The Saanich Sommeliers, established 1974

We are the Saanich Sommeliers, a club of amateur winemakers in Victoria BC who’s members believe in crafting fine wines at home.  We make a wide variety of wines, and work together to obtain the best available sources of wine making ingredients in British Columbia and the USA. We share best practices in winemaking amongst ourselves and also with the public through this website. The club has a broad program in winemaking and supports its members by maintaining equipment, specialized supplies, yeasts and yeast nutrients.

The club holds monthly meetings to discuss club business, to conduct a wine or food related program and to socialize over a glass of wine.  From time to time the club conducts workshops in wine making, laboratory analysis and food pairing. Our program also includes vineyard and winery tours, and scientific presentations related to viticulture and oenology.  We provide a friendly and collaborative environment amongst our membership and are welcoming and supportive to those joining us for the first time.

Cowichan Winery Tour

We love to hone our skills

The Saanich Sommeliers amateur winemakers are one of the eleven amateur winemaking  clubs that comprise the British Columbia Amateur Winemakers Association, and we are a registered non-profit organization in the province of BC.  To help us improve we routinely enter wines in British Columbia Amateur Winemakers Association sanctioned regional and provincial competitions as well as the Canadian Nationals. We learn from comments offered when our wines are judged, but as a testament to artisanal winemaking our club members routinely receive gold, silver and bronze medals in these competitions. In addition, several members of our club are themselves qualified wine judges and enthusiastic members of the the BC Guild of Wine Judges .

Sommeliers: what’s in the name?

A sommelier is a person who is familiar with characteristics of a food item and a wine or other beverage. Sommelier is part of our name, so we are also food enthusiasts enjoying our culinary experiences when our menu items are skillfully matched with wine or another beverage. Our Food and Wine Pairing workshop featured in photos below has been a popular and highly informative educational experience enjoyed by our members young and old.

More Information?

For more information Contact us HERE and leave a brief message. A club member will contact you. Thanks!