Alan Lodge writing award returns for 2020

The Alan Lodge Young International Drinks Writer of the Year Awards is now accepting entries for 2020 as it seeks to reward top writing talent in the alcoholic drinks world.

The Alan Lodge Young International Drinks Writer of the Year Award 2020 is now open for entries

Launched in 2012 in memory of Alan Lodge, the late deputy editor of The Spirits Business, the award will be assessed by an independent panel of judges.

Returning for its eighth edition, the competition is open to writers across the alcoholic drinks sector who are under the age of 35. Entrants can submit work across the entire alcohol sector, including beer, wine, spirits and cocktails.

Candidates are asked to submit three pieces of work published online or in print between 1 January and 31 December 2019.

The deadline for entries is 20 April 2020 and the winner will be revealed during The Drinks Business Awards, which is held at the London Wine Fair in Olympia on 21 May.

Previous recipients of the award include Hamish Smith, Laura Foster, Amy Hopkins, Tyler Wetherall and Margarett Waterbury. Last year, Shay Waterworth of trade title Drinks International was named Alan Lodge Young International Drinks Writer of the Year 2019.

Melita Kiely, editor of The Spirits Business, said: “It’s a real honour that The Spirits Business is able to run The Alan Lodge Young International Drinks Writer of the Year Award in memory of a greatly missed member of the Union Press team.

“This award, held each year to celebrate Alan’s memory, is a great way for young drinks writers to receive recognition for their hard work and journalistic ability.

“Being your own champion is never easy – but I’d strongly encourage any writers sitting on published work they feel proud of to put themselves forward for the award.”

To enter, email rhiannon.morris@unionpress.co.uk. Entrants must submit three pieces of work as URLs, PDFs or Word documents.