year,” but they differ in what they assess and how the winners are selected. Understanding that distinction helps put a single line announcing an award in context.

Kavalan’s Two Awards｜One for a Distillery, One for a Bottling

Distiller of the Year is a category within Icons of Whisky. The Icons of Whisky winners are announced at the same event as the World Whiskies Awards (WWA), organized by the British whisky publication Whisky Magazine. The organizer describes Icons of Whisky as awards celebrating the people and places that underpin the whisky industry. What is recognized is not an individual bottling, but the work of a distillery as a producer.

Whisky of the Year, meanwhile, is awarded by the International Whisky Competition (IWC) to the entry that receives the highest score in that year’s judging. Its scope is limited to an individual whisky. Despite sharing the words “of the Year,” the former recognizes a distillery, while the latter recognizes a bottling.

From Regional Selection to the Global Awards｜How Distiller of the Year Is Chosen

According to the organizer’s announcement, the global Icons of Whisky winners are selected following regional rounds covering Scotland, Ireland, the United States, China and the Rest of World. The 2026 global winners were announced in London on March 25, with Kavalan named Distiller of the Year.

Kavalan has stated that it previously received awards of the same name within the Rest of World region. In 2026, it received the global award, selected through the regional process.

Blind Judging｜IWC’s Whisky of the Year

The Whisky of the Year at IWC 2026 was Kavalan Peatist Oloroso Sherry Cask Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky. The score listed on the organizer’s website is 96.97 points. According to the distillery’s announcement, the spirit was made from lightly peated malt, matured in casks used for oloroso sherry, a Spanish fortified wine, and bottled from a single cask without adding water.

IWC is reported to assess whiskies against 15 criteria, with judges unaware of each entry’s identity, and award an overall score out of 100. The previous year’s Whisky of the Year, in 2025, was also from Kavalan: Solist Fino Sherry, which scored 97.04 points. Different bottlings from the same distillery therefore received the same award in two consecutive years.

IWC also presents an award to an individual whisky maker. Zerose Yang, who leads research and development at Kavalan, was reportedly named Master Distiller of the Year in both 2025 and 2026. The two titles recognize a bottling and a person respectively, but the individual award is also determined by the whisky’s judging score.

Kavalan in Yilan, Taiwan｜What Each Award Recognizes

Kavalan’s distillery was completed in 2005 in Yilan County, northeastern Taiwan, and began distilling in 2006. The distillery explains that the brand takes its name from an old name for Yilan.

The two awards in 2026 differ in both their scope and their selection methods. One recognizes a distillery following regional selection; the other recognizes an individual bottling through blind scoring. Behind the shared words “of the Year” are differences in who assessed what, and how. When discussing Kavalan, adding a brief explanation of what each award recognizes and how its winner was selected helps convey the meaning of the award accurately.

This article is intended solely to explore the distillation techniques and cultural heritage of the Kavalan Distillery and the Kavalan brand, and does not aim to promote or encourage the consumption of alcohol.

บทความนี้จัดทำขึ้นเพื่อนำเสนอข้อมูลเกี่ยวกับเทคนิคการกลั่นและมรดกทางวัฒนธรรมของ Kavalan Distillery และแบรนด์ Kavalan เท่านั้น มิได้มีเจตนาเพื่อส่งเสริมหรือโฆษณาเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ สำหรับผู้มีอายุ 20 ปีขึ้นไป โปรดดื่มอย่างรับผิดชอบ