CEO Message - May 2025
19 May 2025
May we celebrate beer and brewing excellence! We had the pleasure of bringing the beer and brewing community together earlier this month to celebrate excellence, share knowledge and inspire innovation as part of presenting the 2025 Melbourne Royal Australian International Beer Awards.
Since first being held in 1993, the Melbourne Royal Australian International Beer Awards have set the benchmark for recognising brewing excellence – and 2025 was no exception.
The 2025 Awards attracted close to 2,300 entries from 22 countries, reaffirming their reputation as the world’s largest annual beer competition that assesses both draught and packaged beer, cider, as well as design and media.
Judging took place over four days at Melbourne Showgrounds, with 80 expert judges from across Australia and the world contributing their expertise.
A heartfelt thank you to all the brewers who entered, and to our incredible judges, stewards and event team who contributed their time and expertise. Special thanks to Warren Pawsey, Tina Panoutsos, Justin Fox, Jon Seltin, Chris Swersey and Craig Bowen for their continued support and expert guidance to ensure the success of the awards.
More than 700 guests gathered to honour the industry’s finest at the trophy presentation dinner on Thursday 15 May in the Victoria Pavilion at Melbourne Showgrounds.
Congratulations again to all the trophy and medal winners in particular Champion Australian Beer (Wedgetail Brewing, Dark Lager), Champion International Beer (Trumer Brewery, Trumer Pils), Champion Large Australian Brewery (Hawkers Beer) and Champion Victorian Brewery (Stomping Ground Brewing). I encourage everyone to explore the full list of results and raise a glass to the best in beer.
The next world-class awards program for the year is the Melbourne Royal Australian International Spirits Awards. The expansion of the awards to include international entries in 2025 has attracted a diverse global field of producers, from small craft distilleries to large international brands.
Being judged by industry experts from 1 to 3 July at Melbourne Showgrounds will be an unparalleled range of spirits, from handcrafted masterpieces to innovative large-scale productions to reflect the best the industry has to offer by benchmarking spirits, liquors, aromatics and vermouths.
Entries to the Melbourne Royal Australian Food Awards are also now open. Judged by highly respected judges in their specialty areas, the Melbourne Royal Australian Food Awards provide a unique and valuable opportunity for large and small Australian food producers to have their products and produce benchmarked against their peers to improve quality and inspire innovation.
These awards proudly acknowledge, celebrate and inspire innovation in Australian food products, produce and producers. Importantly, they also provide medal and trophy winners with the opportunity to leverage their success and market their award-winning products using the Melbourne Royal seal of excellence.
Plans are progressing well for our signature event, the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show being held from Thursday 25 September to Sunday 5 October. There’s nothing like the thrill of competing and winning a coveted Melbourne Royal Blue Ribbon.
Entries for Woodchop and Horses in Action have already been popular, with the All Breeds Championship Show (Dogs) and Beef Carcase competitions opening this month. The remainder of the Blue Ribbon competitions open in June. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to visit the Competitions & Awards page at melbourneroyal.com.au for further details.
Interest in retail exhibition space at the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show is greater than ever, with many pavilions close to being completely filled already. Exhibiting at the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show offers the opportunity to reach, connect and engage with new customers to showcase your brand, products, or services. For more information on the available exhibition spaces, simply visit royalshow.com.au
Being a Melbourne Royal member is a fabulous way to experience the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show. Melbourne Royal membership entitles you to complimentary admission for you and a guest to the 2025 Melbourne Royal Show along with access to members hospitality areas and the reserved seating area in the Grandstand and at the Arena to enjoy the spectacular entertainment. To become a member and take advantage of these savings, and experiences visit melbourneroyal.com.au/membership and complete the online application.
Thank you for your ongoing interest in Melbourne Royal. To stay up to date with the latest news on Melbourne Royal events, awards and venues, visit melbourneroyal.com.au and follow us on Instagram and other social media channels.
Brad Jenkins
Chief Executive
Melbourne Royal