Drinks Innovators of the Year
This new annual accolade from Food & Wine highlights the extraordinary creativity and ambition — practical, social, cultural, and beyond — that’s going on in the drinks space right now. Taken together, the Drinks Innovators, eight individuals working in the wine, spirits, beer, and non-alcoholic beverage realm, illustrate where the entire drinks industry is going. And they all have products that consumers can get their hands on right now. This is what the future tastes like.
Drinks Innovators of the Year: Fawn Weaver and Victoria Eady Butler
Uncle Nearest CEO Fawn Weaver and master blender Victoria Eady Butler are carving out an ever-growing space for Black female voices in the whiskey world.
Drinks Innovators of the Year: Dan Petroski
Napa's iconoclastic winemaker sees the future of the Massican brand in vermouth, beer, body products, gin, coffee, a magazine, emojis, NFTs, virtual vineyards, and beyond.
Drinks Innovators of the Year: Morgan McLachlan
The Amass master distiller and chief product officer draws inspiration from botanicals to create nonalcoholic, beauty, and cannabis products to create "the ideal 21st century bar cart."
Drinks Innovators of the Year: Jason Haas
The Tablas Creek proprietor is using regenerative organic methods to make great wines, and help fight climate change while he's at it.
Drinks Innovators of the Year: Graciela Ángeles Carreño
Fifth-generation mezcal producer Real Minero is the forefront of a group of grower-distillers who market their own products and who are never shy about trying a new direction or fighting for what they believe in.
