Emerging Talent in Spirits Communication 2022 shortlist

We are delighted to be announcing the shortlist for another new award to the IWSC, our Emerging Talent in Spirits Communication award. Seeing the positive impact our Spirits Communicator award has had on our winners the IWSC created this new award to recognise individuals who have recently set out on their journey to become the next big name in spirits communication, demonstrating their knowledge and passion to their audience in innovative and creative ways.

Our carefully curated judging panel for this new award was comprised of the who’s who of spirits communication. Kristiane Sherry, Head of Brand at Fine + Rare, Mark Gillespie, Host and Executive Producer of the WhiskyCast, Helena Nicklin, award-winning wine and spirits writer, consultant, TV presenter and one of The Three Drinkers, our 2021 Spirits Communicator winner, Becky Paskin, our reigning champion of our 2022 Spirits Communicator award, Millie Milliken and Digital Content Editor for our consumer platform Club Oenologique, Laura Richards.

We are delighted to reveal our 2022 shortlist for the IWSC’s Emerging Talent in Spirits Communication, sponsored by Whyte & Mackay.

Gabrielle Pharms

Gabrielle covers a whole host of drinks content through her journalism, from spirits to wine and cocktails, as well as emphasising the necessity for more inclusion and diversity within the spirits industry. Gabrielle has always been a big fan of outlets that take a deeper dive into the behind the scenes of the spirits industry, featuring underrepresented talent.

Gabrielle has a real passion for advocating for women of colour in the spirits industry, she uses her roster of platforms to communicate and champion this message.  

Our judges were impressed by the breath of platforms Gabrielle uses to communicate her message, and across many different sectors. They believe Gabrielle is incredibly knowledgeable but also demonstrated a willingness to learn. Gabrielle has a fantastic quality of being able to bring across her excitement for a topic to her readers and bring them along for the journey.

Moa Nilsson

Moa was first attracted to the drink industry through her curiosity about flavour, but it was the interesting people and her never-ending thirst for knowledge and the community that made her stay. Moa, who often refers to herself as the Swedish Whisky Girl, has been writing for a number of publications and also taken her creative content to YouTube where she has over 5,000 subscribers.

Following a successful role at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Moa took the brave step of building her own business, helping brands create content.

The judges praised Moa’s engaging style and content that takes readers on her journey of whisky discovery, as she gently educates her followers in a personable style. They believe she is a fantastic ambassador for the spirits industry.

Sarah Miller

Sarah threw herself into the spirits industry after working in the museum industry straight out of university. It was Sarah’s blog ‘Gin A Ding Ding’ that was her launching pad for her to creatively communicate her spirits message. She's written for many publications and spoken at numerous events, and in 2019 she launched the annual #GinADayMay. The light-hearted celebration of gin in the form of a 31-day social media challenge. Sarah’s aim for the challenge is to promote and build the gin community online.

Sarah uses a broad spectrum of mediums to communicate with her audience, she takes careful consideration about the most appropriate channels for the different messages she wishes to convey.

Sarah is particularly passionate about sustainability and transparency within the sector. This greatly impressed our judges as they really admired Sarah’s dedication to push the message of sustainability within the spirits industry.

Tyler Zielinski

Tyler has a very creative way of communicating with his audience, through a mixture of written and visual content. Tyler writes for many publications but uses his personal social media channels to educate imbibers on drinks subjects beyond his writing. Tyler believes his way of communicating via social media allows his followers to interact with his content in a move approachable manner.

It is the stories behind the brands that really excite Tyler and what ultimately sparked his journey as a drinks writer with his desire to share those stories through his blog.

The judges praised Tyler’s brave move to cross continents, moving from the US to the UK to share his spirits message. His passion and knowledge for all things spirits really came through in his application and his writing.

The winner for the IWSC Emerging Talent in Spirits Communication Award will be announced on Wednesday 9 March.