Dan Murphy's Decoded Spirits Award winners announced

The competition designed 'for spirit lovers, not experts' is back for the second year running, with Dan Murphy's Decoded Spirits Award winners announced last week. 

Uniquely simple in approach, the awards recognise the best of the best across 19 categories, with judges adding a value pick award to each of the 19 groupings this year, ensuring there's something for everyone.

Dom Patterson, Spirits Assistant Category Manager at Dan Murphy's and Decoded Spirits judge, said this year's awards were all about ditching the jargon and serving the best spirits from around the world. 

"We are delighted to see the Decoded Spirits Awards enter their second year, as they are an important way to continue to demystify what is an incredibly exciting, yet sometimes overwhelming category for our customers.

"While all this year's winning products represent exceptional value for money, it is fantastic to be able to showcase the best value options within each judging category too, so there really are options to suit all tastes and budgets," said Patterson. 

Australian Gin remains popular, with a 50 per cent increase in entries this year. Taking out the award for the Australian Gin category is Seven Seasons Distillery's Green Ant Gin, a stand-out performer featuring the citrusy pop of green ants added before and after distilling. 

Unique in both flavour and method, Daniel Motlop, one of Seven Seasons' Founders, former Australian Football League star and indigenous food entrepreneur, said the distillery is a family business operating according to the sustainable lores of the land.

"Our family is very honoured to win an amazing award, especially within Australia. We started as a small harvesting business that wanted to help teach everyday Australians about the abundance of native foods we have right on our doorstep. 

"Winning this award helps us showcase our amazing ingredients and our story of the seven seasons as well as the Green Ant Gin," he said. 

The Australian Whisky category also continues to grow, with sales up over 20 per cent on last year. The range of products submitted this year highlights the breadth of options available to whisky enthusiasts across a broader range of price points.

Another notable category in this year's Decoded Spirits Awards is Agave, which saw twice the number of submissions compared to last year.

"This reflects the growing number of options available across Blanco, Reposados and Anejos styles, as well as in the mezcal segment," said Patterson.

At a time when Australians are increasingly looking for value, Dan Murphy's will celebrate this year's Decoded Spirits Award winners by offering My Dan's members exclusive access to a spend-for-rewards offer. 

On Decoded award-winning products, My Dan's members can spend over $70 and get $5 off, spend over $120 and get $10 off, and spend over $200 and get $20 off.  

Dan Murphy's Decoded Wine Awards will also return this September for the fourth year in a row. Agi Pfeiffer-Smith, Managing Director at Dan Murphy's, said both awards are a vital way Dan Murphy's is helping consumers make good choices when they shop. 

"As the Decoded Spirits Awards enter their second year, and the Decoded Wine Awards enter their fourth year, we are so pleased to be able to celebrate these categories and the amazing suppliers who continue to make the drinks discovery journey exciting and enjoyable for our customers," said Pfeiffer-Smith.

The full list of winners and value picks in the 2023 Dan Murphy's Decoded Spirits Awards can be found here. 

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