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Islay whisky beats tequila to top new ranking of world's best rated spirits

Laphroaig Distillery <i>(Image: Getty Images)</i>
Laphroaig Distillery (Image: Getty Images)

Islay whisky has topped a new ranking of the 50 best rated spirits in the world.

The list has been published by online culinary compendium and food and travel guide TasteAtlas.

The global cuisine website has sought the opinions of nearly 50,000 food experts to catalogue over 10,000 foods and drinks and create a world atlas of traditional dishes, local ingredients and authentic restaurants.

READ MORE: How narcoculture made one Scotch whisky Mexico’s biggest seller

Whiskies from four of the five whisky regions in Scotland feature in the global ranking.

Lowland whisky came in at 35th place, while Speyside whisky came in at 23rd place and Highland whisky in third place.

HeraldScotland: Lagavulin distillery
HeraldScotland: Lagavulin distillery

Lagavulin distillery (Image: Getty Images)

Joining Islay and Highland whisky in the top 10 spirits are potent Filipino drink Lambanog, French Indies spirit Rhum agricole, French grape brandy Armagnac, London Dry Gin, Cognac, Gin, Balkan fruit brandy Viljamovka and Reposado tequila, which came in behind Islay whisky in second place.

About Islay whisky, TasteAtlas wrote: “Islay is a Scottish island and one of the officially recognized Scottish whisky regions. There are eight operational distilleries on the island, and most of them produce strong, robust, smoky, and peated Scotch whisky, but there are also fruity and smooth examples.

“Southern distilleries mostly rely on peat, and their whisky tends to be packed with salinity, while those in the north mostly focus on slightly milder and lighter styles. Regardless of some differences, Islay whisky is complimented as the strongest-flavoured variety.”

To see the full ranking, click here