Adam Wells (pictured) has been named by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) as this year’s prestigious Pomona Award winner for his commitment to cider and perry.
CAMRA has announced drinks writer Adam Wells as the winner of the 2024 Pomona Award. The award will be presented to Adam Wells at 3.45pm on 11 October, at the end of a presentation he is giving at the Applefest Perry Day at The Courtyard Theatre in Hereford.
Named after the Goddess of fruit trees, gardens and orchards, the Pomona Award is presented by CAMRA to a person, group, organisation, idea or concept that has made an outstanding achievement, commitment, or contribution to the promotion of real cider or perry.
Adam is an award-winning drinks writer and one of the UK’s leading voices on cider and perry. As the founder-editor and primary contributor on Cider Review, the nation’s leading source of long-form articles on cider and perry, and co-host of the Cider Voice podcast, Adam has been at the forefront of championing producers and growers, becoming an advocate for the cider and perry making industry.
He is one of the most dedicated and effective communicators for cider and perry, engrossing audiences across the globe as a speaker at events, including CiderCon in Oregon, USA and the Hereford AppleFest banquet. Noted for illustrating how fiendishly difficult it is to produce perry, his talks are described as engaging, passionate and humorous.
As well as having written for numerous platforms such as Pellicle and Burum Collective, Adam has produced content for CAMRA’s educational Learn and Discover website, discussing the ecological need for perry pear orchards and arguing the need for clearer, more transparent labelling on cider and perry.
His nominations praised Adam’s unparalleled commitment to the perry industry, helping to revive interest in the drink with his groundbreaking CAMRA publication, Perry: A Drinker’s Guide. The book is the world’s first consumer guide to the ancient, yet often overlooked, drink. Published in March 2024 following a Kickstarter campaign so popular, the title achieved 100 per cent funding in under 24 hours.
Nominators went as far as describing Adam as ‘perry’s knight in shining armour’!
Reacting to winning the award, Adam said: "I'm absolutely astonished to have the honour and privilege of receiving CAMRA's Pomona Award, joining a roster of former recipients who have been such a source of personal inspiration.
"Being a part of that broad international group has been one of the greatest pleasures of my career. The cider community, at its best, is the most welcoming, positive and enthusiastic in all of drinks, and it is with that enthusiasm and positivity that the global cider revolution will continue to blossom and grow. I hope I'll continue to play a role within it for a long time to come.”
Andrea Briers, who oversees CAMRA’s Pomona Award said: “Adam Wells has shown outstanding commitment to cider and perry, sharing his vast knowledge and keen enthusiasm about the drinks, the producers and the industry to varied audiences. I would like to congratulate Adam on his Pomona Award win, and I look forward to witnessing his continued success and further impact upon the cider and perry scene. There is no doubt that he has inspired others to learn more about these wonderful, historic drinks, and his dedication to the industry is something to be celebrated.”
The Pomona Award concurs with CAMRA’s Cider and Perry Month. CAMRA supports and campaigns for cider and perry throughout the year and spotlights them with celebrations throughout May and October, coinciding with the natural production cycle of apples and pears. October is when producers will harvest and press fruit from orchards, ready to be stored for fermentation.
Previous winners of the Pomona Award include Elizabeth Pimblett, Director of the Museum of Cider in Hereford and James Finch (aka The Cider Critic).
Notes to editors:
To attend the award event on 11 October at The Courtyard in Hereford, please contact press@camra.org.uk
More information about CAMRA’s Pomona Award, including previous winners, can be found here: https://www1.camra.org.uk/awards/pomona-awards?selected_year=2023
More information about the Applefest Perry Day can be found here: https://herefordcitycouncil.gov.uk/event/tccpa-perry-day-the-courtyard/
Please note that the Perry Day event has been organised by Hereford City Council and is not a CAMRA organised event.
Campaigning details and resources for CAMRA’s Cider and Perry Month can be found here: https://www1.camra.org.uk/promotional-campaigns/cider-and-perry-months
Perry: A Drinker’s Guide by Adam Wells can be ordered here: https://shop1.camra.org.uk/product/perry-a-drinkers-guide/
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