An Argentine gin won the gold medal at the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC)
.
In total, 25 Argentine distilleries had been presented, but only Spiritu Santo got the highest award.
The winners of the contest involving 316 labels from around the world were announced this weekend in London.
Spíritu Santo obtained 95 points in the London Dry category.
In total, the distilleries of our country harvested 33 medals (1 gold, 7 silver and 25 bronze).
For the competition, the IWSC has
a panel of 250 expert judges
who carry out a blind tasting and highlight the products sent to the competition with a score from 1 to 100 and thus offer different medals through a scale of points.
How is the Gin Espíritu Santo
Spíritu Santo is made with juniper berries imported from India and botanical ingredients.
Behind Spíritu Santo is Fernando Celemín, a graduate in Business Administration now based in Cañuelas
who, after dabbling with craft beer, in the midst of a pandemic, decided to start making gin at home, one of his favorite drinks along with whiskey. .
“I became interested in and trained in gin because it doesn't need aging, it requires less infrastructure,” says Fernando.
With the desire to test his product in other palates than those of his friends,
in 2022 he presented himself to compete in the Argentine Gin Cup
, a contest from which
he won a bronze medal and many recommendations from experts:
"I went, not to win, but to get my bottles returned and
I received a lot of constructive criticism that helped me improve it
”, he confesses.
His gin is of the London Dry type.
This category -in which it was presented in the London competition-
entails a complex process to achieve the
essential balance of flavors to compete in international competitions, market the product in the world and place this name on the label.
Spíritu Santo is about to open its own distillery.
Spíritu Santo
is made with juniper berries imported from India and botanical ingredients that give it a very particular herbal flavor
: “All the new entrepreneurs who turned to gin went for how easy it is to make it citric or infused.
But I
liked the challenge of going to highlight its more traditional flavors
," says the entrepreneur.
Taking a chance paid off: “
A truly captivating gin blessed with intense aromas of licorice, mint and dark chocolate.
These evocative notes really come alive on the palate with wonderfully melancholic flavors of mint, cardamom, spicy citrus and a gloriously minty chocolate finish.
Magnificent
”, was the return that Fernando received from the judges of the competition.
How does the expert recommend taking it?
“
The recipe that I like is the traditional one with 60 ml of gin, 250 of tonic water and a slice of rich citrus fruit”, he closes.
At the moment, bottles of Spíritu Santo can only be found on the brand's Instagram (@spirutosantogin) and in some stores in Cañuelas.
It sells for between $2,500 and $3,000.
The firm is in full expansion and will soon open its own distillery.
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