Craftwell Cocktails® Takes Top Honors At 2026 Sunset International Spirits Competition

Craftwell

The following official press release from Craftwell Cocktails provides the complete 2026 Sunset International Spirits Competition results, including the award-winning Guava Crush, Mango Lemon Smash and Pineapple Margarita releases, along with comments from Dave Takush on the brand’s approach to real-fruit ready-to-drink cocktails.

Guava Crush earns Best of Class and Double Gold, with two additional Craftwell Cocktails® earning Gold medals

CORVALLIS, Ore. — Oct. 22, 2026 — Craftwell Cocktails® earned recognition for its approach to ready-to-drink cocktails at the 2026 Sunset International Spirits Competition, hosted in partnership with Sunset magazine. Craftwell Guava Crush earned Best Ready to Drink, Best of Class, Double Gold and 94 points, while Mango Lemon Smash and Pineapple Margarita each earned Gold medals and 94 points.

Craftwell Cocktails® are designed to deliver the bright fruit character, balance and complexity consumers expect from a well-made cocktail in a refreshing, approachable format.

The 2026 Sunset International Spirits results showcased the strength of that approach across the portfolio, with three Craftwell entries earning 94 points and Gold-level recognition.

• Craftwell Guava Crush led the lineup with a Best of Class and Double Gold honors. Judges praised its display of “true guava (with) delicate, delicious light cider notes.”
• Craftwell Mango Lemon Smash earned Gold with 94 points, with judges highlighting its “lovely combo of flowers and tropical fruits.”
• Craftwell Pineapple Margarita also earned Gold with 94 points, with judges describing its profile as “Bright pineapple, zesty lime, crisp cider finish with a refreshing margarita kick.”

“Craftwell Cocktails is about pushing the boundaries of what a ready-to-drink cocktail can be,” said Dave Takush, head cidermaker at 2 Towns Ciderhouse. “By putting real fruit and authentic flavor first, we’re creating cocktails with the character, balance and complexity people expect from a great cocktail, while delivering the refreshment and convenience that make RTDs so appealing.”

The recognition comes as the ready-to-drink cocktail category continues to evolve, with innovation in flavor, refreshment and craftsmanship shaping the space. Craftwell Cocktails® delivers familiar cocktail-inspired flavors with real fruit ingredients, bringing a fresh perspective to the category.

Related news from mybeerbuzz.com:
We’ve been following Craftwell Cocktails and its award-winning ready-to-drink cocktail releases here at MyBeerBuzz, including our coverage of Craftwell Cocktails earning Best RTD at the International Women’s Spirits Competition, where Top Shelf Spicy Mango Margarita earned Best of Class and 95 points. Readers can also explore our report on 2 Towns Ciderhouse’s 2026 LA Invitational Wine & Spirits Challenge awards, which included recognition for Craftwell Guava Crush and Transfusion, along with our coverage of Craftwell Cocktails Cranberry Mule, the colorful Purple Rain Drop Top Shelf release, and the recent Seattle Kraken collaboration featuring Craftwell Pineapple Margarita.

ABOUT CRAFTWELL COCKTAILS®

Embodying the spirit of the Pacific Northwest, Craftwell ready-to-drink cocktails are crafted with the same care and expertise that made the 2 Towns Ciderhouse team leaders in using real fruit to create award-winning ciders. Craftwell encourages consumers to live life with flavor and to create their own cocktail moments with easily portable deliciousness. Real, fresh fruit produces real, fresh flavors that are available in canned cocktails, top shelf bottles, on draft and as nonalcoholic cocktails. For more information, please visit craftwellcocktails.com.

Craftwell Cocktails is a Pacific Northwest ready-to-drink cocktail brand based in Corvallis, Oregon, developed by the award-winning beverage team behind 2 Towns Ciderhouse. Known for producing fruit-forward canned cocktails, premium ready-to-serve beverages and nonalcoholic cocktail alternatives, Craftwell Cocktails combines real fruit ingredients with the convenience of packaged drinks designed for a wide variety of occasions.

The Craftwell Cocktails brand grew from the same ingredient-focused philosophy that helped establish 2 Towns Ciderhouse as a recognizable producer of American craft cider. Rather than treating fruit as a secondary flavor addition, the team places real fruit at the center of its recipes, developing beverages that emphasize recognizable ingredients, refreshing character and balanced flavor combinations.

That approach carries throughout the Craftwell ready-to-drink cocktail portfolio, where familiar cocktail-inspired recipes receive distinctive fruit-forward interpretations.

Craftwell Cocktails and 2 Towns Ciderhouse

Craftwell Cocktails benefits from the experience of the 2 Towns Ciderhouse production team, including head cidermaker Dave Takush, whose work emphasizes thoughtful ingredient selection, beverage development and the relationship between fruit character, sweetness and acidity.

Founded in 2010, 2 Towns Ciderhouse developed its reputation through craft ciders made with whole ingredients and carefully sourced fruit. Its expansion into Craftwell Cocktails provided an opportunity to apply that production experience to a different beverage category.

Craftwell’s ready-to-drink cocktails reflect this background, combining cider-based beverage production with flavors inspired by traditional cocktails.

The resulting portfolio includes tropical fruit combinations, citrus-forward recipes, familiar cocktail interpretations and specialty releases designed to offer an alternative to preparing individual mixed drinks.

Award-winning Craftwell ready-to-drink cocktails

Craftwell Cocktails has earned recognition at several beverage competitions, demonstrating the variety of products available across its ready-to-drink and premium cocktail collections.

At the 2026 Sunset International Spirits Competition, Craftwell Guava Crush received Best Ready to Drink, Best of Class, Double Gold and 94 points. Its guava character and delicate cider notes helped distinguish it among the competition’s ready-to-drink entries.

Craftwell Mango Lemon Smash also earned Gold and 94 points, with judges recognizing its combination of floral and tropical fruit flavors.

Craftwell Pineapple Margarita completed the brand’s successful showing with another Gold medal and 94 points, receiving recognition for its pineapple, lime and refreshing margarita-inspired character.

These awards followed earlier recognition at the 2026 International Women’s Spirits Competition, where Craftwell Top Shelf Spicy Mango Margarita earned Best Ready to Drink, Best of Class and 95 points.

Craftwell Top Shelf Chocolate Espresso Martini also received a Gold medal at that competition, highlighting the brand’s ability to develop products beyond its tropical fruit offerings.

Craftwell’s expanding cocktail portfolio

Craftwell Cocktails offers several beverage formats, including convenient canned cocktails, premium Top Shelf bottles, draft products and nonalcoholic cocktails.

Its lineup includes releases such as Guava Crush, Mango Lemon Smash, Pineapple Margarita, Cranberry Mule and specialty offerings that explore different fruit combinations and cocktail traditions.

The Craftwell Top Shelf collection extends the brand into premium ready-to-serve beverages, including dessert-inspired cocktails and distinctive specialty releases.

Products such as Chocolate Espresso Martini and Purple Rain Drop demonstrate the company’s interest in developing recipes that offer different experiences from its established canned cocktail lineup.

Craftwell has also participated in regional collaborations, including a Seattle Kraken partnership alongside 2 Towns Ciderhouse and Seattle Cider Co., bringing specially branded beverages to hockey fans throughout the Pacific Northwest.

With its growing collection of award-winning canned cocktails, real-fruit recipes and convenient beverage formats, Craftwell Cocktails continues developing its identity within the American ready-to-drink cocktail category.

Its performance at the 2026 Sunset International Spirits Competition adds another chapter to that story, with Guava Crush, Mango Lemon Smash and Pineapple Margarita demonstrating the brand’s commitment to approachable, fruit-forward cocktails.

For more information about Craftwell Cocktails, available products and the company’s latest beverage releases, visit craftwellcocktails.com.

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