These are YOUR awards, so cast your vote to have a say! Voting will open at australianbartender.com.au on March 1 so check back. #barawards2022
Voting for the Bar Awards 2022 kicks off in a week (Tuesday, 1 March) and we really want you to get involved. These awards are determined by your votes. Voting closes 31 May (11.59PM AEST) so tell your staff and your hospo friends.
After taking a hiatus in 2020 and going digital in 2021, we are pumped to return to a face-to-face nationwide celebration in Sydney in September this year. The awards night (which will celebrate 21 years) is scheduled for Wednesday, 7th September and we are banking on borders being open for all (or most) states and having people come from all around the country.
“These awards are your awards; you have to be in it to win it. This is not about the opinions of bar reviewers and critics. The winners are determined by your votes, the votes of the Australian bar industry,” says Dave Spanton, Bartender magazine and Bar Awards founder. “So, make sure you get involved and have your say.”
“These awards are your awards; you have to be in it to win it. This is not about the opinions of bar reviewers and critics. The winners are determined by your votes, the votes of the Australian bar industry.” – Dave Spanton, Bar Awards Founder
New Awards: Best Distillery Bar & Best Brewery Bar
We are also including two brand new awards this year: Best Distillery Bar and Best Brewery Bar. Over the past few years the number of Aussie distilleries and breweries has boomed. With that, we have seen these venues expand into fully-fledged bars as the perfect way to showcase the products they distil or brew. To be eligible for these categories, the venue must have a distillery or brewery (or part of their operations on site) and they must have a bar that is open to the public.
Many of our local distilleries have been pushing for this award for years. Four Pillars Gin Co-Founder & Trade Director, Stu Gregor says of the Distillery Bar Award: “As the Australian distilling industry and our distilled spirits go from strength to strength so too does the hospitality at the 300+ distilleries dotted across every state and territory in Australia. This new award for Best Distillery Bar will be hugely competitive and will run the gamut from high end urban cocktail offerings to regional bars with spirits, drinks and hospitality at their core. Australian spirits are fast becoming the best in the world and the bar offerings at our favourite distilleries are not far behind.”
“This new award for Best Distillery Bar will be hugely competitive and will run the gamut from high end urban cocktail offerings to regional bars with spirits, drinks and hospitality at their core. Australian spirits are fast becoming the best in the world and the bar offerings at our favourite distilleries are not far behind.” – Stu Gregor, Four Pillars Gin Co-Founder & Trade Director
How the voting works:
- This year, as always, the finalists in each category will be determined by the bar industry’s vote. Only those who work in bars and for brands may vote.
- This year we have scrapped the drop-down lists, so you will need to enter your own nomination. In some instances, we have included the names of the finalists from 2021 just as a guide, so you know the kinds of venues we’re talking about. You must vote in every category marked with an asterisk for your vote to count.
- The finalists will be announced in the July issue of Australian Bartender and online here at australianbartender.com.au.
- The top 10 finalists in each of the categories will then be reviewed and voted on by their peers — that is, the other finalists — to determine the winners in each category.
- How does this work? Once the finalists have been announced in the July issue of the magazine, we’ll be in touch with all finalists to ask them to rank the bars and operators in the next round of voting. In this round, sponsors will also cast another vote.
- The winners in each category will be awarded on Wednesday, 7 September at the Australian bar industry’s night of nights, the Bar Awards, at Doltone House in Sydney during Sydney Bar Week (3-7) September. Visit sydneybarweek.com.au for updates.
- Voting opens next Tuesday, 1 March and goes until 11:59pm AEST on May 31 2022. Voting is open to bar industry professionals only (so no, the general public doesn’t get a vote).
- Voting works best on a desktop or laptop.
Please note – if you would like to register your interest to compete in the Bartender of the Year Competition sponsored by Hendrick’s Gin & Monkey Shoulder, please email amy@spantonmedia.com as this category is not nominated!
OUR SPONSORS:
None of this would be possible without the incredible support of our headline Bar Awards sponsors. These brands are all about bringing the bar industry back together and making the Bar Awards 2022 a possibility.
Sydney Bar Week 2022
The 21st Annual Bartender Magazine Bar Awards forms part of the 5-day Sydney Bar Week line-up (3-7 September) and is the grand finale event. Make sure you sign up to the newsletter at sydneybarweek.com.au and stay up-to-date with all Sydney Bar Week & Bar Awards news.
It’s on track to be a great year. To discuss sponsorship for Sydney Bar Week and Bar Awards email david@spantonmedia.com.
Sydney Bar Week sponsorship is exclusive to Bartender magazine advertisers.