Canberra venues toast success at 23rd (and final) Australian Bartender Magazine Awards

The Australian Bartender Magazine Bar Awards have announced the winners of their final national awards. After 25 years, the owners of the Australian Bartender Magazine have announced they will no longer publish the magazine, and will also finish up running Sydney Bar Week and hosting the awards, now in their 23rd year.

Two Canberra businesses have made their mark in the awards, with Bar Rochford and Volstead Repeal doing Canberra proud. Bar Rochford was awarded National Wine Bar of the Year, the second time the venue has earned the accolade.

“I wasn’t expecting that one, so it was really nice to come back with that award,” owner Nick Smith told Region. ”I can’t believe we got it again; there were a lot of great bars in that list.”

“We’re a bit of an older bar than a lot of the others in that mob, so for us it really just reiterates that we’re doing a good thing and keeping things relevant. And it was really special for our young team members to have that recognition.”

Bar Rochford also won Bar of the Year, ACT but the winner of ACT’s Cocktail Bar of the Year gong went to Braddon whisky specialist Volstead Repeal.

“Obviously, we are stoked to win this for the second year in a row!” co-owner Gus Burns told Region.

“We’re really grateful to the team and the guys that help us do what we do.”

Volstead Repeal is also a 2024 state finalist in the Telstra Building Communities business awards for its “quality customer service and exceptional hospitality, with a strong focus on staff wellbeing and innovation”.

Gus said Volstead Repeal organised regular industry events to bring together people from across different hospitality venues. He said they were especially useful for giving younger bartenders a sense of belonging.

Bar Rochford will be handing out an award of its own at the upcoming Community Cup event, where nine Canberra bartenders will battle it out to create three bespoke drinks using high-quality Australian spirits.

Three industry judges will choose the winner, and people are invited to come along and watch (and taste!) the fun.

“We started it back in 2017 because we wanted to create an event for the community to come together,” Nick said.

“When you work in a bar, you don’t get the opportunity to meet other bartenders and it can create a bit of competition. But this event just puts all that aside, and everyone is great friends by the end of the night.”

Proceeds of the event are donated to charity. For the past few years, the money has benefitted homeless initiatives, but this time Nick wanted to support local women in hospitality group Venus Vinifera.

“With everything that’s been going on in Swillhouse in Sydney, we thought that supporting the work that Venus Vinifera does is so important right now,” he said.

”It’s such a good initiative for women in the hospitality industry in Canberra and we really respect the work that Caitlin [Baker, Venus Vinifera co-founder] is doing.”

Find out more about the Australian Bartender Magazine Bar Award winners.

Volstead Repeal is at Shop 7, 32 Mort Street, Yamaroshi Lane, Braddon. Follow the bar on Instagram.

Visit Bar Rochford on the first floor of 65 London Cct, Canberra. Follow it on Instagram to find out more about the Community Cup event on 24 September.