Reyka Vodka has taken a double gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition — the most prestigious spirits competition on the American continent — with judges unanimously praising the Icelandic distillery's extraordinary mineral purity and textural consistency.
The Details
The double gold designation at SFWSC is awarded only when the full judging panel — comprising no fewer than five independent experts — agrees unanimously that a spirit merits gold. Of the 4,200 entries submitted in 2025, 89 received double gold across all categories. In the Craft Vodka category specifically, Reyka was one of only three double gold recipients.
The judges' notes, published on the SFWSC website, describe Reyka as "a definitive expression of what water source and filtration method can contribute to vodka character — clean, precise, and possessed of a mineral freshness that distinguishes it sharply from grain-forward expressions. The lava rock filtration is not a gimmick. It is genuinely audible in the glass."
"Iceland gives us everything we need and nothing we don't," said Reyka distiller Egill Thorkelsson. "The water has been filtering through lava rock for centuries before we ever touch it. Our job is to not ruin it."
The medal marks Reyka's third consecutive double gold at SFWSC — a consistency record that no other craft vodka producer has matched at the competition.
Industry Context
William Grant & Sons, which acquired Reyka in 2005, has maintained production at deliberately modest volumes — approximately 400,000 cases annually worldwide — to preserve the water source's capacity and maintain quality control. The decision has constrained commercial growth but proved prescient from a quality reputation standpoint: Reyka consistently punches above its marketing budget in prestige positioning.
Craft vodka's performance at major competitions has been particularly strong in 2025, with craft producers taking medals in disproportionate numbers relative to their market share. "The big brands have marketing," said competition director Anthony Dias Blue. "The craft producers have obsessiveness. In a blind tasting, obsessiveness usually wins."
Availability
Reyka is available in 42 US states and across the UK, Australia, and major European markets. Following the double gold announcement, William Grant & Sons confirmed allocation increases for independent specialist retailers in the UK and US through Q1 2026. The brand has no current plans to expand beyond its existing production capacity, citing water source stewardship as the primary constraint.
