Welcome to the Wine & Appies Group!

Wine & Appies
 
It’s no wonder that the Wine & Appies group is one of the largest in the club … what’s not to love?  We get to casually gather, share some laughs, enjoy great food and all while getting to know fellow club members better.
Hosting:
Group members who have the space and ability, offer to host in their homes.  Don’t be nervous because there is very little for hosts to do.  Hosts simply provide the Wine & Appies Coordinator (Elaine Brown) with:
  • Their preferred month, date and time to host
  • The number of people their house can accommodate.
  • Their address and information about where guests should park.
  • Information about accessibility if relevant
  • If they would like to make their hosted evening themed (in the past we have had Mexican nights, funny sock nights, bright colours nights, nautical, ‘new to you’ dishes’, etc.)
Once a date is selected, the hosts relax until their date approaches. 
  • Wine glasses for the evening get delivered to them.
  • They are provided with a list of names of the guests who will be attending.
  • They make their own appetizer or dessert contribution to the evening
  • They set out some water, plates, napkins, utensils and name tags.
  • After the evening, they run the wine glasses through the dishwasher and contact Elaine Brown to arrange for pickup or drop off at her place.
The more hosts, the more Wine & Appies evenings there will be (for example if we get two volunteers wanting to host in November or February, then we can have two gatherings in those months) which increases the frequency for group member attendance. 
Plus, there is a special bonus if you agree to become a Wine & Appies host.  All hosts are guaranteed a spot at the next two Wine & Appies evenings (or alternate dates if they are unable to attend the next date).
 
Registration to Attend a Wine & Appies (W&A) Evening:
Club members who have registered to be part of the Wine & Appies group will have the opportunity to attend several hosted evenings (frequency dependent on the number of host volunteers).
  • Once hosts, dates, times and locations are confirmed, the invitations to attend will be sent out.
  • W&A members will have a minimum of 72 hours from the time the email has been distributed to respond and indicate their desire to attend the identified W&A evening.
  • At the conclusion of the identified time period, the names of all who requested to attend will be entered into a random generator and the top names will be contacted to confirm attendance details. 
  • For the next W&A evenings, those who attended previously will not be eligible to attend (except for the previous evenings hosts), until everyone on the list who has requested to attend a W&A evening has had the opportunity to attend (using the random draw process).  If there are a lot of volunteer hosts, we will work through the W&A group list quite quickly.  Attendance is tracked so that the ability to attend W & A evenings is equitable.
 
Attending a Wine & Appies Evening:
Here comes the fun part and why you signed up to be part of this group!  Great food & conversation with diverse and interesting people!  However as with every activity group, W&A attendees have a few responsibilities:
  • Only request to attend a W&A evening if you are sure that you will be able to attend.  However, we recognize that unexpected stuff happens so if you can’t attend, please let the Wine & Appies Coordinator know as soon as possible so your spot can be offered to the next person on the list.
  • Please don’t bring along an extra person unless that was cleared in the original registration.
  • You will receive an email with information about how to get to your host’s house, where to park and any other relevant information.  The evening typically starts at 6 p.m. but should there be an exception to this you will be notified at the time of your confirmation.
  • You will be told the number of people attending so you can bring an appetizer or dessert for that number of people (remember to mark your serving dish and serving utensils).  Please don’t plan on cooking or using the stove at the host’s house.
  • At the evening when food is ready, please take only one of each item so everyone will have the opportunity to taste every dish should they choose. Once everyone has had the chance to select their food, members can go up for seconds of what is left.
  • The hosts will provide water, wine glasses, plates and cutlery.
  • Bring your own beverages and of course drink responsibly.
  • As a courtesy to the host, members are asked to remove their shoes at the door (slippers are welcomed and make great conversation starters!).
  • Please remember to wear your name tags – they really help those new to the group.
If you would enjoy hosting this year, or have questions please contact W&A Coordinator Elaine Brown (broelaine@gmail.com).