Drinks Adventures podcast claims wine industry gong

Australian beer, wine and spirits podcast Drinks Adventures was named Best Wine Podcast at the Wine Communicator Awards 2021 on Wednesday November 24.

Now in its twelfth year, the annual Wine Communicator Awards recognises outstanding contributions to – and excellence in – wine communication in all its forms.

‘Best Wine Blog or Podcast’ was one of three new categories introduced at the awards this year.

Drinks Adventures picked up the inaugural prize, with the WCA judges noting the podcast’s continued evolution based on consumer insights, “with sophisticated tracking in place to continue to refine and grow the audience”.

“Wine-specific episodes are well-researched and presented in an engaging and informative way,” the judges said.

Now in its eleventh season, Drinks Adventures was founded in 2018 by Sydney-based drinks writer James Atkinson, combining tightly edited interviews with narrative elements, music and sound design.

The show may be rooted in Australia, but it has an international guest roster that has previously included actor and winemaker Sam Neill; musician and winemaker Maynard James Keenan; techno artist and Japanese sake aficionado Richie Hawtin; and English wine critics Jancis Robinson and Matthew Jukes.

Notable episodes this season have included a documentary on Chuck Hahn, the legendary American-Australian brewer who is a household name for all beer loving Australians.

“It’s very gratifying for the podcast to have been recognised by expert judges from both the beer and wine industry this year,” James Atkinson commented on the WCA win.

“I want to acknowledge my post-producer Dave Robertson for his outstanding work on mixing, sound design and music editing, which I feel sets Drinks Adventures apart from many other podcasts.”