In high spirits
Full Circle Craft Distillers’ handcrafted artisanal spirits bagged top honors in two international spirit competitions held recently, palanggas.
ARC Botanical Gin won the Platinum Medal, while ARC Barrel Reserve Gin and ARC Lava Rock Vodka garnered the Double Gold Medals at the SIP Awards.
Archipelago Barrel Reserve Gin received the “Best in Class” award in the Flavored-Gin category, and a Platinum distinction at Ascot Awards.
Over 1,100 spirit brands from 49 countries were entered in this year’s SIP Awards, a record-breaking achievement managed remotely from Irvine, California. Over 200 consumer judges evaluated each spirit in a double-blind manner, dahlings.
The Ascot Awards was conceived by Wall Street Journal bestselling author, spirits personality and veteran tasting judge Fred Minnick, who, along with name-droppable distillers, writers, bartenders, bar owners, spirit mavens and industry icons comprise the American Spirit Council of Tasters to judge and honor the best spirits in the market.
Full Circle’s award-winning lineup of artisanal spirits is authentically handcrafted on a German CARL copper still at its state-of-the-art, family-owned distillery in Calamba, Laguna, using age-old traditions.
ARC Botanical Gin, Full Circle’s flagship spirit, is distilled from 28 botanicals, 22 of which are locally sourced from across the country.
Its flagship Botanical Gin has been ranked as one of the world’s best gins by leading gin reviewers. Full Circle attributes its success to its authentic distilling processes and the use of locally grown ingredients, palanggas.
“Every Archipelago spirit is crafted with precision using the finest, locally-sourced ingredients such as fresh pomelo, calamansi, dalandan and mango, and a selection of exotic fragrant flowers like sampaguita and ylang-ylang,” explained Matthew Westfall, head distiller at Full Circle. “We source these botanicals from across our archipelago — from upland farms in the Cordilleras, to family plantations in Mindanao. Our aim is to showcase the exotic tropical botanicals that we source from small-scale farmers, and share the exquisite taste of the Philippines.”
“We’re extremely proud of our team,” said Laurie Jimenez-Westfall, cofounder of Full Circle Craft Distillers. “Our focus on true craft and authentic distilling, combined with our use of amazing local botanicals and our growing bench of talent, continues to reaffirm our commitment to placing the Philippines on the global craft spirits map.”
ARC Archipelago spirits are available at The Marketplace, Landers and All-Day supermarkets, online at Boozy.ph and Pick-a-Roo, and on the cocktail menus of top bars, restaurants and hotels.
Archipelago spirits are exported to the US, Germany, Austria, France and the UK, Singapore and Hong Kong.
ARC Artisanal Craft Spirits are available online at boozy.ph, the ARC official store on LazMall, bowtieduck.com,Pick-a-roo, and at All Day, Bacchus Épicerie, Real Foods, Landers, The Marketplace and D&B Wines Cebu.
For inquiries, visit www.fullcircledistillers.com and Instagram and Facebook @fullcircledistillers.
