The SIP Awards were held in Irvine, California in July this year, and the results are in: in addition to excellent gin, South Australia also makes some award-wining grappa.

As fond as we are of South Australian gin, we have to admit we’ve not had our finger on the pulse of the state’s grappa scene.

If not for the 2020 SIP Awards, held in July this year, we may not have noticed the hardworking team at Vittorio Spirits is making some award-winning gear.

The SIP Awards is a consumer-focussed award program – the judging panel is made up of more than 100 spirits consumers, and the organisation prides itself in not being directly connected to industry.

The benefit, they say, is each of the submitted products is judged by the people who will make or break their brand – the everyday drinkers stocking their booze cabinets at home, or selecting a specific product off a venue’s back bar.

Submissions to the SIP Awards come from across the world, but, as is to be expected, South Australia made a decent showing amongst the award recipients.

Six South Australian distillers picked up a total of 31 trophies and medals, chief among them Australian Distilling Co, makers of Adelaide Gin, who picked up 9 awards total.

As an explainer, the Consumers’ Choice Award was given to any product that was received an award in two consecutive years, and the Innovation Award is given to spirits “with an interesting and unique taste profile or design”.

The list below is ordered from most accolades to least, with tied distilleries listed in alphabetical order.

Keep an eye out for the winners at your favourite local bottle shop.

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Australian Distilling Co

Trophies: 4  Platinum: 0  Double Gold: 3  Gold: 1  Silver: 1  Bronze: 0  Total: 9

Trophies
Gin
Adelaide Gin (Consumers’ Choice Award)
Brisbane Gin (Innovation Award)
Sydney Gin (Consumers’ Choice Award)
Melbourne Gin (Consumers’ Choice Award)

Double Gold
Gin
Adelaide Gin
Perth Gin
Melbourne Gin

Gold
Gin
Brisbane Gin

Silver
Gin
Sydney Gin

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Kangaroo Island Distillery

Trophies: 5  Platinum: 0  Double Gold: 1  Gold: 1  Silver: 1  Bronze: 0  Total: 8

Trophies
Barrel Aged Gin
KIS Whisky Barrel Aged Gin (Best of Class; Consumers’ Choice Award)
Gin
KIS Wild Gin (Consumers’ Choice Award)
KIS O Gin (Consumers’ Choice Award)
Old Tom Style Gin
KIS Old Tom (Consumers’ Choice Award)

Double Gold
Gin
KIS Wild Gin

Gold
Old Tom Style Gin
KIS Old Tom

Silver
Gin
KIS O Gin

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Twenty Third Street Distillery

Trophies: 1  Platinum: 0  Double Gold: 3  Gold: 1  Silver: 0  Bronze: 0  Total: 5

Trophies
Extra-Aged Rum (5 Years and Older)
Signature Rum (Innovation Award)

Double Gold
Vodka
Riverland Rose Vodka
Brandy Based Product
Not Your Nanna’s Brandy
Extra-Aged Rum (5 Years and Older)
Signature Rum

Gold
Gin
Signature Gin

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Ambleside Distillers

Trophies: 0  Platinum: 0  Double Gold: 1  Gold: 2  Silver: 0  Bronze: 0  Total: 3

Double Gold
Gin
Small Acre Gin

Gold
Gin
Big Dry Gin
Coffee Liqueur
Sipping Coffee Liqueur

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Prohibition Liquor Co

Trophies: 1  Platinum: 0  Double Gold: 0  Gold: 0  Silver: 0  Bronze: 2  Total: 3

Trophies
Barrel Aged Gin
Prohibition Shiraz Barrel Aged Gin (Innovation Award)

Bronze
Gin
Prohibition Original Gin
Barrel Aged Gin
Prohibition Shiraz Barrel Aged Gin

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Vittorio Spirits

Trophies: 0  Platinum: 1  Double Gold: 2  Gold: 0  Silver: 0  Bronze: 0  Total: 3

Platinum
Aniseed Liqueurs/Sambuca
Tsipouro with Aniseed Platinum Drop

Double Gold
Grappa
Tsipouro 500 Double Platinum Drop
Tsipouro Traditional Platinum Drop

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