Sommelier of the Year awarded to Caitlin Baker for her radical, inclusive approach to wine

The prestigious Good Food Awards for NSW/ACT have been announced, celebrating and recognising the cream-of-the-crop of the hospitality industry.

Canberra was well represented at last night’s awards: Pilot once again took out two hats, and seven Canberra venues were awarded one hat.

Caitlin Baker, general manager of Such and Such, was awarded Sommelier of the Year. She was aware she had been shortlisted for excellence in service for the second year in a row but didn’t know she was up for the sommelier prize.

“It was a huge surprise!” Caitlin told Region.

“I wouldn’t really have considered myself a sommelier: wine is one of my biggest passions, but a lot of my wine knowledge comes from working with it rather than having all the formal qualifications.

“It’s nice to have recognition like this. Even as someone who’s been working in the industry for 10 years, I still get questioned about my ability to know about wines. Just two weeks ago, there was a customer who wanted some help with ordering wine, and he asked to speak to a man. There is an attitude of, ‘you’re a young woman, what could you possibly know?’ so this award is really affirming.”

She was lauded for her inclusive ethos, with a nod to the opening page of her wine list: “Wine should be accessible, not used to create exclusion or draw boundaries of superiority.”

“Baker’s support of independent producers who respect the land is unwavering, plus she’s a gun on the floor, always finding the precise pour for each guest,” read the listing on the Good Food list of winners.

In addition to her work at Such and Such, Caitlin is also the director of Venus Vinifera, a local education and advocacy organisation for women in wine and hospitality.

She says her work with Venus Vinifera has informed how she works with her team and how she approaches wine.

“I want wine to be accessible. That’s always been a big thing for me … it’s also part of what we do with Venus Vinifera as well, trying to make the wine industry accessible, and that translates back into what I do at Such and Such,” she said.

“We do wine education every fortnight with the team, and it’s been so great to see the other young people I work with learning more and becoming confident enough to sell wines off the list. I just want to keep growing and keep supporting the young and upcoming producers who have that really great ethos.”

Such and Such – a former winner of Best New Restaurant – retained its hat, as did Rebel Rebel, Mu Omakase, Raku, Italian and Sons, Onzieme and Bar Rochford.

For the first time, the awards also featured a category for Cultural Change Champion, which was won by Women and Revolution (WaR), a Sydney-based charity working to overcome the barriers to gender equality in the wine world by creating “a safe and inclusive space that elevates the voices of the many women in wine”.

WaR runs masterclasses, wine tastings, and other sessions led by industry experts in addition to fostering mentoring through a ‘buddy system’. Twice a year, they provide training and education in negotiation, debating, critical thinking and public speaking for women, non-binary people and those with trans experience in the wine industry.

Other Canberra venues that didn’t quite make the cut for a hat or are more casual in style were recognised as Critics Picks. These included Fyshwick Ramen joint Canteen, Woden dietary-friendly restaurant Dada, natural wine bar Paranormal Wines, Campbell fine dining restaurant Peonee and City restaurant Terra.

New Yarralumla restaurant Minima – by the Ratanakosol brothers, who had previously been hatted for Thai restaurant Morks – missed out on a hat. However, as a very new space, they may still be finding their feet.

Good Food chose to exclude nominees from the Swillhouse group after an investigation revealed a number of sexual assault and harassment allegations from across their venues.