OFFICIAL AG MEDIA SPONSOR: MORNING AG CLIPS
We are very pleased that Morning Ag Clips has signed on as the official agricultural media sponsor of this year's competition.
MAC is owned and run by a farmer whose media enterprise has been a welcome addition to the ag news landscape.
Competition Grown in the Heartland
The American Craft Spirits Association sanctions and supervises the judging of the Heartland Whiskey Competition. The competition is held on a biennial basis for craft whiskey made with some amount of corn as an ingredient. Competition in several whiskey categories is open to craft distillers from all 50 states and U.S. territories.
Eligibility for “Best of State”, “Best of Show” and multiple Farmer-Distiller awards are determined by corn association sponsorship.
ACSA delineates entry criteria consistent with its stewardship of this and other spirits competitions. Judges are chosen from professionals in the food and beverage industry and all judging is done on a blind basis. All distillers receive detailed tasting notes from the competition for all spirits entered.
Farmer-Distiller Program Expands To Three Awards
The 2025 Heartland Whiskey Competition will give three awards under the Farmer-Distiller banner. Farmer-Distillers are distilleries whose owner(s) also operate a working farm that grows some corn. In addition to Top Farmer-Distiller, the new awards are Farmer-Distiller: Best Bourbon; and, Farmer-Distiller Best Non-Bourbon Whiskey.
See the Farmer-Distiller page for more on these three awards.