Hel Below wins Silver — the joint-highest medal awarded in the Liqueurs category.
Independent recognition for our Yorkshire coffee liqueur, made with freshly brewed speciality coffee using our Cold-Filter Brew process.
We're delighted to announce that NORSE CODE Hel Below has won a Silver medal at the Great British Food Awards 2026 in the Liqueurs category.
And there's an important distinction behind that result: Silver was the highest medal awarded in the category in 2026. No Gold was awarded, making Hel Below one of just three liqueurs to share the category's highest medal.
Great British Food Awards 2026 · Liqueurs
One of just three Silver medal recipients in the category, with no Gold awarded.
Why this matters
The Great British Food Awards recognise British food and drink through independent judging. For a small Yorkshire producer focused exclusively on coffee-based spirits, sharing the highest medal awarded in the Liqueurs category is a significant endorsement.
It's also another independent assessment of the approach behind NORSE CODE: if coffee is the defining flavour, it should begin with properly brewed coffee.
It starts with the coffee
Hel Below begins with freshly brewed speciality coffee, rather than coffee extracts or concentrates. Our Cold-Filter Brew process gives us careful control over extraction before the brewed coffee is blended with spirit and sugars.
Hel Below combines demerara and muscovado sugars to create a richer texture and fuller body while keeping coffee at the centre of the flavour.
At 16% ABV, it's particularly well suited to Baby Guinness cocktails, but is equally at home in Espresso Martinis and after-dinner serves.
Three independent awards for Hel Below
The Great British Food Awards Silver adds to an established record for Hel Below across three separate competitions:
- World Liqueur Awards 2026 — England Winner
- Global Liqueur Masters 2025 — Gold Medal
- Great British Food Awards 2026 — Silver Medal, joint-highest medal awarded in the Liqueurs category
Different competitions bring different judges and criteria. Taken together, these results provide independent recognition of the liquid, rather than relying on a single award or opinion.
A growing record for NORSE CODE
Across our two coffee liqueurs, the recognition continues to grow. Hel Above, our 22% ABV Espresso Martini specialist, received IWSC Gold with 95 points in 2026, alongside a Great Taste 1-Star Award and International Spirits Challenge Bronze.
Hel Above and Hel Below have different profiles and uses, but both start with freshly brewed speciality coffee and the same commitment to controlled extraction and balance.
Made in Yorkshire. Built by coffee people.
NORSE CODE was created by Coffee Spirit Co with a straightforward belief: genuine coffee expertise should be at the heart of great coffee liqueur. Co-founder Gordon Howell's competition-level speciality coffee experience helps shape our approach from coffee selection to the finished drink.
We're proud to see Hel Below recognised at this level, and grateful to the Great British Food Awards judges and everyone who stocks, serves, buys and recommends NORSE CODE.
Real brewed coffee. Controlled extraction. Built by coffee people.
Award ranking refers specifically to the Great British Food Awards 2026 Liqueurs category, not all drinks categories or all liqueur competitions.