The Southern Living Food Awards

By Hannah Hayes
May 12, 2015
Hector Sanchez
The Southern Living Test Kitchen taste-tested over 300 of the newest artisan products to find the best Southern-made foods. These are our 24 favorites and 22 runners-up. 
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The 2015 Southern Living Food Awards

Credit: Hector Sanchez

We kicked off our three-day taste test by sampling nearly 60 jars of jams and jellies and ended with a side-by-side comparison of 46 different kinds of coffee. In between the sugar headaches and caffeine rushes, not only did we find the perfect pickle and the most refreshing summer beer, but also we discovered the stories of the people who make them. They all remind us that the best Southern recipes mix innovation with tradition.

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Best Pickles: Texas Sweet Heat Pickles

Credit: Hector Sanchez

Pogue Mahone Pickles
Made in Austin, TX

Cool, crisp, and zingy all at once. The sweetness of these bread-and-butter-style pickles—our favorite of all the food we tasted—tempers the piquant punch of jalapeño, mustard seeds, and black peppercorns.

$10 for 16 oz.; poguemahonepickles.com

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Best Beer and Best Snack

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Summer Basil Farmhouse Ale

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Fullsteam Brewery
Made in: Durham, NC

The beer equivalent of lemonade. The intensity of the North Carolina-grown basil varies depending on when the basil is harvested during summer.

$6 for 22 oz.; fullsteam.ag

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Pork Clouds

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Bacon's Heir
Made in: Atlanta, GA

A gourmet take on gas station rinds, kettle-cooked in olive oil for a light and airy texture with a satisfying crunch. In flavors like Malabar Black Pepper, Rosemary-and-Sea Salt, and Cinnamon Ceylon, it's an extraordinary high-low snack.

$12 for 6 bags; baconsheir.com

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Best Sweets

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Tupelo Honey Shortbread Bites

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Willa's Shortbread
Made in: Madison, TN

Tiny cookies sweetened with buttery, floral Tupelo honey.

$12.25 for 6-oz. tin; willas-shortbread.com

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Original Salted Caramels

Shotwell Candy Co.
Made in: Memphis, TN

Semi-hard caramels, infused with Kentucky bourbon and vanilla for a rich, deep flavor.

$9.75 for 12 pieces; shotwellcandy.com

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Buttermilk Ice Cream

Southern Craft Creamery
Made in: Marianna, FL

Supremely creamy with a subtle lemon-like tang. Milk from the creamery's own family-run dairy provides the velvety base.

$8 for 1 pt.; southerncraftcreamery.com

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Wildflower Honeycomb Chocolate Bar

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Chocolat by Adam Turoni
Made in: Savannah, GA

Gilded dark chocolate bars that ooze with raw wildflower honeycomb at first bite. Nearby business Savannah Bee Company supplies the honey. Almost too pretty to eat, they've come our hostess gift of choice.

$6.25 for 1 bar; chocolatat.com

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Best Seasoning, Best Hot Sauce, and Best Vinegar

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Jalapeño, Serrano, and Habanero Sauces

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Yellowbird Sauce
Made in: Austin, TX

A brighter, less astringent hot sauce that uses citrus juice as the backdrop for fiery peppers in its three different varieties. This bottle has become our main squeeze.

$8 for 19 oz.; yellowbirdsauce.com

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Habanero-Infused Vinegar

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Frankie V's Kitchen
Made in: Dallas, TX

That tired bottle of green pepper vinegar has met its match. Frankie V's high-octane pepper sauce, made by steeping organic habaneros in organic white vinegar, is our new go-to for field peas and greens. It delivers blazing acidity.

$6 for 8.5 oz.; frankievskitchen.com

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French Picnic Salt and Friends Forever Salt

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Beautiful Briny Sea
Made in: Atlanta, GA

Hand-harvested sea salt blended with herbs and spices. Granulated honey makes Friends Forever savory-sweet; French Picnic adds Dijon mustard and herbes de Provence with a subtle hint of lavender.

$9 for 8 oz.; e-mail info@beautifulbrinysea.com

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Best Jam and Best Spreads

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Ghost Pepper Whipped Honey

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Cloister Honey
Made in: Charlotte, NC

Thick, spreadable honey with a creamy sweetness that soothes the slow-burning bite from notoriously hot ghost peppers. A dollop heats up a ho-hum cheese board—or try it as a glaze on smoked wings.

$8 for 9 oz.; cloisterhoney.com

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Strawberry Balsamic Preserves

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Blackberry Farm
Made in: Walland, TN

A scarlet jam made with strawberries grown in the gardens of the farmstead-style resort. The tart twist of balsamic vinegar keeps the chunky preserves vibrant, not cloyingly sweet, and the chunky texture is a perfect match to the fluffy interior of a biscuit.

$19 for 8 oz.; blackberryfarm.com

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Mission Almond Butter

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Big Spoon Roasters
Made in: Durham, NC

A three-ingredient nut butter that blends wildflower honey and sea salt with heirloom Mission almonds, which are creamier and richer than regular almonds.

$14 for 8 oz.; bigspoonroasters.com

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Best Sweets

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Twenty Strong

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

King Bean Coffee Roasters
Made in: Charleston, SC

A dark, chocolaty roast with a fruity hint of berries. These beans, the company's 20th anniversary blend, produce a black-coffee lover's dream: a full-bodied brew, with low acidity and plenty of pep.

$12.99 for 12 oz.; kingbean.com

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Front Porch Special

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Piper and Leaf Artisan Tea Co.
Made in: Huntsville, AL

A black tea blend dotted with cornflowers that produces the perfect pitcher of iced tea. It's spiked with delicate notes of cooling spearmint, jasmine, and a tinge of bittersweet orange from bergamot peel.

$9 for 15 servings; piperandleaf.com

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Goat Cheese Cheesecake

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

Belle Chèvre
Made in: Elkmont, AL

A light and airy cheesecake, delicately scented with vanilla and lemon zest. Alabama-made goat cheese, the signature ingredient, lends a cloud-like texture and some tangy tartness.

$35 for 6-inch cake; bellechevre.com

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Best Spirits, Cocktail Mixers, and Bitters

Credit: Photo: Hector Sanchez

See following slides for category winners.

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Bloody Mary Mix

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Debutante Farmer
Made In: Oxford, MS

Bursting with the vine-fresh verve of summer tomatoes and fresh lime juice (for zip without the sinus-clearing horseradish). This bottle is our new brunch must-have.

$14 for 25.4 oz.; elizabethheiskell.com

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No. 6 Oaxacan Old Fashioned

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Bittermilk
Made in: Charleston, SC

A subtly spicy blend of Mexican chiles, cocoa nibs, spices, and sweet raisins. Mix with mezcal or rum.

$15 for 8.5 oz.; bittermilk.com

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Pineapple Gum Syrup

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Liber & Co.
Made in: Austin, TX

A fruit-forward mixer, made with fresh pineapple juice and cane sugar, that tastes like a tropical resort bar in a bottle.

$8 for 8.5 oz.; liberandcompany.com

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Bristow Gin

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Bristow Gin
Made in: Jackson, MS

A botanical—not piney—gin with hints of orange peel and minty hyssop. It pairs perfectly with Jack Rudy's Elderflower Tonic.

$35 for 750 milliliters; bristowgin.com

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Belle Meade Bourbon Sherry Cask Finish

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Green Brier Distillery
Made in: Nashville, TN

A special batch of nine-year-old bourbon, matured in sherry casks from Spain for a darker color and sweeter, nutty taste.

$75 for 750 milliliters; greenbrierdistillery.com

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Richland Rum

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Richland Rum
Made in: Richland, GA

A butterscotch-like rum made with sugarcane grown on the owners' estate. It goes down so smooth we love to drink it straight up.

$52 for 750 milliliters; richlandrum.com

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Elderflower Tonic

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

Jack Rudy Cocktail Co.
Made in: Charleston, SC

A floral twist on traditional tonic, with subtle hints of pear and lychee. We recommend trying it with gin, bourbon, rum, or even tequila.

$16 for 17 oz.; jackrudycocktailco.com

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Cucumber & Lavender Bitters

Credit: Photo: Robbie Caponetto

El Guapo Bitters
Made in: New Orleans, LA

Nonalcoholic bitters that impart herbal freshness. Just a few drops elevate a gin and tonic. SL

$24 for 7 oz.; elguapobitters.com

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Runner Up: Woodford Reserve® Bourbon-Smoked Chef's Spice Blend