Now that the holidays are over, it is time to begin planning for the Commercial Wine Competition. This event requires an enormous amount of volunteer time. There are volunteer opportunities in many areas; some involve more time than others. This article will outline some of those positions to help members decide on their involvement.

Are you interested in learning how we processed the 2,708 entries received last year for the 2018 Commercial Wine Competition? Do you have a desire to work with others on this organizational process? Sign up for the cataloging duties or the data entry duties beginning Tuesday, January 8 with the Building 15 cleanup work party.

Cataloging will be scheduled days and evenings (if volunteers are available) to more easily fit into your schedules. You will help unload wines, place them on tables, identify them in our database of entries, and assign them each a separate designation based on varietal and number of entry, i.e. Pinot Noir is PN23. This bottle is then labeled and placed in the Pinot Noir box. You will be working with other volunteers experienced in the cataloging procedures and data entry process.

If you have an interest in joining the cataloging team, please contact Liz Corbett with your questions and contact information for the 2019 Competition scheduling. Contact Liz at liz@ocws.org or at 714.342.6652.

Even though it is only January, please save the dates. The Competition will be held at the Hilton Hotel in Costa Mesa on Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2. As always, it is the vast number of volunteers that make this event successful. Ken and Irene Scott will be filling positions such as computer score/verification, stewarding, kitchen help, glass dryers, and traffic control. In addition, bagging and sorting the wine will run from Tuesday, May 28 through Thursday, May 30. Volunteer signup information will follow in the next few months.

– Leslie Brown, Chair, Commercial Wine Competition