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Leardini Liquori Artigianali – When fairytales come true

The Leardini family flies the flag when it comes to persisting at keeping old production techniques alive and taking the time to allow nature to take its course. This is neither nostalgia nor fanaticism, but experience and a dash of craziness in the face of an ‘everything now’ mentality in our fast-moving age. For this reason, the traditional, limited-production liqueurs contain neither artificial flavourings nor colours.

Everything began four generations ago, as the young Domenico, a skilled shoemaker, moved away from San Leo in the historical Montefeltro region to try his luck in Switzerland. There he fell in love with a girl with blond plaits, called Barruell. She made sure there was always enough schnapps in the cold workroom, and every now and then she would ‘forget’ a bottle of his favourite liqueur there. The young man only spent one winter in Switzerland, as his family needed him. When he returned to San Leo, he discovered the recipe for the liqueur in his jacket pocket, which Barruell had slipped in when saying goodbye. As an old man, he told his nephews that the liqueur had the fragrance of the girl’s lips. “Call it Barruell”, he said to his son Antonio, and gave him the recipe. After the war, Antonio’s son, Leonardo, decided to try to make a small amount to earn a living – in 1958, he produced 25 litres of alcohol, but things got better and better. Until the age of 87 he dedicated himself to the production of liqueur, and wanted his nephew Mauro to carry on the old tradition which he had followed over 60 years. Mauro complied with his wish and resumed production in the small workshop as his uncle Leonardo had done – and Barruell is still around today ...

The First Class Distillery 2018 received gold for Sambuca, Elixir Espresso Italiano, silver for Ariminum and Eremus, and bronze for Barruell.

Plomari Ouzo Distillery Isidoros Arvanitis: Original ouzo from Lesvos

Plomari on Lesvos is known as the home of ouzo. In 1894, Isidoros Arvanitis combined local ingredients with herbs which he had gathered from all around the world in a copper still. The famous recipe for Ouzo of Plomari Isidoros Arvanitis, current market leader in Greece, was born.

The distillery is located in an olive grove in picturesque Plomari, the village where ouzo has been produced for more than 125 years. The increase in export activity made the relocation to this larger plant necessary, where traditional production along with modern bottle filling and packaging take place. Today, Plomari Ouzo exports more than 76% of its production. The distillery is 100% family-owned and adheres to traditional methods.

The distillation in small, handmade copper vats for nine hours and the high-quality, local ingredients, combined with the top secret recipe, give the Ouzo of Plomari its characteristic aroma. The recipe that has remained unchanged for more than a century brings together the ideal ingredient proportions: soft water from the sources of the Sedounta river in Plomari, of course aniseed from Lisvori (which is considered the best in the world), fennel, star aniseed, cinnamon, nutmeg and mastic extract from Chios, a selection of herbs from Lesvos and salt from the salt marshes of Kalloni. Still today, this delicate yet rich delight is filled in a traditional bottle with typical corks.

The Ouzo of Plomari Citrus Liqueur is a blend of 100% Ouzo of Plomari with Greek citrus extracts, selected herbs and spices. The liqueur follows the traditional production, but has a milder, sweeter profile with hints of citrus. At 34% vol. it can be served chilled, on ice or in cocktails and complements the aniseed flavours of ouzo.

At the World Spirits Award 2026, Gold was awarded to Ouzo of Plomari Citrus Liqueur.

Diageo – From London to the whole world

Approximately 33,000 employees are employed worldwide at Diageo, the market leader in premium spirits, with Smirnoff (vodka), Johnnie Walker (whiskey), J&B (Scotch whiskey), Baileys (liqueur), Captain Morgan (rum), Cuervo (tequila) and Tanqueray (gin), Guinness beer and branded wines. Production takes place all around the world: from Great Britain and Ireland, Italy, Spain and Africa, to the USA, Canada, Latin America, Australia, India and the Caribbean. The global corporation emerged in 1997 from the merger between Guinness and GrandMet. 180 markets around the world are handled from its London headquarters.

A lot of work and lots of attention to detail go into creating the in-depth product descriptions on Diageo’s website. Information and analysis is provided about issues ranging from detailed descriptions of the production down to the most minute ingredients. Finally, they are aware of the size of their company and also of their responsibilities as a supplier of alcoholic products. The name Diageo was also deliberately chosen – it represents their agenda. Put together from ‘dia’ (the Latin word for ‘day’) and ‘geo’ (the Greek word for ‘world’), it means that every day people are celebrating all over the world with products from their company. These products open up possibilities never dreamed of for special days and nights, marking special life events and even making the smaller things in life feel magical.

Participation in the World Spirits Award was magical: there was double gold for Tanqueray No. 10 (Spirit of the Year 2016), gold for Gordon’s London Dry Gin and Tanqueray London Dry Gin, as well as silver for Tanqueray Rangpur.