The Australian drinks industry is producing some of its most exciting work in years – bold product innovation, creative campaigns and genuine investment in brand building. The 2026 Australian Drinks Awards are your opportunity to put that work in front of the industry and be recognised for it.
The 14th annual Australian Drinks Awards will be held on Thursday, 23 July at The Sofitel Wentworth, Sydney, and this year the Brand Awards have been redesigned to better reflect where the industry is investing and what excellence really looks like, with entries now open for brands to submit.
Two awards that reflect where the industry is investing
The 2026 Brand Awards focus on two categories:
Best New Product Innovation Award
This award recognises the best new product launched between 1 March 2025 and 31 March 2026.
Best Campaign Award
This award celebrates the best marketing campaign of the year, across any combination of channels and media.
Both of these awards are designed to recognise quality thinking, strategy and execution across the industry.
"The Australian drinks industry is doing genuinely impressive work, and these awards exist to celebrate that,” explained Georgia Lennon, Drinks Association CEO. “Whether it's a product that's opened up a new occasion or a campaign that's connected with people in a new way, we want to hear about it. This is a real opportunity for organisations across the industry to have their work seen and celebrated by the people who know it best."
In a change from consumer research in previous years, judging this year will be carried out by a panel of industry peers, people with firsthand understanding of what it takes to launch a product or deliver a campaign in this market. There's no limit on the number of submissions your organisation can make, so if you've had a strong year across multiple brands or campaigns, enter them all.
How to submit
A submission template is available for each award category and each submission should be made on a separate template. Email awards@drinks.asn.au to obtain a copy of the template.
For the Best New Product Innovation Award, submissions should tell the story of your product, including the opportunity it addressed, what makes it genuinely innovative, how it differs from existing offerings and how it performed against key metrics. Products must have launched after 1 March 2025.
For the Best Campaign Award, submissions should capture the essence of your campaign, including the strategy behind it, the channels it ran across (a minimum of two required), what made it distinctive and the results it delivered. Campaigns can span any combination of ATL and BTL activity, on and off premise.
Key dates
All submissions must be emailed to awards@drinks.asn.au by close of business on Thursday, 29 May 2026.
If you have any questions about the awards or submission, please email awards@drinks.asn.au.
The winners will be announced at the Australian Drinks Awards on Thursday, 23 July 2026, at Sofitel Sydney Wentworth.