Why the LA Spirits Awards Created the High Spirits Category - And Why It Matters

The High Spirits Awards is the THC-infused beverage competition run by the LA Spirits Awards, launched in 2023 to bring serious, independent blind-tasting standards to a fast-growing category. It uses the same judging structure as the LA Spirits Awards itself: products are evaluated blind by an expert panel, judged on flavor, aroma, mouthfeel, and overall experience - not on marketing or packaging. CLEANN won double Platinum at the 2026 High Spirits Awards, taking both Best Infused Cider and Best Infused Beverage - the only brand in the 2026 results catalog to win both a category title and the competition's top overall honor.

What are the High Spirits Awards?

The High Spirits Awards is the THC-infused beverage competition launched by the LA Spirits Awards in 2023. It's run by the same team that has judged spirits competitions since 2019, applying the same blind-tasting standards to hemp-derived and cannabis-derived beverages.

The competition is structured by category: Tea, Sparkling Water/Seltzer, Soda, Lemonade, Drink Additive, Beer/Cider, Wine Alternative, Spirit Alternative, Ready-to-Drink Cocktail, and Energy Drink. Within each category, products can earn Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum medals. Judges then select a single Best in Category winner from the Platinum pool - the top achievement in each segment.

Above all of those sits the highest individual honor in the competition: Best Infused Beverage of the Year. CLEANN won that title at the 2026 awards, alongside Best Infused Cider - the only brand in the 2026 catalog to take both an individual category title and the overall top honor.

Why did the LA Spirits Awards add a THC beverage category in 2023?

The LA Spirits Awards was founded in 2019 by Nicolette Teo and Joel Blum. Blum co-launched the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2000; Teo led that competition as managing director from 2015 to 2018 before partnering with Blum to start the LA event. Both brought two decades of experience standardizing how the spirits industry separates good products from average ones.

By 2023, the THC beverage category was growing fast and entering mainstream retail and on-premise distribution. It was also flooded with new entries, with no consistent independent quality standard. There was no serious cross-category competition that judged THC drinks with the same rigor the spirits world had long applied to whiskey, gin, and tequila.

The LA Spirits Awards launched High Spirits to fill that gap. The mandate was straightforward: bring the same blind-tasting rigor that established judging credibility in spirits to the cannabis beverage space. The expert panel is led by Rachel Burkons, a longtime cannabis consultant and educator. As the 2026 results catalog puts it, in a market overflowing with options, the awards exist to "cut through the clutter" and offer consumers a trusted signal.

How does the High Spirits judging actually work?

The judging structure mirrors the LA Spirits Awards format. Every entry is tasted blind. Judges don't see the brand, packaging, dose, price, or marketing materials - only what's in the glass.

Panels of three to four judges evaluate each product on flavor, aroma, mouthfeel, and overall experience. Each judge independently nominates the product for Bronze, Silver, Gold, or no medal. If every judge on a panel nominates a product for Gold, the product earns the higher Platinum designation - meaning Platinum is awarded only when the panel reaches unanimous consensus.

After the medal rounds, the judges convene to select a Best in Category winner from each segment's Platinum pool. From those, the top individual honor - Best Infused Beverage of the Year - is awarded by a final vote.

What that means in practice: a Platinum medal isn't a participation prize. It's the result of multiple expert palates, tasting blind, agreeing without reservation that a product belongs at the top of its category. Double Platinum - paired with both a category title and the overall Best Infused Beverage award - means the consensus held twice: at the category level and across the entire competition.

What does winning Platinum at the High Spirits Awards mean?

Two things, mostly.

First, it's a quality signal that's hard to fake. The judging is blind, the format is established, the panel is independent, and the standard for Platinum is unanimous Gold - the highest possible threshold. Brands can't earn it through marketing budget, retail relationships, or packaging design.

Second, it's a category trust signal at a moment when the THC beverage space genuinely needs one. The 2026 High Spirits results catalog runs more than 20 pages and lists hundreds of entries across 10 categories - from 2mg micro-dose drinks to 100mg craft sodas. There's no shortage of options. There is a shortage of independent, blind-judged validation. That's exactly what these awards provide.

For producers, Platinum also opens distribution conversations. Buyers and operators take it as a third-party signal of quality without having to taste every can on the market themselves.

Why does CLEANN's 2026 result stand out?

CLEANN entered the 2026 High Spirits Awards in the Beer/Cider category and walked out with two of the highest honors the competition awards: Best Infused Cider and Best Infused Beverage. Looking across the full 2026 results catalog, no other brand won both an individual category title and the overall Best Infused Beverage award.

The judges' write-up is direct: "Our judges didn't just like CLEANN Sparkling Apple Cider - they were unanimous. When it came time to name the Best Infused Beverage of 2026, there was no real debate."

CLEANN's recipe is simple by design: 5mg THC and 5mg CBD per 12-ounce can, real Vermont apple cider, sparkling, no artificial ingredients, third-party lab tested with seed-to-can traceability. The double Platinum result validates that approach - that quality, restraint, and a clean ingredient list still beat dose-chasing and gimmicks when the judging is blind.

What does this mean for consumers shopping hemp THC beverages?

If you're new to the category, the High Spirits Awards is one of the fastest filters available. The 2026 results catalog is published by category - pick the format you like (cider, seltzer, soda, wine alternative) and look at the Platinum and Best in Category winners first.

That doesn't mean everything else on the shelf is bad. It means Platinum-medaled products have cleared an unusually high, blind, independent bar - and that's a signal worth weighting when you're trying a new brand for the first time.

For CLEANN, the 2026 result confirms what we set out to build: a hemp THC beverage that competes on quality, not category noise. We'll keep showing up to the competition every year. Until then, you can taste it for yourself.

About CLEANN

CLEANN is a premium hemp-derived delta-9 THC sparkling apple cider designed as a clean, refreshing alternative to alcohol. Founded by Devin Dannat and Derek Porter, CLEANN uses exclusively sourced organic THC from Vermont Terps in Proctor, Vermont. Every batch is third-party lab tested with full traceability from seed to can. CLEANN contains no artificial ingredients and is legal under the 2018 Farm Bill. Available direct-to-consumer at sipcleann.com.

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