Growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, I knew about bourbon. It, along with horse racing, was infused into the soul of my city. But when I left there in the 1990s, I realized that outside my hometown, the American whiskey scene was a barren wasteland dominated by just a few brands and even fewer distillers.
Luckily, those times have changed, and these days, it seems that everywhere I turn, there are fantastic bottles of American-made whiskies just begging me to sample them. Like most drinkers today, I am faced with the same basic question when sorting through the thousands of bottles offered by the more than 800 distillers operating inside the USA. What bottle should I grab when looking for something truly special?
To help sift through the myriad of delicious options out there, I decided to turn to one of the most prestigious whiskey competitions in the world for some help, the World Whiskies Awards (WWA). Launched in 2007 by Whisky Magazine, it exists to do one thing. Find the best bottles of whiskey produced each year. They accomplish this through a rigorous blind taste-testing format that many in the industry call one of the hardest out there. Any bottle they singled out is a keeper.
In 2025, they took the unprecedented step of holding their first-ever awards gala focused solely on American Whiskey on February 14 in my hometown. If you were looking for any further proof that the times have changed here, look no further. Here are the six bottles that won the World’s Best Awards and are eligible to compete for the title of World’s Best Whisky at the grand event on March 26 at The Waldorf Hilton in London.
World’s Best Bourbon
Old Fitzgerald 2024 VVS
Tracing its lineage back to 1884, Old Fitzgerald has a long and distinguished pedigree perfectly highlighted in this beautiful bottle named the World’s Best Bourbon. The Old Fitzgerald 2024 VVS is a 13-year-old Bottled-in-Bond bourbon distilled in 1999 at Louisville’s Bernheim Distillery. It is bottled at 100 proof (50% ABV) and packaged in a decanter that pays homage to the brand’s long roots in the bourbon industry. It is a smooth and elegant bourbon offering hints of fruit, honey, vanilla, and caramel flavors.
World’s Best American Style Whiskey
Jack Daniel’s Triple Mash
First released in 2022, Jack Daniel’s Triple Mash is a bold departure from the distillery’s iconic Old No. 7, offering a complex and layered Tennessee Whiskey experience. As a Bottled-in-Bond expression, it adheres to strict standards, ensuring quality and consistency. By taking home the World’s Best American Style Whiskey trophy, it has cemented its place in the lexicon of great homegrown whiskies. Its unique blend combines the spice of Jack Daniel’s Rye, the familiar sweetness of their classic mash bill, and the distinct grain notes of their American Malt. The result is a harmonious interplay of flavors, where hints of caramel and vanilla intertwine with peppery rye and a subtle malty backbone, all culminating in a smooth, 100-proof finish.
World’s Best Finished Bourbon
Wenzel Whiskey Sherry
A newcomer to the Kentucky bourbon scene, they were founded in 2022; Wenzel Whiskey from Covington, Kentucky, took home two prestigious awards at the WWA. Their Wenzel Whiskey Sherry was named both the World’s Best Finished Bourbon and the Best Kentucky Finished Bourbon. As the first distiller in Covington since Prohibition, the distillery aims to produce bottles that honor the past while incorporating modern finishing techniques. Their award-winning bottle is a limited release that very little is known about right now, but collectors are scouring the market in search of it. Big things could be in store for this intimate craft distiller.
World’s Best Single Barrel Bourbon
Blanton’s Straight From The Barrel
Blanton’s Straight From The Barrel (SFTB) is a highly coveted, uncut, and unfiltered bourbon experience. Each bottle presents a unique flavor profile as a single barrel offering, bottled at its natural barrel proof, resulting in a robust and intense whiskey. Expect a symphony of rich flavors, including caramel, vanilla, dark fruits, spices, and oak, with variations reflecting the individual barrel’s character. Due to its limited availability and high demand, SFTB stands as a premium expression within Blanton’s lineup, appealing to connoisseurs seeking an unadulterated and powerful bourbon experience. As a testament to its flavor, it denied last year’s winner in this category, Proof & Wood’s Tumblin’ Dice, a repeat crown.
World’s Best Small Batch Bourbon
Boulder Spirits 2024 Cask Strength Bourbon
Hailing from the craft beer mecca of Boulder, Colorado, Boulder Spirit’s 2024 Cask Strength Bourbon did something seemingly impossible these days. It defeated the industry and awards circuit darling 1792 in a straight blind tasting to take home the World’s Best Small Batch Bourbon trophy. That’s a heady accomplishment. As a small-batch craft distiller, Boulder Spirits is the passion project of Alastair Brogan, a Scotsman who fell in love with American Whiskey over a decade ago. Using a traditional Scottish copper pot still, he has been laying down barrels of liquid to age in Boulder’s high altitude from day one. The result is full-flavored small-batch whiskies that are renowned for their intense flavors and rich profiles. The award winner was aged for seven years in new American Oak barrels and bottled at 64.2% ABV. It is a big, chewy whiskey with notes of fruit, brown sugar, walnuts, and honeysuckle.
World’s Best Tennessee Whiskey
Jack Daniel’s Tennessee 12 Years Old Batch #2
As you can see from their two major awards at the 2025 WWA, Jack Daneil’s has been shaking things up lately. Instead of relying on their namesakes, Old No.7 and Gentleman Jack, they have been dropping some remarkable premium bottles. Jack Daniel’s 12-Year-Old Batch #2 is a premium, limited-release Tennessee Whiskey distinguished by its extended aging and nuanced flavor profile. A departure from the distillery’s standard offerings, this 12-year-old expression undergoes the Lincoln County Process, ensuring a signature smoothness. Expect a richer, more mature version of classic Jack Daniel’s notes, featuring prominent caramel, vanilla, oak, dark fruits, and spices, with subtle batch variations. Highly sought after, Batch #2 represents a refined and sophisticated whiskey experience, showcasing the distillery’s ability to craft exceptional aged spirits.
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