WEEKENDER | Vancouver International Wine Festival 2026

"Discover a world of wine."

Waterfront—(March 12 and 13, 2026) Wine lovers gathered together once more for the 47th annual Vancouver Wine Festival and its week-long celebration of alcoholic grape drink-related festivities. Tens of thousands of VIWF attendees wined and dined themselves while attending countless seminars, minglers, pairing meals, and signature tasting events across eight days of fun, known as "the largest wine festival in the Americas."



This year's wine region spotlight featured "Vive la France" as the festival welcomed and showcased twenty-seven French wineries with varietals representing nine storied regions in the European nation. Firmly anchored as usual by the four grand International Festival Tasting Room sessions hosted inside Canada Place, the noticeably smaller selection and more intimate space signalled a time of transition for the global wine and liquor industries.

New Zealand Wine

VIWF 2026 by the numbers:

• 18,000 admissions
• 114 wineries from 14 countries
• 33 events (25 public and 8 trade-only) at 20 venues
• 15 participating restaurants, hotels, and caterers
• 850 wines, including:
• 600 wines in the Tasting Room
• 250 wines at special events (dinners, seminars, etc.)
• 22,000 bottles poured and/or purchased
• Tasting Room size: 39,000 square feet

California Wines

Originally founded in 1979, the not-for-profit society has raised more than $10.3 million to support local arts organizations and over $2.3 million for the annual summer Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival since 2013, including $135,000 in 2025. This year's centrepiece fundraising event, the opening Bacchanalia Gala Dinner & Auction, has already raised $114,000.

Bubbles n' Blush

VIWF has three primary mandates:

• providing an informative, educational, and entertaining wine experience for consumers and trade;
• serving as a premier marketing opportunity for the wine industry;
• and raising money for the performing arts in Vancouver.

The festival has also been consistently recognized globally as the Best International Wine Festival in North America and one of the top ten wine trade shows in the world by the Wine International Association.


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