Each year, the Australian Drinks Awards recognise the businesses driving genuine progress across the industry. Behind the big night is a judging process built to ensure every winner is selected with integrity, consistency and rigour. This year, for the first time, the Brand Awards join the Contribution to Industry Awards in a peer judging process.
Judged by the industry itself
Every submission for the Brand and Contribution to Industry Awards goes in front of a panel of peers. Each award has its own panel, and judges are selected for their specific knowledge and insight on that particular topic. The judges are reviewing entries spanning new product launches and campaigns for the Brand Awards, and initiatives across inclusion, wellbeing and sustainability for Contribution to Industry. Each one is judged on its own merits, with the standout entries being the ones that show genuine leadership and impact.
The value of peer insight
Matching each panel to the award means judges bring real, relevant experience to what they're assessing. Someone reviewing a sustainability initiative understands what's involved in delivering one. Someone reviewing a new product launch understands what it takes to bring a product to market. That experience makes a difference. Judges can recognise genuine progress because they know exactly what the work involves and what it took to achieve it.
It also means real discussion happens in the judging room. Judges bring their own experience to the conversation, question each other's thinking and reach a decision together rather than working from a scorecard. It's a considered process and one that puts genuine industry judgement behind every result.
Recognising industry excellence
This year's judges had their work cut out for them. Across every category, the standard of submissions was high, making the final calls harder than ever. It's a sign of an industry that keeps raising its own bar.
The judging panels weren't just looking for good ideas. They wanted to see initiatives that had actually been put into practice, with real outcomes behind them. Whether that's a product that's found its place on shelves, a campaign that's shifted how people think about a brand or an internal program that's changed how a business operates. The conversations were robust, with judges pushing each other on the detail before landing on the entries that best reflected leadership and impact in their category.
All of that work, from every corner of the industry, will be on show for everyone to celebrate together on the night. The winners of the 2026 Australian Drinks Awards will be revealed at the awards evening to be held at The Sofitel Wentworth Sydney on Thursday, 23 July 2026.