- TIME Family of Wines (under the Five Vines Cellars ownership) announced that Dandurand is their new distribution partner, adding Canadian brands TIME Wines, McWatters Collection, and Evolve Cellars to the agency’s impressive portfolio.
- TIME Winery, McWatters Collection and Evolve Cellars are the first Canadian brands in Dandurand’s international portfolio.
Effective March 1, 2021 Dandurand will represent TIME and its family of wines in western Canada and will drive the company’s efforts to distribute wines on a national level. As the largest family-run wine importation and spirits business in Canada, Dandurand’s expertise and country-wide reach are key factors for this appointment.
With more than 130 employees and 50 years of experience, Dandurand represents 35 exclusive wine and spirits producers for a total volume approximating four million cases. It’s this vast and varied imported wine portfolio that makes Dandurand a favourable choice of Canadian-wine-industry decision-makers.
The group is known for a carefully and strategically selected portfolio of producers from around the globe, but never from Canada. With the addition of TIME Family of Wines to Dandurand’s portfolio also comes the quality and reputation of Okanagan Valley and VQA.
Spearheaded by the late Canadian wine pioneer and grandfather of BC wine Harry McWatters, the TIME Winery team has been producing wines for more than 50 vintages. Now, new family owners, Ron and Shelley Mayert are committed to ensure the continuity of the McWatters legacy.
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The McWatters family remains in control onsite, with a portfolio of wines made with excellence by winemaker Lynzee Schatz (who was profiled just recently for a VineRoutes A-List Artisans spotlight feature). The team is now looking for its next phase, which is national distribution.
“The addition of these excellent VQA wines to our portfolio will allow us to access the customer and consumer marketplace in a deeper way, providing an even more full-service portfolio with a local offering,” said Hugues Gauthier, President of Dandurand.
Click to read reviews of two of TIME’s newest wine releases
Christa-Lee McWatters, general manager at TIME Family of Wines agrees. “With heartfelt thanks for the work of our previous distribution partners, we are ready to embark on a new journey with Dandurand, with the objective of strengthening our position as a top-quality and widely available VQA producer, in western Canada and beyond.”
She continues: “We are excited to take on this new challenge and to grow our brands’ presence throughout Canada. This is a plan that has been in the making for some time and we are confident Dandurand will help us achieve positive results.”
Photo of Time Winery & Kitchen taken by Chris Stenberg.
