Gold for The Borders Distillery New Make Spirit at the World Whisky Awards!

We’re thrilled to announce that our Borders Distillery WS:00 New Make Spirit has won Gold at this year’s Scottish leg of Whisky Magazine’s World Whiskies Awards 2024.

The Scotch whisky industry gathered for a gala dinner and an evening of celebration on 7^th December 2023 at the beautiful Signet Library in Edinburgh in what was a special year for Whisky Magazine as it celebrated its 25^th anniversary. Whisky Magazine awards always aim to celebrate the best and the brightest people and places in the sector, as well as the distilleries and the teams that work within them.

Throughout the night, winners were announced in several categories. We were in fantastic company as winners ranged from small independent whisky makers like us, to well-known titans of the Scotch whisky world.

Our thanks go to the judges, organisers, and producers of such a special and memorable evening, and what a wonderful way for us here at the Borders Distillery to kick off 2024! We couldn’t be happier.

The next leg of the awards will be held in London on 20^th March where the global winners of the Whisky Magazine Awards will be announced.

WS:00 New Make Spirit

Our WS:00 New Make Spirit is rather special.

It’s the building blocks of everything we do at the Borders Distillery and will one day evolve into our very own single malt whisky – the first to leave the Scottish Borders since 1837.

For the moment though, it’s too good not to experience, so we’ve bottled some for you to enjoy at home. Made from Scottish Borders barley grown within a 30-mile radius of the distillery, our delicious new make spirit comes straight from the still and is bottled at 63.5% ABV.

You may be unfamiliar with new make spirit. So, to help you out, we thought we’d answer some common questions about this very special liquid.

What is new make spirit?

New make spirit is the precursor to whisky. Whisky’s origin story, if you like.

It’s the freshly distilled liquid that has not yet gone into casks to be matured into whisky.

How is new make produced?

It’s the same process as for making whisky, except for the maturation stage – in other words, milling, mashing, fermentation, and distillation.

After the distillation process, the clear distillate flows into the spirit receiver with an alcohol content of about 75% ABV but is diluted to a strength of 63.5% ABV before going into the cask, or in this case – the bottle.

Why is new make clear?

All distillate is clear before it goes into the cask to become whisky. It’s the oak from the cask and the maturation period, of at least three years and one day, that give the resulting whisky the lovely amber hue that we all know and love.

What does WS:00 New Make Spirit taste like?

It’s robust, with a peppery fire, yet carries a rich apple and pear character profile with underlying grassy notes and a creamy buttery finish.

What’s the best way to drink new make spirit?

You can drink it in the same way as you would whisky – neat, with water or with ice. Alternatively, top up with soda for a refreshing hi-ball drink or use as a cocktail ingredient.

You can buy our WS:00 New Make Spirit here as well as our range of single malt and blended whiskies from our Workshop Series, including our WS:01 Borders Malt & Rye and our WS:02 Borders Long & Short of It.

And if you would like to come and see where we make our award-winning WS:00 New Make Spirit as well as all of our other whiskies and spirits, our distillery tours recommence on 1^st April 2024. Booking now open.

Please enjoy our spirit responsibly. Visit drinkaware.co.uk for the facts.