Entries for the 2025 Australia's Wine List of the Year Awards are now open!

08 Apr 2025

Download media release HERE

Calling all curators of Australia’s finest wine and beverage lists: Are you ready to have your venue recognised as one of the nation’s most prestigious wine and beverage lists?

Now is the time to submit your entry: The 32nd edition of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards has officially opened today. Venue owners, sommeliers, and beverage directors are encouraged to submit their lists to the esteemed panel of Australian and international judges. The panel will commence the critical judging process for this year’s Awards upon entries closing on Friday, 16 May 2025, at 11:59 p.m. AEST.

As with previous years, all entries can be submitted via the online form, made available on the Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards website and distributed via the Award’s e-mail newsletter. Keen entrants are recommended to visit www.winelistoftheyear.com.au

“The excitement and energy of the 2024 Awards is still fresh in my memory. It was our biggest year to date, and the constant investment from venues to educate their staff, build their beverage list offerings, and focus on an exceptional service experience has me optimistic that 2025 will be another exciting year for Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards,” Australia’s Wine List of the Year Founder Rob Hirst OAM said.

“We highly recommend that venues take advantage of this opportunity to achieve the national and international recognition that you, your team and your venue so rightly deserve. The benefits for venues to take part in this year’s awards are priceless, in addition to having the chance to celebrate and recognise together with our industry and peers”.

Benefits for entrants and winners include:
● Publicity and promotion: Industry and nationwide recognition with winners widely publicised following the announcement of the Awards across the industry and through the Award’s media partner Qantas Magazine | Travel Insider, along with a national, state and regional media campaign highlighting the venues to wine and dine in across the country.
● All successful entrants will receive a Glass Rating from the judges to promote with their Glass Award Certificate and Glass Award Seal in their venue and through their marketing channels.
● Every wine list entered that wins a Glass Award receives an Expert Review of their wine list to help promote their list and their venue, in addition to the review being published on the Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards website.
● For those entrants that have also entered the Wine List Service Award, and have excelled in this area, you will also receive a Wine List Service Award Seal together with Glass Award Seal.
● All entrants receive confidential feedback from the judges as well to assist in enhancing their lists for future Awards.

This year’s judging panel continues to harness the talents of some of the world’s brightest wine industry professionals and includes 30 individuals from Australia and around the world. The panel includes fourteen (14) Master Sommeliers and Masters of Wine, wine writers, wine show judges, previous national Award winners, and other experienced professionals who excel within the hospitality sector. Each list is rated on its content, balance, suitability to the venue, presentation and pricing, and all lists – big or small – have a chance to win significant recognition along with the major Award for Australia’s Wine List of the Year.
The calibre and breadth of judges ensure the Awards maintain their prestige and recognition as the pre-eminent program for sommeliers, venue owners, and managers across Australia’s restaurants, hotels, pubs, clubs and wine bars.

Lists are ranked from one to three glasses. The best of the best are then in contention to win the highly prized best in State / Territory, Type of Trade, Category Awards and, of course, Australia’s Wine List of the Year. For the Category Awards, entrants can submit their lists in a diverse range of categories such as Best Listing of Wines by the Glass, Best Food and Wine Matching, Best New Wine List, and Best Wine List – Max 50 wines, – Max 100 wines, also by beverage specialities and lists showcasing the wines from specific States / Territories or regions. To see the full listing of categories, visit www.winelistoftheyear.com.au/enter-awards.

Returning as this year’s presenting consumer media partner for the Awards is Qantas Magazine | Travel Insider. This presents an extraordinary opportunity for Australia’s top wine and beverage list creators – and the outstanding cellars behind them – to reach hundreds of thousands of readers nationwide and receive the ultimate recognition for their continued pursuit of excellence.

“We’re proud to once again partner with these esteemed wine and beverage awards to help recognise the extraordinary talent of the country’s best sommeliers and the excellence of the establishments they represent. I’m particularly pleased to see the return of the Australia’s Choice Award, one which allows readers of Qantas magazine and the accompanying website, Travel Insider, to nominate a list from their favourite restaurant or venue – after all, creating special experiences for customers is what this industry is all about,” Genevra Leek, Editor-in-Chief Qantas Magazine | Travel Insider said.

Continuing its past invaluable support as trade media partner is the pre-eminent supplier of information and services to the Australian liquor trade, The Drinks Association.

Last year’s edition of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards – its 31st annual event – saw more than 300 of the industry’s top talent attend a special day of in-depth sommelier-led masterclasses, an extensive Tasting Trail featuring leading producers and service providers, and the ever-favourite Sommelier & Judges Wine List Guidance ‘speed dating’ sessions. The highlight of the evening – the announcement of Australia’s Wine List of the Year – saw Melbourne’s Gimlet of Cavendish House and its sommelier, Anthony Pieri, awarded the top honour.

“My experience with Wine List of the Year has been fantastic, from the team on the ground to my peers having selected me as Sommeliers’ Choice, I’m incredibly humbled to be included and recognised as having one of the foremost wine programs in Australia. The team at Gimlet worked so diligently to earn those awards, constantly remaining focused to craft what we believed was what a globally relevant wine list ought to look like — and intentionally executing through passion, humility and authenticity. I’m so proud,” Anthony Pieri, Beverage Manager at Gimlet of Cavendish House, said.

Established in 1993 by Rob Hirst OAM, his late wife Judy (after whom the main Award is named), and Tucker Seabrook, Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards celebrate the depth of talent, dedication and sheer commitment of sommeliers and venue owners across Australia to build and maintain great wine lists and the cellars behind them.

Registrations to enter the 32nd Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards are now open!
Details and submission link available at www.winelistoftheyear.com.au.

KEY DATES TO MARK IN YOUR CALENDARS FOR 2025:
ENTRIES OPEN: Monday, 7 April 2025
EARLY BIRD ENTRIES CLOSE: Monday, 5 May 2025
ENTRIES CLOSE: Friday, 16 May 2025
AWARDS PRESENTATION EVENT (SYDNEY): Monday, 29 September 2025

Ends.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Media – Brian Chase Olson
E: brian@blendpr.com.au M: 0435 403 608
Partnerships – Victoria James
E: victoria@winelistoftheyear.com M: 0429 996 817
Entrant Enquiries – Michael Nicholls
E: awards@winelistoftheyear.com
Director – Tucker Seabrook / AWLOTY – Elaine Millar
E: elaine@tuckerseabrook.com M: 0414 258 633
Chairman Tucker Seabrook (Awards Owner) – Rob Hirst OAM
Founder Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards
E: rob.hirst@tuckerseabrook.com M: 0416 011 838