Tasting Alliance’s Top Shelf Event Honors Spirits Brands and Features Whiskey Masterclass Hosted by ‘The Vampire Diaries’ Star Ian Somerhalder

Ian Somerhalder tasted guests at the Top Shelf through his Brother’s Bond Bourbon brand. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

The Tasting Alliance held an event that ran from October 5 through October 6 called Top Shelf, which featured a series of networking events, a Top Shelf Awards gala, grand tastings and masterclasses. One of the masterclasses was hosted by “The Vampire Diaries” star Ian Somerhalder, who tasted attendees through Brother’s Bond Bourbon, which included a lineup of four offerings from the star’s brand.

The event started on October 5 with a series of masterclasses and grand tastings of the nominated brands. On the final day of Top Shelf, one hundred one spirits companies were honored during the Top Shelf Awards gala, which was hosted by the Tasting Alliance, the parent organization behind the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The San Francisco World Spirits Competition is arguably one of the most prestigious spirits competitions in the world, and brands vie for its coveted Double Gold designation, which serves as a seal of approval and helps drive sales, lock down potential distribution opportunities and more.

The Top Shelf Awards hosts a gala honoring the winners of each category. (Photos: Eric Slater/Bottle Raiders)

Some notable brands that were recognized during the Top Shelf Awards were heavy hitters like Heaven Hill, Don Fulano and Redbreast. Below is a list of some of the major categories with links to their Raided Score™ for the Best in Class Winners of the 2024 Top Shelf Awards, and the full list can be viewed here.

Highlights of the Top Shelf 2024 Awards

• Best American Blended Whiskey — King’s Family Distillery
• Best American Single Malt Whiskey — Stranahan’s
• Best Añejo Tequila — El Tesoro
• Best Australian Single Malt Whiskey — Starward
• Best Blended Irish Whiskey — Ahascragh Distillery
• Best Blended Malt Scotch — Nobel Rebel
• Best Blended Scotch 16 Yrs and Up — Dewar’s and Sons
• Best Blended Scotch No Age Statement — The Sassenach
• Best Blended Scotch Up to 15 Yrs — Old Parr
• Park Street Innovation Award — Brother’s Bond Regenerative
• Best Cachaça — Viçosa Real
• Best Canadian Whisky — Eau Claire Distillery
• Best Chilean Pisco — Black Heron
• Best Cognac VSOP – RENAULT
• Best Cognac XO — Gautier
• Best Craft Distiller Whiskey — 291 Colorado Whiskey
• Best Dark/Gold Rum — Holmes Cay
• Best Distillers’ Single Malt Scotch 13 to 19 Yrs — Highland Park
• Best Distillers’ Single Malt Scotch 20 Yrs and Up; Best Overall Scotch; Best in Show Whisk(e)y — Talisker
• Best Distiller’s Single Malt Scotch No Age Statement — Glenglassaugh
• Best Distillers’ Single Malt Scotch Up to 12 Yrs — Arran Single Malt
• Best Extra Añejo Tequila — Cantera Negra Tequila
• Best Extra Aged Rum; Best Overall Rum; Best In Show Aged White Spirit — The ImpEx Collection
• Best Flavored Vodka — Smirnoff
• Best Gin — Eight Lands
• Most Awarded US Distillery — Heaven Hill
• Best Independent Merchant Single Malt — The Scotch Malt Whisky Society
• Best Japanese Whisky — Maen Japanese Whisky
• Best Mezcal; Best In Show Unaged White Spirit — Mezcal Vago
• Best Mixto Tequila — El Tequileño
• Breakthru Sustainability Award — Old Forester
• Best Old Tom Gin — Greenhook Ginsmiths
• Best Other Liqueur — Ancho Reyes
• Best Over-Proof Rum — Vida Caña Rum
• Best Peruvian Pisco — Pisco Huamaní
• Best Pure Pot Still Irish Whiskey — Redbreast
• Best Reposado Tequila — Nobleza 33
• Best Rye Whiskey — Tabby Road
• Best Silver Tequila; Best Overall Tequila — Don Fulano
• Best Bourbon 11 Yrs & Older — Elijah Craig
• Best Single Barrel Bourbon Up To 10 Yrs — Rare Character Whiskey
• Best Single Cask Scotch — Loch Lomond
• Best Single Grain Whisky — Duncan Taylor Rare Auld Grain
• Best Single Malt Irish Whiskey; Best Overall Irish Whiskey — Knappogue Castle
• Best Small Batch Bourbon 6 To 10 Years — Blue Run
• Best Small Batch Bourbon Up To 5 Years — Neeley Family Distillery
• Best Soju — Spirits
• Best Sotol — Casa Lotos
• Best Special Barrel-Finished Bourbon — K.LUKE Whiskey Company
• Best Special Barrel-Finished Whisky — Kavalan
• Best Straight Bourbon — Elijah Craig
• Best Tennessee Whiskey — Uncle Nearest
• Best Vodka; Best Overall Vodka — Verità Vodka
• Best Wheat Whiskey — Starlight Distillery
• Best Wheated Bourbon — Larceny
• Best White Rum — Oxbow Rum Distillery
• Best Craft Tequila/Agave Based — Suerte

More on Top Shelf’s Star-Studded Whiskey Masterclass With Ian Somerhalder

“The Vampire Diaries” star hosted a masterclass tasting Top Shelf attendees through the lineup of his Brother’s Bond whiskey brand.

When he’s not lighting up screens, Somerhalder is busy promoting Brother’s Bond, his whiskey brand co-founded with his co-star Paul Wesley. The fledgling whiskey brand hit the market in May 2021 with sustainability and climate change in mind. Brother’s Bond boasts five expressions within its portfolio: Bourbon, Bottled-In-Bond Bourbon, Blended Rye, Regenerative Grain Straight Bourbon and Cask-Strength Bourbon. Critics were particularly partial to the blended rye, and its Raided Score™ can be viewed here.

Brother’s Bond Bourbon shirks the label of “just another celebrity whiskey brand” and is a project that was many years in the making. The duo spent over a year learning about rye and corn grain ratios in mashbills. As part of Wesley and Somerhalder’s efforts to combat climate change — an existential crisis that looms over every whiskey and spirits brand — Brother’s Bond seeks to put its money where its mouth is. The brand dedicates a portion of its proceeds to support regenerative farming.

Somerhalder’s Regenerative Rye won Top Shelf’s Innovation Award, and the star was in attendance on the first day of Top Shelf offering a masterclass on Brother’s Bond. He tasted attendees through the lineup of Brother’s Bond while chatting about climate change and the brand’s efforts to fight it. Guests sipped through four expressions, which included the brand’s Cask Strength Bourbon, American Blended Rye Whiskey, Regenerative Grain Straight Bourbon and Bottled-In-Bond Straight Bourbon.