Vancouver Amateur Winemakers Association is a club of wine lovers and home winemakers who strive to create wines they can be proud of. The purpose of our club is to bring together in a friendly atmosphere people interested in the art of amateur winemaking to engage in related discussions, lectures, demonstrations and social events.
The last meeting for this year was held on Thursday November 16 at Richmond Caring Place. The December meeting will be replaced by our traditional Christmas party. We will reconvene for regular monthly meetings in January 2024.
A comprehensive set of winemaking calculators (Excel) from Daniel Pambianchi's site.
Technical articles, for dealing with smoke taint in grapes. Content provided by Alan Marks from Scott Labs Canada:
A new, comprehensive book on home winemaking, with up-to-date information on materials and modern techniques, was released in summer 2021.
The 2023 edition of the Scott Labs Fermentation Handbook is now available.
To keep everyone safe, our current policy for all groups events is that all attendees are expected to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and free of all potential symptoms.
We will be holding the 2023 Christmas Party on Monday, December 18 at Richmond Caring Place, starting at 7:00 PM. The event is open to all members and their significant others. Our COVID-19 attendance policy applies to this event. Sign up to attend.
The 2023 VAWA competition (49th) was held on Friday June 23rd and Saturday June 24th, before our summer garden party. Thank you for your entries and congratulations to all medal holders!
Our members are encouraged to continue entering wines into BC competitions, for feedback and to support other winemaking clubs.
We are a member driven organization which organizes the following events:
Details of the formal organization of the club can be found in the VAWA Constitution and Bylaws.
New members are always welcome and accepted regardless of their level of winemaking experience. The VAWA annual membership fee is $35 for individuals or $50 for couples. In addition, for new members, there is a one-time charge of $10 for creating your name badge. Please print out the Membership Application , fill it in and bring it to a regular meeting together with your cheque/cash for the appropriate amount. For other arrangements, contact the club Treasurer.
Our Association usually holds meetings at 8 pm on the second Thursday of each month. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the schedule has become more flexible. The meeting dates and location are being announced via email and posted on this page. No meetings are held in the months of July and August.
The typical meeting agenda is outlined below. Details of the Feature Presentation and Mini Competition are available from the monthly email newsletter , typically issued in the week preceeding the meeting.
| Business & Announcements | 8:00 pm — 8:20 pm | The regular meeting is brought to order and any outstanding business matters are addressed. Hosted by VAWA's current President. |
|---|---|---|
| Feature Presentation | 8:30 pm — 10:00 pm | Speakers, from the club or industry, offer insights and advice on various aspects of winemaking. |
| Mini Competition | after presentation | An optional informal blind judging of members' wines. |
| Social Gathering | 10:00 pm — 10:30 pm | Snacks are served and mini competition entries are made available to taste. |
Anyone interested in finding out more about us is welcome to attend a meeting as a guest. There is a door fee of approximately $10 for members and $15 for guests related to the cost of the evening's program.
| President: | Larry McIntyre |
|---|---|
| Secretary: | Viswanathan Kalathil |
| Treasurer: | Sony Kurian |
| Steward: | John Read |
| Members at Large: | David Wong |
| Mike Grindler | |
| Ron Toffolo |
Do you have additional questions about our club and its activities? Want to confirm a scheduled meeting? Please email us at vawa.information@gmail.com.