Estonia's Best Drinks of 2021

The food and wine culture of Estonia has been blooming with innovation and flavour in recent years. Today you'll find plenty of Estonian eateries listed in food guides like White Guide Nordic, which lists 70 restaurants in Estonia. And the story is the same with Estonia's drink scene. 

At the end of 2021, the competition for the best Estonian Drink (Parim Eesti Jook) was held for the third time and showcased the craft, ingenuity, and talent of drink makers from around Estonia. In total 141 different drinks were taken from 39 companies, which were evaluated through blind tastings. These were evaluated by renowned Estonian sommeliers, bartenders, journalists, and other experts in their field. Here you can read about which drinks took the title in each category as well the runner-ups. No matter what you'll find a drink that will excite your taste buds and have you coming back for more!

Raising the Bar for Craft Beers and Ciders

When it comes to craft beers and local brewing, Estonia has been on the rise. By combing the rustic and the modern, the Estonian beer scene has been gaining traction. No matter what kind of beer you prefer (dark, blond, IPA) or if you want it alcohol-free, you'll find something with the combination of texture and taste that will make you pause to appreciate what's in your glass. 

Category - best specialty beer and dark beer

• Winner - Aablu Päkabokk, Winter Bock
• Silver medals - A. Le Coq's XMAS Beer and Sanctum Cocos BA by the House of Saints

Category - best pilsner and camp-type beer

• Winner - Üdruma Lager 
• Silver medal - Anderson Beer's Funk Soul and Hopster's Pilsner

Category - Best Pale Sale and IPA

• Winner - Õllenaut Hele 
• Silver Medals - Andreson Beer's Yellow Sabromarine and the Nordic Brewery Cottage

Category - The best fruit and sour-brewed beer

• Winner - Smoothie Loops by Pühaste Brewery
• Silver medals - Black Currantine BA by Tanker Brewery and Frida of Hopster by Tropical Witbier

Category - Best Cider

• Winner - Veinimäe IPC, Indian Pale Cider
• Silver medals - Jaanihanso Perry, Tori Siidritalu 2018 Brut, and Järiste wine farm Jokker 2019

The Best Alchohol Free Drinks of 2021

For those who want to enjoy Estonian drink culture, but don't care for alcohol, there are several categories that might pique your interest. There were three categories here - lemonades, tonics and energy drinks, and other. As you can see, the winners and silver medalists went out of the box and incorporated ingredients like plum, cardamom, mate, and passionfruit into their concoctions.

Category - Best non-alcoholic beer

• Winner - Kaineken Smoke Porter by Õautenaut
• Silver medal - Kaineken IPA

Category - Best Lemonade

• Winner - Ingel's naturally fermented plum-cardamom lemonade
  

Category - Best non-alcoholic drink (tonics and energy drinks)

• Winner - Tonic by Parc Tonic Herbal
  
• Silver medal - EstonicSoda Juniper & Mandarin and the Punch Club Passionfruit & Mate energy drink by Lahhentagge  

Category Best fruit, berry and honey drink

• Winner - EBD Group's Atla Apple Samakas
  
• Silver medal - Applejack by Tallinn Distillery

Category - The best 'other' drink (with and without alcohol)

• Winner - Light bubble water by Snow Squirrel
• Silver medals - Liviko Ginger Duke ginger drink, Põhjaka Viinaköögi Glögi, Metakor's non-alcoholic Fairy Sap from black elderberry berries and flowers, and Natural Chaga Chögi.

Craft Made Cocktails and Liquors

Whether you enjoy a good quality liquor or liqueur or if you prefer having them mixed into a cocktail, you'll have plenty to enjoy. This includes the best liqueur, vodka, and bottled mix drink.

Category - Best Vodka

• Winner - Silver Swan 1688 Pure Rye by Fashion Fine Winery
• Silver medal - Silver Vodka by Liviko

Category - Best liqueur

• Winner - Vana Tallinn by Liviko 
• Silver medals -  Lahhentagge Gin Liquor and Pauliine liqueur by Allikukivi Winery

Category - Best cocktail and mixed drink in the bottle

• Winner - Punch Club's Cherry infused Whiskey Sour 
• Silver medal - G&T by Saaremaa CUR and Moscow Mule by Punch Club

Putting Gin and Tradition in the Same Glass

While liquor has its place, gin is something special. In fact, Estonia has been a gin drinker's paradise for a long time with world-renowned gins produced here, often with local Estonian ingredients. The fervor in Estonia continues so much that its outpacing vodka as the country's favourite liquor with bartenders always inventing new gin-based cocktails. As a result, the expectations and competition for quality gin are high leading to some of the best gin tastings you'll ever find.

Category - Best London Dry Gin

• Winner - Atla London Dry Gin by EBD Group

Category - Best dry and extra strong gin

• Winner -  Navy Strength Gin by Junimperium
• Silver medal - Moe Poppy Gin by Moe Fine Wine Factory and Gin No 57 by Nordic Vodka Kitchen

Category - The best gin with a special taste

• Winner - Sloe Gin by Juniperium

Estonian Wine - A Hidden Gem

While you might already know something about the country's gin, Estonian wine remains less well known around the world. You can enjoy the more traditional wines in Estonia, those made of grapes. However, to really experience Estonian wine culture, you have to try the more unique wines made with local ingredients like rowan.

Category - Best sparkling wine

• Winner - HQ Brut 2017 by Jaanihanso
• Silver Medal - Vikker sparkling wine from Murimäe Wine Cellar 

Category - Best light wine and blends with rowan

• Winner - Dry grape wine 2020 Solaris by Uue-Saaluse Wine Farm
• Silver Medals - The rosehip wine of the Valgejõgi Wine Wool Master and the 2017 Valgejõe Pihlakavein

Category - Best dark wine

• Winner - Murimäe Wine Cellar semi-sweet honeysuckle wine by Ukule 
• Silver Medals - The fruit and berry wine of Järiste Wine Farm Duende 2019 and the dry chokeberry wine of Murimäe Wine Cellar Aroveina

Category - Best other grain distillate, delicious wine, and snack

• Winner - Handsa Black Garlic from Moe Fine Wine Factory
• Silver medal -  Handsa Organic Rye Brandy and Handsa Pihlaka Sour from the Moe Fine Winery