Victoria Whisky Festival

by **Lawrence** » Sat Jul 16, 2005 6:13 pm

The first Victoria Whisky Festival is being held on Saturday January 21st, 2006 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada at the Hotel Grand Pacific.

The Festival is broken into 3 parts;

Masterclasses featuring Brucihladdich & Murray McDavid by Andrew Gray, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America by Alan Shayne and Buffalo Trace by Ken Weber.

A Media Event

And finally a Consumer Tasting in the evening featuring a multitude of whiskies from all over the world.

Please private message me for details on tickets and over night accomodation if need.

by **Wendy** » Sun Jul 31, 2005 12:01 am

Hi Lawrence,
My good friend Sandra and her boyfriend, Tony, were recently in town for a visit. I told them about the Victoria Whisky Festival and they were quite interested. I said I would ask for the details from you (tickets, time) and forward them on to them. I hope they attend; it would be a lot of fun and a great opportunty to taste/nose new whiskies. Thank you.
Regards,
Wendy

by **Wendy** » Sun Jul 31, 2005 12:04 am

Sorry Lawrence,
I thought I had sent this as per your request pm. Something went wrong and went on the public board. Sorry about that.
Wendy

by **Lawrence** » Mon Aug 01, 2005 5:24 pm

Hi Wendy, thanks for the post, if I can be of any help with tickets for your friends please let me know. Keep the date in mind for yourself.

Lawrence

by **Wendy** » Tue Aug 02, 2005 4:12 am

Thank you Lawrence.
Attending the January Festival may be a welcomed break both socially and weather wise. I will pm you in the near future for more information.
Sincerely,
Wendy

by **Lawrence** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 5:33 pm

The ticket order forms are now available in PDF and I will email them to anybody who would like one.

My email address is lawrencegraham@shaw.ca

by **Lawrence** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 4:47 am

The website is now live at http://www.victoriawhiskyfestival.com

Take a moment and have a look, updates will follow as we approach the Festival date.

Lawrence

by **Wendy** » Sat Sep 17, 2005 3:34 pm

Hi Lawrence,
I can't believe that two of the four Masterclasses are already sold out :shock:

! Others may want to know that piece of information who may be sitting on the fence about attending (c'est moi included). The Murray McDavid Masterclass really interests me, so I was relieved to see that I still had the chance to join in on that session. Obviously, there are many keen whisky enthusiasts in B.C. I should have my plans firmed up soon.

Anyway, on another note, have a great time in Paris. I look forward to reading your comments as I always enjoy reading the comments written by the other festival goers.
Cheers,
Wendy

by **Lawrence** » Sat Sep 17, 2005 4:19 pm

Thanks Wendy, the others are also rapidly approaching capacity, good news for us!

I'll talk to you on my return and I may post a few comments en route.

Lawrence

by **Lawrence** » Fri Oct 07, 2005 4:22 pm

Three of the four Masterclasses are now sold out, please refer to the ticket order form on the website,

http://www.victoriawhiskyfestival.com

for details. There are still quite a few of the Consumer Tickets available.

by **Wendy** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 2:29 pm

Lawrence, it sounds like you have a "big hit" on your hands. Your festival is marked on my calendar and will be a winter highlight for me.
Regards,
Wendy

by **WestVanDave** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 8:24 am

Hi Wendy - 'look forward to seeing you in Victoria... we have a "gang" of Vancouverites making the trek (at least 10 of us)... and this should be a great event...

Some of us might even target a Friday arrival to fully enjoy Victoria (hey, it'll be January - and we could probably work in a round of golf or some sailing!!!)...

Cheers, Dave.

by **Wendy** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 3:18 pm

Thank you Dave. I am really looking forward to the trip. It will be a reunion with old and new friends, and of course the chance to taste and learn more about whisky. I am already envisioning tulips and crocuses breaking coastal ground which will be a welcomed sight from the bitter cold of Ontario's January climate. I should be arriving Thursday night in Victoria.

Perhaps if you keep mentioning golf and whisky, we can entice Mark to join us in the fun!

Cheers,
Wendy

by **Lawrence** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 5:32 pm

We have palm trees also

, it's a tough winter. We're working on something special for Friday night, I'll let you both know once I know,

Lawrence

by **Wendy** » Tue Oct 18, 2005 1:01 am

....tick tock, tick tock...tick tock, tick tock... :wink:

by **Lawrence** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 6:20 pm

We've now made our final additions to the Victoria Whisky Festival line up and the website will be updated by Saturday with the new information.

Friday January 20th we are very pleased to announce the return of Jim Murray to Victoria to lead one of his famous tastings. In one day 20% of the tickets have sold.

Saturday January 21st we are also very pleased to annouce 4 new masterclass spots, Inver House Distllers with Dorothy Duffy, Isle of Arran Distillery with Douglas Davidson and finally two Talisker Masterclasses featuring 4 Taliskers.

It's going to be a fun weekend! Please contact me for questions and/or tickets.

Lawrence

by **Badmonkey** » Fri Nov 25, 2005 5:31 am

Greetings, Lawrence,

I've been far too slow on the take concerning the Victoria Whisky Festival -- work doesn't let me out of the cage very often -- but the line-up looks outstanding. What time will the Jim Murray tasting begin and will it be at the hotel?

I'm trying to gather a disparate 6-man crew of whisky-lovers from L.A., Calgary, Edmonton, and Yellowknife, especially after missing the big Whisky Wednesday in Calgary last week. Are many tickets are left for the Buffalo Trace Masterclass?

Cheers,
Craig

by **Badmonkey** » Fri Nov 25, 2005 5:36 am

Greetings, Lawrence,

I've been far too slow on the take concerning the Victoria Whisky Festival -- work doesn't let me out of the cage very often -- but the line-up looks outstanding. I'm trying to gather a disparate 6-man crew of whisky-lovers from L.A., Calgary, Edmonton, and Yellowknife, especially after missing the big Whisky Wednesday in Calgary last week.

I have two questions for you. First, are many tickets are left for the Buffalo Trace Masterclass? I'd really like to introduce my scotch-swilling friends to first-class bourbon. Second, is there any chance of seeing some Japanese whiskies at the festival?

Cheers,
Craig

by **Lawrence** » Sat Nov 26, 2005 3:03 am

Hi, yes there are Buffalo Trace tickets left, the Jim Murray Tasting is from 8 until 10 on the 20th and please email me directly to book tickets at lawrencegraham@shaw.ca to avoid disappointment.

The website has been completely updated now including a new ticket order form.

Talk to you soon,

Lawrence

by **MGillespie** » Tue Nov 29, 2005 6:51 pm

By the way, Lawrence is my guest on the new edition of WhiskyCast, where he gives us more details on the festival. It's online now at http://www.whiskycast.com or http://www.whiskycast.libsyn.com

Mark

by **Badmonkey** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 4:16 pm

I'm looking forward to that one, Mark. I'll download it as soon as I remember to bring the iPod home from work.

In other news, it looks like I'm in the clear to attend the Whisky Festival and will have my registration in by the end of the week.

Cheers,

Craig

by **Lawrence** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 4:19 pm

Craig, please email me with your ticket wishes so I can reserve them for you to avoid any disappointment. Things are selling quickly.

Lawrence

lawrencegraham@shaw.ca

by **MGillespie** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 4:59 pm

Badmonkey wrote:I'm looking forward to that one, Mark. I'll download it as soon as I remember to bring the iPod home from work.

In other news, it looks like I'm in the clear to attend the Whisky Festival and will have my registration in by the end of the week.

Cheers,

Craig

Great...hope you enjoy it!

Mark

by **Lawrence** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 4:14 pm

We have are now down to the last group of tickets and it looks like we shortly be sold out, get them while they last!

Lawrence

by **Lawrence** » Sat Dec 17, 2005 6:49 pm

Time for a quick update, we have added some masterclasses, Inver House with Dorothy Duffy, Isle of Arran with Douglas Davidson and two Talisker as well as a Jim Murray Tasting on Friday January 20th. Everything is basically sold out except for one block of Jim Murray tickets that we have not yet released. Not long now!

by **bernstein** » Wed Jan 18, 2006 2:40 pm

Wendy, Dave, Lawrence, Bruce, Ron, Craig and all the other WM forum members - enjoy your weekend at Victoria, have a good look at the palm trees and tell us about your field trip. Bon voyage!

by **Wendy** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 4:25 am

Hi Bernie,
Thank you so much for sending your good wishes. I am looking forward to the festival and especially meeting the other forum members. It should be great fun. I will be arriving in Victoria tomorrow night (Thursday), so I have been terribly busy getting my personal and professional life in order...one would think I was going away for a month at this pace!

I will drop in next week to spill the beans.

Take care,
Wendy

by **Deactivated Member** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 9:53 am

And just who do you think is going to clean those up?

See you there--and greetings from Seattle--

Mr T

by **MGillespie** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 3:39 pm

Have fun, gang...and if you find someone you think I should interview, please get their contact info and pass it along...

Thanks!

Mark

by **Lawrence** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 6:18 pm

Not long now....! Everything is going well and dropping into its proper place.......hopefully I'll have more time next week for some forum time.

Lawrence

by **rthomson** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:25 pm

I'll be arriving in Victoria tomorrow. I'm very much looking forward to the festival and meeting the other forum members there. This will be my first whisky festival and I'm excited!

Ron

by **rthomson** » Tue Jan 24, 2006 5:47 pm

Now that I'm settled in back home after the festival I have to say, Well Done! The thoughtful planning and arrangements made my first whisky festival exceed all my expectations. It was a full weekend between Jim Murray's tasting session, the media session and the enegertic consumer tasting (and I'm sure the master classes were just as well received!). The weekend was all whisky and smiles. And, of course, it was my first visit to beautiful Victoria. Cheers to Lawrence, WestVanDave, and the others who put together such a splendid weekend!

Ron

by **Lawrence** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 12:55 am

Thanks Ron, it was good to meet you, Badmonkey, Tattieheid, Wendy and WVD (who I have met before). As usual at whisky festival there is very little time to socialize since everybody is busy chasing drams.

Lawrence

by **Badmonkey** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 5:32 am

Lawrence,

I'd like to extend my thanks to you and everyone else who played a part in putting together an excellent festival. The venue was superb and I could not have asked for a better way to spend a weekend on the West Coast. I hope that you and your crew are crazy enough to host the event again next year.

And cheers to Dave, Ron, Tattie, and Wendy. It was a pleasure chatting between drams and I hope our paths cross again in the future.

Craig

by **Aidan** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 7:16 am

Hi Lawerence, Badmonkey, Wendy, Tattie, WVD, rthompson...

Can we have details of the event? What did you try, what impressed you etc...

Victoria Whisky Festival