NEWS: Ardgowan Expedition takes silver in Hong Kong international whisky awards

The Ardgowan Distillery’s very first whisky ‘Expedition’ has been awarded a silver medal in the 2019 Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Wine & Spirit Competition (HKIWSC).

The 20-year-old premium blended malt won silver in the Blended Malt Scotch Whisky 16 to 20 year old category at the prestigious awards announced in Hong Kong today.

The exclusive dram – which was created specially by Ardgowan Chairman Willie Phillips – was  ranked against its peers in a blind tasting by an international panel.   

Commenting on the win Ardgowan Chief Executive Martin McAdam said:

“Our Chairman Willie Phillips is the driving force behind our Expedition whisky. You can have the best marketing in the world but the liquid in the bottle needs to be great.

“This is our third award for Expedition, and we are very thankful to Willie for guiding us in producing something special, to our customers who have purchased and enjoyed the whisky and to the judges at Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Competition who have acknowledged the quality of this beautiful liquid.”

Ardgowan Expedition 20-year-old is a blended malt which includes classic single casks from upper Speyside and the northern Highlands. The 600-bottle run also contains whisky which has travelled to the South Pole and back, carried by Polar Explorer Robert Swan OBE.

Each bottle, which retails at £499, has been personally signed and numbered by Willie Phillips, who rose to fame as the managing director of The Macallan from 1978 to 1996.

It can now be purchased online at the Ardgowan Distillery online shop.

“We did something special with Expedition – it is not only a great whisky but also a collector’s item. Since releasing Expedition we have now brought Max McFarlane (formerly Master Distiller/Blender at Edrington) on board and he has already created our new limited-edition Coppersmith whisky which is now available under the  Clydebuilt by Ardgowan label,” McAdam says. 

McAdam concluded that his company is now working hard on establishing local distribution for their Expedition and Clydebuilt whiskies in the Hong Kong market.