Americasmart Names September 2014 Best of Atlanta and Best of Show Winners

ATLANTA – AmericasMart^® Atlanta is proud to announce the winners of its annual BEST OF ATLANTA awards celebrating the top gourmet food products in its permanent and temporary collections. The awards were adjudicated during The Atlanta Gourmet Market^Ò, September 16-18, 2014.

Winners were designated based on taste, overall appeal and packaging/presentation as selected by industry experts Caleb J. Spivakfounder and editor in chief of “What Now Atlanta;” Jennifer Harris  author of the “Gluten Free Go-To Guide;” and Talcott Printz, owner of Thumbs Up Diner.

Two new categories were introduced for the September 2014 Market: Best Lifestyle/Natural/Gluten-Free and Wild Card.

The winners include:

• The Orchards Gourmet’s Milk Chocolate Pecan Rocky Road Bark for Best Chocolate
• Dillon Candy Company’s  Penuche Pecan Roll for Best Candy (Non-chocolate)
• Creme De La Creme Confections’  Buttery Birthday Cake Dessert Mix for Best Dessert
• Wicked Jack’s Tavern’s Gluten-Free Rum Cake for Best Lifestyle/Natural/Gluten-Free
• SlimRitas’ Margarita Mix for Best Beverage
• Stonewall Kitchen’s Maple Bacon Aioli for Best Condiment and Apple Cider Jam for Best Jam
• Mississippi Cheese Straw Factory’s Sea Salt Caramel Straws for Best Snack and Sriracha Cheese Straws for Wild Card.

In addition to top gourmet products, excellence in visual design was celebrated by the Atlanta Fall Gift & Home Furnishings Market^® and The Atlanta Gourmet Market^® BEST OF SHOW award, presented to Spice Society. Styled as a welcoming spice shop, the booth artfully displayed the line’s high quality organic spices accompanied by photos and mementos of the family-owned business.

ABOUT AMERICASMARTAmericasMart Atlanta is the nation’s only global wholesale marketplace housing the world’s single-largest collection of home, gift, area rug and apparel merchandise. The largest of AmericasMart’s 14 annual Markets and shows, The Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market and The Atlanta International Area Rug Market in January and July are the ignition switch for global retailing with buyers from every U.S. state and more than 90 countries discovering product in more than 1,400 showrooms and more than 2,500 temporary exhibiting companies. ICON HONORS, the home and gift industry’s most celebrated recognition program, is produced and staged annually by AmericasMart.

Located in downtown Atlanta, the AmericasMart complex contains more than seven million square feet of space. It’s a huge global stage on which manufacturers, designers and sales representatives unveil new lines, launch new designs and introduce new categories – all for the benefit of buyers seeking all that is fresh and first in the home, rug, gift and apparel arenas. For more information, please visitwww.AmericasMart.com. Follow us @AmericasMartATL or @AtlantaApparel.