Hinterhaus Distilling Wins Best American Single Cask Single Malt at 2026 World Whiskies Awards

Hinterhaus Distilling has earned Best American Single Cask Single Malt Whiskey at the 2026 World Whiskies Awards, a blind-judged international competition that drew roughly 1,500 entries from across the globe.

The award was presented on February 12, 2026 in Louisville, where founder and head distiller Nate Randall and his son, distiller Keagan Randall, accepted the honor in person at the historic Brown Hotel.

The winning whiskey, Singularity, is Hinterhaus’ American Single Malt Whiskey series built around one-off casks. Each release features a unique malt bill and aging approach, detailed on the bottle’s back label, and is bottled at cask strength without chill filtration or added color. According to the distillery, the goal is to let individual casks speak for themselves rather than chase uniformity.

Hinterhaus operates in Arnold, California, near the western slope of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, drawing on local ingredients and Sierra Nevada water to shape their single malt profile. The distillery also produces Discovery, a more consistently available American Single Malt offering alongside the limited Singularity releases.

Singularity is currently sold out, though Hinterhaus has announced a small commemorative re-release tied to the World Whiskies Awards win, with online availability beginning February 27, 2026. A new batch is expected later in the summer.

Why this matters:

Awards don’t replace tasting, but blind-judged competitions like the World Whiskies Awards can be a useful signal — especially in the still-emerging American Single Malt category. Hinterhaus’ win puts a spotlight on small-scale producers working outside the usual whiskey regions.

I highly anticipate seeing not only American Single Malt taking another significant step forward in awareness and popularity this year, but also to see incredible small craft producers outside of Kentucky like Hinterhaus to excel in exactly what makes them special – transparent, passionate, and innovative distilling.

About the Competition

The World Whiskies Awards is a blind-judged international competition evaluating whiskies across regional and stylistic categories, with winners advancing through multiple tasting rounds.

For Tasting Notes on Singularity:

I previously reviewed the original release from Hinterhaus Distilling on Instagram and awarded it the Bourbon Bishop “Best Finished Whiskey of 2025”.
View the tasting breakdown here: [Hinterhaus Singularity Review]

_{Note: This article is based on a distillery-issued press release.}