MichaelStroke:
Apparently Jack Daniels chose not to compete this year.
While Scotch whiskey has often been considered the benchmark of top whiskeys, Jack Daniels is a fine Tennessee offering, and there are some decent Bourbons out of Kentucky...(although purists often refer to Bourbon as bad Scotch). American Rye whiskey is made from actual Rye, while, ironically, Canadian Rye Whiskey does not necessarily have to be made from Rye. I was a rye drinker, but haven't tried any on the list here...probably too expensive..and there is the old saying that the finest libation is simply the one someone else pays for...lol
Anyway, the top 5 award winning whiskeys for 2016 are:
1. Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye, Canada
2. Pikesville Straight Rye, USA
3. Midleton Dair Ghaelach, Ireland
4. William Larue Weller Bourbon (Bot.2014), USA
5. Suntory Yamazaki Mizunara (Bot.2014), Japan
ps...who would have thought the Japanese would make a better whiskey than the Scots?...lol