VanWineFest Announces 160 Wineries from 15 Countries, Featuring California Wines
The Vancouver International Wine Festival is pleased to announce the winery lineup for the 41st annual festival, which takes place February 23-March 3, 2019. The eight-day wine and food extravaganza will showcase 160 wineries from 15 countries, including 53 wineries from California, this year’s featured region. They’ll be joined by 107 wineries from around the world, pouring 1,500+ wines at 54 events. Each participating winery will be represented by a winery principal – our vine stars – who come to Vancouver every year to share and discuss their wines with festivalgoers.
View the winery list here.
“VIWF 2019 will welcome 160 different producers from 15 countries, 53 of them from the theme region of California,” says David Hopgood, chair of the Winery Selection Committee. “Eighteen of these wineries are based in Napa, so you can expect spectacular Cabernet Sauvignons in the Tasting Room and at special events throughout festival week, but California will be showcasing its diversity and varieties through wineries from all over the state.
“The Old World is well-represented with a wide range of wines from France and Italy, as well as Croatia, Romania (a first), Germany, Portugal, and Spain. The New World will showcase wines from Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand, with North America additionally represented with wineries from Washington, Oregon, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and, of course, British Columbia. As well, there will be high-end Sake from three producers. More than one-quarter of the wineries are brand new to the festival, so there will many wines and wineries for patrons to discover.”
The festival is headquartered at the Vancouver Convention Centre; in addition, more than 20 other restaurants and venues around the city will host winery dinners, lunches, seminars and wine minglers. The sumptuous Bacchanalia Gala Dinner + Auction, benefiting Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, kicks off the festival on Saturday, February 23 at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver; tickets and tables are on sale now. The heart of the festival is the Tasting Room, where all 160 wineries will gather for four International Festival Tastings. Discounted advance tickets for the International Festival Tastings go on sale Thursday, November 1 at 9:30 a.m. Festivalgoers can get a free ticket if they book one of 37 downtown hotels via StayVancouverHotels.com from November 1 to February 14, while supplies last.
Dream Big: California Style
Forty years after Robert Mondavi Winery was the sole winery at the first VanWineFest, we’re celebrating California wines once again, with 53 wineries from the Golden State (including Robert Mondavi Winery).
“California Wines is honoured to ‘Dream Big: California Style’ at the prestigious 2019 Vancouver International Wine Festival,” said Rick Slomka, Canadian Director, California Wines. “Given the festival’s long history with California wines, we are excited to be back again and have the opportunity to showcase our award-winning wines at this world-class event with some of the most dynamic personalities in the industry.
“The California lifestyle, and our wines, are known to be inspirational and attention grabbing, so we look forward to celebrating the passion and energy that the California’s vintners and growers will bring to wine lovers in Vancouver.”
Festival week will feature 20 California events, including vine star seminars, vintage tastings, winery dinners, a wine party to kick off the week, and a spectacular Saturday lunch featuring all 53 wineries. California wine industry power couple Gina Gallo, Vice President, Winemaking – Estate Wines, E&J Gallo Winery, and Jean-Charles Boisset, Proprietor, Boisset Collection, will be present as California wine ambassadors, speaking at a number of key events during the week.
Trade Days Conference
The Trade Days Conference, which runs February 27 to March 1, features 12 events, including two Trade Tastings, presented by ContainerWorld, masterclasses and seminars, and three trade lunches: the Keynote Speaker Lunch; Principals Welcome Lunch, presented by JF Hillebrand; and Celebrating Excellence: 16th Annual Awards Lunch Featuring California Wines, presented by ContainerWorld.
Save the Dates
Advance tickets go on sale Thursday, November 1 at 9:30 a.m.
All public events go on sale Wednesday, January 9 at 9:30 a.m.
All trade events go on sale Wednesday, January 23 at 9:30 a.m.
For more information about the Vancouver International Wine Festival go to VanWineFest.ca.
Facebook & Instagram: /VanWineFest
Twitter: follow @VanWineFest for news on tickets and sold-out events. Join the conversation at #VIWF.
ABOUT VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL WINE FESTIVAL
Canada’s premier wine show will mark its 41st edition of pairing wine, food and the performing arts from February 23 to March 3, 2019. The festival features California Wines and will showcase 160 wineries from 15 countries (including 53 wineries from California) pouring ~1,500 wines at 54 events to a projected 25,000 admissions. The Bacchanalia Gala Dinner + Auction opens the festival on Saturday, February 23 at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. The Trade Days Conference runs Wednesday, February 27 to Friday, March 1. The festival has been named the #1 Food, Wine & Hospitality Event in Canada by New York’s BizBash for six years running. The festival is produced by the Vancouver International Wine Festival Society, which has three mandates: provide an informative, educational and entertaining wine experience for public and trade; be a premier marketing opportunity for the wine industry and festival partners; and raise funds for the Bard on the Beach Theatre Society. Since inception in 1979, the festival has raised $9.2 million for the performing arts. Major sponsors are Delta Air Lines and the Vancouver Sun; major industry partners are the BC Liquor Distribution Branch, BC Liquor Stores, and the Import Vintners & Spirits Association. The festival is made possible through the gracious support of our participating countries’ consulates and embassies.
ABOUT WINE INSTITUTE OF CALIFORNIA
Established in 1934 and based in San Francisco, Wine Institute is the public policy advocacy group of more than 1,000 California wineries and affiliated businesses that initiates and advocates state, federal and international public policy to enhance the environment for the responsible production, consumption and enjoyment of wine. Wine Institute’s California Wine Export Program has more than 175 member wineries exporting to 138 countries. The program’s 15 representative offices conduct activities in 25 countries around the globe. The Wine Institute’s Canadian office coordinates a number of promotional activities every year designed to educate and inform media, trade, stakeholders and consumers about the quality and diversity of products available from the Golden State. For more information on the Wine Institute of California, visit the website at www.discovercaliforniawines.com and www.calwine.ca
ABOUT BARD ON THE BEACH
Celebrating its 30th season in 2019, Bard on the Beach is one of Canada’s largest not-for-profit, professional Shakespeare festivals. It is presented on the waterfront in Kitsilano’s Vanier Park, adjacent to Vancouver’s downtown core. Bard on the Beach offers Shakespeare plays, related dramas and popular special events in two performance tents every June through September. In 2018, attendance was 108,000 and almost 1.9 million patrons have experienced Bard since its inception. Next year’s festival dates are June 5 to September 21, 2019, and the lineup includes The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare in Love, All’s Well That Ends Well and Coriolanus. Bard also offers a range of education programs, including Young Shakespeareans workshops for 8-18 year-olds at its Vanier Park site during the summer, and the Riotous Youth program for 19 to 24-year-olds. During the school term, Bard also offers workshops for educators and youth in schools and community centres throughout BC’s Lower Mainland, as well as at its administrative home, the BMO Theatre Centre (162 West 1st Avenue). Full details and education program information are at bardonthebeach.org.
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Media Contact:
Shannon Heth, Milk Creative Communications
shannon@thinkmilk.ca
