Decanter contributor and DWWA Acting Regional Chair for Chile, Amanda Barnes, has taken top prize at the inaugural 67 Pall Mall Global Wine Communicator Awards. Winning the Berkmann Award for Best All Round Wine Communicator, Barnes received her barrel-shaped trophy, and £2,000 prize money, from sponsor Rupert Berkmann at the ceremony in London’s Sinfonia Smith Square, which was streamed live on 67PallMall.tv.
Barnes had travelled from her home in Argentina for the ceremony, and was delighted to win for her work in Decanter, World of Fine Wine, on YouTube and on podcasts.
Decanter writers and DWWA judges Peter Richards MW and Susie Barrie MW, meanwhile, scooped the Best Global Wine Communicator in Audio Award for their podcast Wine Blast. Tom Hewson, Malu Lambert and Matt Walls – all Decanter contributors – were shortlisted in other categories.
Another Decanter writer, Henna Bakshi from the US, was the most decorated on the evening. She took home awards for both long-form writing and short-form video.
Judged by six judges from four continents, the 67 Awards is a new competition aimed at celebrating the world’s finest wine communicators, and covers written, video and audio communication. Awards founder Richard Hemming MW, founder and CEO of 67 Pall Mall Grant Ashton and chair of judges Elaine Chukan Brown all addressed the audience before the awards were announced. ‘The finalists are an incredible group of communicators,’ said Chukan Brown. ‘Learning from their expertise in different types of media and their perspectives from various countries and cultures has given me a lot to think about.’
67 Pall Mall is the world’s first private members’ club for wine lovers, with clubs in London, Verbier and Singapore, and expanding into Bordeaux, Beaune, Melbourne and Hong Kong. Said CEO Grant Ashton: ‘These Awards are our way of supporting everyone that brings the love of wine to a wider audience.’
The winners were as follows:
The 67 Pall Mall Award for Best Global Wine Communicator in Audio: Peter Richards MW and Susie Barrie MW, UK
The 67 Pall Mall Award for Best Global Wine Communicator in Short-form Video: Henna Bakshi, US
The 67 Pall Mall Award for Best Global Wine Communicator in Long-form Video: André Hueston Mack, US
The 67 Pall Mall Award for Best Global Wine Communicator in Short-form Writing: Nick Ryan, Australia
The Gusbourne Estate Award for Best Global Wine Communicator in Long-form Writing: Henna Bakshi, US
The Berkmann Award for Best All-Round Wine Communicator: Amanda Barnes, Argentina