Finally catching up with this after being out of the country for the last week or so. Thanks Roy and Ralfy for organising for another year - really liked the greater community involvement with the nominations this year!
Hey Roy and Ralfy! Fantastic show and all the bottles and producers mentioned are worthy of a nomination. I’m very happy and proud to be involved for the first time this year. So thank you very, very much for allowing me a spot in this amazing project. Cheers and looking forward to the awards show!
Dear Roy and Ralfy, catching this on the replay. Am excellent set of nominations (2 of my own made it 😊). Thanks for the OSWAs they are very helpful and very informative. Well done 👍 😊Kindest regards, S.
We who love whisky really ought to help the industry out with the problem of availability of casks. How is simple - go get a bottle of fortified wine! They are excellent in their own right but also amazing paired with food and can very much be sipped slowly like a whisky. An opened bottle can last for months in the fridge. They are usually crazy good value for what you're paying, and full of character from being the result of centuries of developing traditions. Dry sherry can be a little difficult to get into, but don't give up before you've tried the oxidised styles which are amontillado, oloroso, and palo cortado - all great with pretty much any savoury food. A tawny port is a real crowd pleaser - a perfect gift! Also, most of the various wine regions will have some sort of fortified wine associated with them, so there really is a whole universe to be explored beyond sherry and port.
Thanks guys both the 'front-of-house' AND 'backroom' individuals for putting this very helpful OSWA idea together. Will carefully consider the nominations for 2024 then place my votes in due course. Much appreciated.
Arguably the most important date in the whisky calendar; the brilliantly presented OSWAs. Thank you once again Roy, Ralfy and all the contributors for this year's nominations - it's going to be a tough choice that's for sure. I've enjoyed this replay immensely and will be casting my votes as I've done from the off; a great selection for any enthusiast to muse over. Great work - we all love what you're doing 😃👍🥃.
Thx for the nomination show gents. Great to see the insight given on these from you both. I was lucky enough to score a bottle of Kilkerran 16 by ballot all the way here in New Zealand. What a superb dram. Keep up the great work gents.
A little conflicted about the fairness of having Glengyle in the best distillery category given the Springbank trifecta. But let's see what happens 😊. Also how would we feel about giving the trifecta at the point of 3rd award and lifting it out the category then, to give something else within the category the award the same year, rather than leaving it to the 4th year 52:44 Very excited about the breadth of value choices in the first 3 categories, lots to try that have been voted by the community. Another great year for whisky botherers! 🥃
I think you might miss something about what it says Roy when you bemoan the lack of a 100% bourbon barrel matured whisky in the Best Scotch Whisky nominations. There's only actually one 100% Sherry cask whisky out of the five also. And that's the Bunnahabhain which is far from a traditional Sherry Bomb. The other 5 whiskies are a mix of Sherry and Bourbon casks. Some leaning more heavily into the Sherry casks, others the Bourbon. People say that 100% Sherry cask matured whiskies can be a bit 1 dimensional. I find the same is often true of 100% Bourbon cask matured whiskies too. Of course in both cases there can be exceptions. But my personal preference is for a whisky that is a vatting of a mix of Sherry and Bourbon casks. I find those whiskies to be the most complex as a general rule. Interesting that the nominations for best scotch are mostly mixed cask whiskies.
That Ledaig 10 year old stands head and shoulders above the competitors IMO.....and in hindsight after watching all the selections the Ledaig 18 year old gets my vote as well.
I have a bottle of Ledaig Rioja and the 10, but this summer I had a dram of Ledaig 18 in a bar in Edinburgh a few weeks ago which blew up my mind and made me understand what's the meaning of a step-up whisky
Thanks for this video. I’d be happy to vote, but I won’t. I haven’t had 10% of the nominees, so a vote would be out of popular suggestion, not personal taste. Can’t wait to see the winners thou. Could impact the decision making in buying a bottle. 🥂
Thanks Roy and Ralfy, great show! For the blend I won't vote vor my own nomination. Not because it didn't make the final cut (which it didn't) but because I've since had the chance to try Maclean's Nose. After searching for it for over a year after all the online credit it got, I finally got myself a bottle and it's a win! worth every cent!!! Definitely will get my vote. For the distillery of the year I bet Loch Lomond got so many votes because you got a bottling of their malt Roy. They have some stellar bottlings, but I'm quite sure it'd have been Bruichladdich as the 6th nominee if you hadn't;) I'm excited to see the people's nominees and the final results in a couple months!
Watched on replay and it was so refreshing to see some of the top guns not running this year due to the trifecta award. This makes it way more interesting.
It’s probably not available in the UK, but I would’ve replaced Jack Daniel’s SBBP with the SBBP Rye. Unless rye whiskey is not your thing, the SBBP Rye is exceptional! Also, I would’ve loved to see one of the Elements of Islay bottles in the blended malt category !
You have five weeks this year - plenty time, but remember you can lock in your gut now and return and edit any time and as many times as you like up until the 20th October.
Hi Roy and Ralfy, I just voted and filled in the little survey at the end and I have a suggestion to make. It occurred to me when answering the question about how much one is "comfortable" spending on a bottle of whiskey. It made me think you should have a comments box there because it is not just a matter of personal comfort levels. I live in Singapore where whisky cost 3 or even 4 times what it does in the UK so it is not that I am comfortable paying the equivalent of 200 pounds Stirling for bottle of whisky it is just that I have no choice. So I suggest you ask where people live and have a comments box where they can say how there local prices compare with the UK prices you list for the nominated whiskies. Great job by the way, I am fan of both of you and have followed the OSWAs since conception.
I wonder why the cask strength Powers wasn’t considered? I’ve had them both and it’s a nice step up. I think it needs that to compete here in the non malt category
It's exciting to see some of the newer nominees pop up and add variation after the 3x winners (and rightly so) are removed, and a lot of the smaller guys getting well-deserved nods! It was hard to nominate, and will be even more difficult to vote 🗳
Thanks Roy and Ralfy! As always with the OSWAs for me it is a mix of excitement and frustration. Exciting to see new entries and maybe picking up and trying something new, but also frustration at the number of nominations that aren't available in my market or if they are available, are overpriced. I think the Best Scotch Whisky category is the most disappointing for me this year with only the Ardnamurchan AD Cask Strength being available here at the moment. Probably the most exciting category for me is the Best Value. Go Craigellachie! Cheers!
I hear you Simonne and in other countries there exists the same frustrations, still - at least you're informed and readied should opportunities arise! Thank you for participating.
Thank you for such a great initiative.This is the most Valuable Award In the world of whiskey because this is US-the whisky drinkers. I'm voting for the third time. And I will be doing it in the next years .
In best value I'm noticing there are three light-to-medium peated bottles, two dirty ones and a heavily peated one that's dirty even if you ignore the smoke. That's what I like to see.
Maybe you should change the category of best Scotch whisky to best whisky 2024. I'm glad that Ralfy mentioned inner staves, because whisky drinkers want the maximum flavour.
Sad that Mc'Nean was not nominated for Best New Distillery as they are so ethical and have a great product while being concerned for their impact on the environment.
I wonder why nobody nominated Mossburn's Caesteal Chamius Blended Malt in the Blended Malt category) Such a decent and affordable heavily peated whisky… And the best distillery is obviously Glencadam, but we really don't need to shout about it too much 🤫😁
I don’t know why Loch Lomand distillery is in the best distillery category. Do people know when you visit the distillery, that you can’t even enter the distillery to view how they make their whisky.
They're often offered, but I wonder if they'll struggle since there's not much availability outside of Canada?, it's getting better, but the only reason I have Canadian whiskies on the shelf is through gifts.
Both of those have appeared twice before. While the Kavalans often don't live up to their (UK) price, you won't get any argument form me on Glencadam 10.
on what F-ing planet is Ardnamurchan, Kilchoman or loch lomond better than Bruichladdich stuff. REALLY ? The OSWA's are nothing but echo chamber's for Roy fan boys and it's quite obvious. OSWA's has lost it's credibility and nothing but the Roy award's. Please step away from this abomination, Ralfy. You are better than this. The OSWA's are a joke. Just call it the Roy awards because that is all it really is.
I’m certain Bruichladdich was near the cutoff for the top six. The nominations come from a quite large group. Personally, I wouldn’t put Loch Lomond in the top six, but probably not Bruichladdich either. I’m certain a lot of people are enjoying the great work from both distilleries. Thank you Roy, Ralphy and everyone else behind the OSWAs for putting this together for the 4th time.
They both big up Laddie and especially Port Charlotte all the time. There is a bunch of contributors who make up the nominations not just Ralfy and Roy.
I don't think it's lost it's credibility at all. I think it's gained even more by opening up the selection process. They're all great whiskies and great distilleries.
Hey @MrPsiman, take a breath. Bruichladdich have had 5 nominations in the OSWAs to date. We're surprised to not see them this year, but it is what it is... there can only be six nomination in each category. They missed out this year. That's all. The irony? I nominated Bruichladdich. The best whisky of the last year and maybe two years form an official bottling for me was from Bruichladdich. It didn't get through. I have to roll with it. So, shout all you like about echo chambers and 'Roy's Awards' and such nonsense, but here's an invitation for you. Hope on a call with me, I'll show you everything. And think a little wont you? I don't care what you say about me, but you're being disrespectful to every other contributor to suggest they can't think and assess for themselves. You're in danger of you, yourself sounding like an entitled fan boy because your team didn't win. Bruichladdich will return. I suspect that there's a community reaction to some changes in vibe, strategy and pricing from them, in the UK at least. We'll see. In sincerity, if you want to take me up on the offer, email me whisky (at) aqvavitae.com
Just catching up on replay. Thanks again Ralfy and Roy and the team for another exciting awards season!
Thanks Ronan! Looking forward to it!
Finally catching up with this after being out of the country for the last week or so. Thanks Roy and Ralfy for organising for another year - really liked the greater community involvement with the nominations this year!
You guys knock it out of the park! Thanks for all the time you put into this event! Minnesota, USA
Thank you Roy & Ralfy for a great and enjoyable QSWA contenders presentation! Great job!
We appreciate the positivity! thank you and Slàinte!
A real exciting year with some tough categories. Now I just got to convince Vin to join me in doing a OEWA one!
Here's to the Online Ecuadorian Whisky Awards!
@@Aqvavitae 🤣🤣
Thank you very much, Roy, Ralfy and all other collaboraters. I appreciate all your work.
Big thank you to both of your gents for all your work.
Hey Roy and Ralfy! Fantastic show and all the bottles and producers mentioned are worthy of a nomination. I’m very happy and proud to be involved for the first time this year. So thank you very, very much for allowing me a spot in this amazing project. Cheers and looking forward to the awards show!
Dear Roy and Ralfy, catching this on the replay. Am excellent set of nominations (2 of my own made it 😊). Thanks for the OSWAs they are very helpful and very informative. Well done 👍 😊Kindest regards, S.
Thank you Sandro - after a compressed and nervy start to this year it settled into a decent selection, glad you're enjoying it!
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We who love whisky really ought to help the industry out with the problem of availability of casks. How is simple - go get a bottle of fortified wine! They are excellent in their own right but also amazing paired with food and can very much be sipped slowly like a whisky. An opened bottle can last for months in the fridge. They are usually crazy good value for what you're paying, and full of character from being the result of centuries of developing traditions.
Dry sherry can be a little difficult to get into, but don't give up before you've tried the oxidised styles which are amontillado, oloroso, and palo cortado - all great with pretty much any savoury food. A tawny port is a real crowd pleaser - a perfect gift! Also, most of the various wine regions will have some sort of fortified wine associated with them, so there really is a whole universe to be explored beyond sherry and port.
Lots of folk been thinking this way for years, so under appreciated.
Tawny port after dinner. 👍🏼
Nice job gentlemen! I hope in the future you both talk more about and we will see in oswa Waterford distillery. Cheers
Such a great initiative! Thanks oh so much, Roy & Ralfy, for your commitment, your passion and the effort! Votes are in! 🙂
Thanks guys both the 'front-of-house' AND 'backroom' individuals for putting this very helpful OSWA idea together. Will carefully consider the nominations for 2024 then place my votes in due course.
Much appreciated.
Fabulous!!! Thanks Roy!!!
Thank you Christine! Glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you Ralfy and Roy, for me the idea and presentation of the OSWAs is one of the features most appropriate within the whole scene. Thanks!
Arguably the most important date in the whisky calendar; the brilliantly presented OSWAs. Thank you once again Roy, Ralfy and all the contributors for this year's nominations - it's going to be a tough choice that's for sure. I've enjoyed this replay immensely and will be casting my votes as I've done from the off; a great selection for any enthusiast to muse over. Great work - we all love what you're doing 😃👍🥃.
Everyone remember to vote now: www.oswa.co.uk/
Nah. I have “research” to do. 😆
Not sure why but I can’t vote - iPhone related, or is the poll not online yet?
just getting you on catch up, well done everyone
Thanks Andy - an enjoyable and interesting wee night!
What amazing lineups in each category. Excited to see the winners!
Thx for the nomination show gents. Great to see the insight given on these from you both. I was lucky enough to score a bottle of Kilkerran 16 by ballot all the way here in New Zealand. What a superb dram. Keep up the great work gents.
Loved catching up on the reply following Jeffs predictions. Whisky passion is rife.
A little conflicted about the fairness of having Glengyle in the best distillery category given the Springbank trifecta. But let's see what happens 😊. Also how would we feel about giving the trifecta at the point of 3rd award and lifting it out the category then, to give something else within the category the award the same year, rather than leaving it to the 4th year 52:44
Very excited about the breadth of value choices in the first 3 categories, lots to try that have been voted by the community. Another great year for whisky botherers! 🥃
I think you might miss something about what it says Roy when you bemoan the lack of a 100% bourbon barrel matured whisky in the Best Scotch Whisky nominations. There's only actually one 100% Sherry cask whisky out of the five also. And that's the Bunnahabhain which is far from a traditional Sherry Bomb. The other 5 whiskies are a mix of Sherry and Bourbon casks. Some leaning more heavily into the Sherry casks, others the Bourbon. People say that 100% Sherry cask matured whiskies can be a bit 1 dimensional. I find the same is often true of 100% Bourbon cask matured whiskies too. Of course in both cases there can be exceptions. But my personal preference is for a whisky that is a vatting of a mix of Sherry and Bourbon casks. I find those whiskies to be the most complex as a general rule. Interesting that the nominations for best scotch are mostly mixed cask whiskies.
That Ledaig 10 year old stands head and shoulders above the competitors IMO.....and in hindsight after watching all the selections the Ledaig 18 year old gets my vote as well.
I have a bottle of Ledaig Rioja and the 10, but this summer I had a dram of Ledaig 18 in a bar in Edinburgh a few weeks ago which blew up my mind and made me understand what's the meaning of a step-up whisky
You won't get a lot of arguments form me on the pleasures of Ledaig...
Thanks for this video.
I’d be happy to vote, but I won’t. I haven’t had 10% of the nominees, so a vote would be out of popular suggestion, not personal taste.
Can’t wait to see the winners thou. Could impact the decision making in buying a bottle.
🥂
No problem - but please consider entering in the People's Choice - that way you can have your say in the Top 10 we share.
@@Aqvavitaeaye that’s a great point! The People’s Choice is completely wide open to whatever you want to submit
Thanks Roy and Ralfy, great show!
For the blend I won't vote vor my own nomination. Not because it didn't make the final cut (which it didn't) but because I've since had the chance to try Maclean's Nose. After searching for it for over a year after all the online credit it got, I finally got myself a bottle and it's a win! worth every cent!!! Definitely will get my vote.
For the distillery of the year I bet Loch Lomond got so many votes because you got a bottling of their malt Roy. They have some stellar bottlings, but I'm quite sure it'd have been Bruichladdich as the 6th nominee if you hadn't;)
I'm excited to see the people's nominees and the final results in a couple months!
@ Aquivitae ! Great job
Thank you Lars!
Watched on replay and it was so refreshing to see some of the top guns not running this year due to the trifecta award.
This makes it way more interesting.
I bought Millstone 100 rye for less than 70 euros in The Netherlands, so it's not that expensive outside of UK 🙂
We see huge price variation these days, even more so after Brexit.
Great whisky for its price. Therefore, 3 times on a row chosen as best Rye Whisky in the world. And one of the few that are 100% made of Rye grain
Thanks for the lovely chat from the two of you, Roy and Ralfy.
It’s probably not available in the UK, but I would’ve replaced Jack Daniel’s SBBP with the SBBP Rye. Unless rye whiskey is not your thing, the SBBP Rye is exceptional! Also, I would’ve loved to see one of the Elements of Islay bottles in the blended malt category !
Both are available, I suspect the Bourbon is more appealing than the rye, as this is its second time around.
I really have to take a while to.make my decisions. This is the toughest year thus far. Excellent nominations. Now I have to think and do my homework.
You have five weeks this year - plenty time, but remember you can lock in your gut now and return and edit any time and as many times as you like up until the 20th October.
Hi Roy and Ralfy, I just voted and filled in the little survey at the end and I have a suggestion to make. It occurred to me when answering the question about how much one is "comfortable" spending on a bottle of whiskey. It made me think you should have a comments box there because it is not just a matter of personal comfort levels. I live in Singapore where whisky cost 3 or even 4 times what it does in the UK so it is not that I am comfortable paying the equivalent of 200 pounds Stirling for bottle of whisky it is just that I have no choice. So I suggest you ask where people live and have a comments box where they can say how there local prices compare with the UK prices you list for the nominated whiskies. Great job by the way, I am fan of both of you and have followed the OSWAs since conception.
have you guys tried Sir Davis?
I wonder why the cask strength Powers wasn’t considered? I’ve had them both and it’s a nice step up. I think it needs that to compete here in the non malt category
If I remember well it was in the running, it didn't make the final six. I'm curious to try it.
Availability severely limited.
I keep waiting to hear Roy comment like a BBC news voice over after a nominee is announced "Raving Looney Party". XD
Tried my best to do just that ;)
It's exciting to see some of the newer nominees pop up and add variation after the 3x winners (and rightly so) are removed, and a lot of the smaller guys getting well-deserved nods! It was hard to nominate, and will be even more difficult to vote 🗳
So many distilleries still doing it the right way, good on them saving us from diageo dross
Thanks Roy and Ralfy! As always with the OSWAs for me it is a mix of excitement and frustration. Exciting to see new entries and maybe picking up and trying something new, but also frustration at the number of nominations that aren't available in my market or if they are available, are overpriced. I think the Best Scotch Whisky category is the most disappointing for me this year with only the Ardnamurchan AD Cask Strength being available here at the moment. Probably the most exciting category for me is the Best Value. Go Craigellachie! Cheers!
I hear you Simonne and in other countries there exists the same frustrations, still - at least you're informed and readied should opportunities arise! Thank you for participating.
proposal for a new category next year perhaps.. Malternatives?
Thank you for such a great initiative.This is the most Valuable Award In the world of whiskey because this is US-the whisky drinkers. I'm voting for the third time. And I will be doing it in the next years .
That's very heartening to hear! We'll continue to develop it in future - thanks for the participation and support!
Maclean's nose is an absolute belter.
Bought a 1L bottle of the Cotswolds in Heathrow for 35 quid… seems like outstanding value to me so I couldn’t pass it up.
Surprised that Glencadam 10 didn’t make the list
Good call !
One of the nominees in 2021 and 2022 and a cracking wee bottle, one of the best.
agreed. Also none of Deanston, Bruichladdich, not much of Billy Walker's umbrella
In best value I'm noticing there are three light-to-medium peated bottles, two dirty ones and a heavily peated one that's dirty even if you ignore the smoke. That's what I like to see.
Maybe you should change the category of best Scotch whisky to best whisky 2024. I'm glad that Ralfy mentioned inner staves, because whisky drinkers want the maximum flavour.
Need an Australian or New Zealand in the world whisky category
Sad that Mc'Nean was not nominated for Best New Distillery as they are so ethical and have a great product while being concerned for their impact on the environment.
I wonder why nobody nominated Mossburn's Caesteal Chamius Blended Malt in the Blended Malt category) Such a decent and affordable heavily peated whisky…
And the best distillery is obviously Glencadam, but we really don't need to shout about it too much 🤫😁
That Gaelic Whisky Co release is one I've not tried either, I don't recall seeing it mentioned. One to look out for!
Balcones for the win!
Get your vote in!
Always hurts seeing the US’s most interesting whiskeys (typically) absent. Balcones is wonderful exception but their limited releases are gorgeous.
It's a shame Deanston don't appear for the second year in a row.
I don’t know why Loch Lomand distillery is in the best distillery category. Do people know when you visit the distillery, that you can’t even enter the distillery to view how they make their whisky.
2023or 2024?
04
You choose.
A wee mistake on my part
Best IB : Are there no one else?!
Single Malts Of Scotland do some nice bottlings.
Only disappointment is no Canadian Single malts. 😕
They're often offered, but I wonder if they'll struggle since there's not much availability outside of Canada?, it's getting better, but the only reason I have Canadian whiskies on the shelf is through gifts.
Missing? Best value: Glencadem; world whisky: Kavalan
Both of those have appeared twice before. While the Kavalans often don't live up to their (UK) price, you won't get any argument form me on Glencadam 10.
on what F-ing planet is Ardnamurchan, Kilchoman or loch lomond better than Bruichladdich stuff. REALLY ? The OSWA's are nothing but echo chamber's for Roy fan boys and it's quite obvious. OSWA's has lost it's credibility and nothing but the Roy award's. Please step away from this abomination, Ralfy. You are better than this. The OSWA's are a joke. Just call it the Roy awards because that is all it really is.
I’m certain Bruichladdich was near the cutoff for the top six. The nominations come from a quite large group. Personally, I wouldn’t put Loch Lomond in the top six, but probably not Bruichladdich either. I’m certain a lot of people are enjoying the great work from both distilleries. Thank you Roy, Ralphy and everyone else behind the OSWAs for putting this together for the 4th time.
They both big up Laddie and especially Port Charlotte all the time. There is a bunch of contributors who make up the nominations not just Ralfy and Roy.
I don't think it's lost it's credibility at all. I think it's gained even more by opening up the selection process. They're all great whiskies and great distilleries.
Hey @MrPsiman, take a breath.
Bruichladdich have had 5 nominations in the OSWAs to date. We're surprised to not see them this year, but it is what it is... there can only be six nomination in each category. They missed out this year. That's all.
The irony? I nominated Bruichladdich.
The best whisky of the last year and maybe two years form an official bottling for me was from Bruichladdich.
It didn't get through. I have to roll with it.
So, shout all you like about echo chambers and 'Roy's Awards' and such nonsense, but here's an invitation for you. Hope on a call with me, I'll show you everything.
And think a little wont you? I don't care what you say about me, but you're being disrespectful to every other contributor to suggest they can't think and assess for themselves. You're in danger of you, yourself sounding like an entitled fan boy because your team didn't win.
Bruichladdich will return. I suspect that there's a community reaction to some changes in vibe, strategy and pricing from them, in the UK at least. We'll see.
In sincerity, if you want to take me up on the offer, email me whisky (at) aqvavitae.com
You have your opinion, obviously. The rest of us have a LOT more of them.