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The Approval Process

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The VQA approval process consists of the following three steps and takes 2 to 2 ½ weeks to complete:

  1. Tasting Panel Assessment

    2. Taste tests are conducted on Mondays and Wednesdays by a panel of tasters. All tasting is conducted blind at the LCBO head office tasting facilities. Time and space is limited. There are no tastings on holidays falling on a Monday or Wednesday or throughout the month of December and no makeup tastings. Members can check the Members News & Announcements page for exact "No Tasting" dates. Please plan accordingly.

    • Wines delivered after 4:00 p.m. are not received by Quality Assurance until the next business day
    • Wines arriving at the LCBO Quality Assurance Department on Thursday before 12:00 p.m. will be tasted the following week. Wines arriving after 12:00 p.m. may be held over until the second week
    • Do not send your bottles to the VQA office –this will result in a delay of at least two days and up to a week

    How does the tasting panel work? See all the details in this powerpoint presentation on the sensory evaluation services provided to VQA Ontario by LCBO. Download

     

  2. Laboratory Analysis
    • Every Thursday the laboratory prepares a line-up for the following week. Wines received on Friday will not make it into the following weeks line-up, rather they will be held over until the second week.
  3. Packaging Reviews
    • Packaging reviews are normally conducted within a few days of the taste test
    • If you are using a standard VQA capsule (with 3 VQA logos), you may either include it with the packaging or simply include a clear statement that you will be using the standard capsule
    • Mock-up labels are acceptable as long as they include all VQA terms intended for use and all federally mandated terms (eg. if the application for approval requests a vineyard designation, it must appear on the sample label)
    • If the approval is conditional on label changes, make sure they are made before the labels are printed or the wine released (we strongly recommend you wait to print your labels until after receiving approval)
    • Labels may be changed after approval as long as they remain in compliance with the VQA regulations (wine found to be retailed with label violations will be ordered removed from the point of sale until re-labelled). Check with VQA if you are unsure.

LCBO reports the results of all tasting, testing and label reviews to VQA – they will not release information directly to the winery. LCBO also emails all laboratory certificates to VQA and VQA emails the originals of these certificates to the wineries. The laboratory certificate is not forwarded to the winery if the wine does not pass. Please contact the office if you do not receive a certificate within 2 weeks of receiving your positive approval results.

VQA reviews the tasting, testing and label results to ensure VQA rules have been met and issues an approval by fax. The wine is not approved until a written approval is received.

Conditional Approvals

Conditional approvals may be issued in cases where label corrections are required. These approvals are valid only when the correction is made. Failure to make the required correction will be treated as a violation of the VQA Act and could result in an order to remove the wine from sale or other enforcement measures. Re-labelling will be required to retain VQA status.

If you have any questions during the approval process, contact the VQA office.

Rush Service

A “rush” laboratory service is available from the LCBO for an additional fee. If extenuating circumstances require that you need your result urgently, please call the VQA office and best efforts will be made to accommodate your needs. Please plan ahead to leave some contingency time to complete the approval process and minimize emergencies.

Interim Results

You may contact the VQA office to find out the status of a wine that has been submitted for approval. Keep in mind that passing one part of the process, such as tasting, does not guarantee that the wine is approved – bottle and label at your own risk.

The office is happy to provide partial results if necessary – however please note that a high volume of calls may further delay the routines of processing applications and issuing approvals. Please do not call several times a day unless necessary.

VQA will not issue an approval if:

  • Any one of the taste test, lab test or packaging review is either not passed or not completed
  • Approvals may be issued on condition that label violations be corrected (if the wine is found to be on retail display with a label that has not been corrected, the approval is invalid and will be revoked)
  • The fee has not been received (LCBO bills us the full amount for all samples)
  • The application form is not complete or not signed (or labels or Icewine forms not submitted)
  • There are discrepancies with declared information about the wine and audit findings

 

You may not retail your wine using any VQA terms before having received a written approval.

Submitting Your Wine

Submissions must be sent to this address:

LCBO Merchandising Division Reception,
3rdFloor, 43 Freeland Street,
Toronto, ON M5E 1L7

 

Steps for initially submitting a wine for VQA approval:

  1. Prepare wine to a finished, bottle ready state – it should be stable, fined and clarified and filtered except for final filtering during bottling
  2. Obtain a product application form with a unique number in the top right hand corner from the VQA office
  3. Complete application form and make 2 extra copies. Send one copy to the VQA office, including the labels, with your application fee
  4. Forward completed application form and three sample bottles with the packaging materials to the address above. Ensure that packages are clearly marked “VQA Ontario Tasting & Packaging Samples”
  5. Retain a copy for your files

Step for re-submitting a wine for VQA approval:

  1. A wine may be re-submitted for evaluation to the VQA Ontario Tasting Panel if the wine was found to contain a correctable fault at the initial tasting and/or laboratory analysis.

  2. A wine may not normally be re-submitted within 30 days of the initial tasting date (exceptional circumstances will be given consideration).

  3. Two bottled samples for retasting or one for lab retesting are required and must be delivered to the address above, to be added to the regular line-up of submissions.

  4. A covering letter and a copy of the original Product Approval Application form must accompany the samples and be copied to VQA Ontario. Ensure samples and the documents are clearly marked “Resubmission” and include the VQA#. The VQA# can be found at the top of the letter reporting your initial results.

  5. The covering letter must include the VQA # assigned during the first evaluation and indicate the date of the original result and describe any treatment(s) or processes the wine has undergone to correct the fault.

  6. A wine may be submitted for re-evaluation to the VQA Ontario Tasting Panel twice for a total of three attempts. Following the 3rd tasting, the winery may submit the wine for review by an independent panel in accordance with the provisions detailed in Para 6 of the Rules governing approvals.

Tips to avoid delays

VQA and LCBO are committed to a maximum turnaround for approvals of 3 weeks. High volumes of samples submitted at certain times of the year may result in delays.

Busy times are typically in February/March and again in August/September and samples are taken in on a first come first serve basis. Wineries may be restricted as to the number of samples that can be submitted at one time during these periods to ensure fair access.

Here are some things that will help make sure your approvals are processed smoothly:

  • Deliver your wine samples, packaging materials and application form to the address indicated above, together, clearly marked “VQA Ontario Tasting & Packaging Samples”
  • Deliver your samples during business hours (after hours deliveries are handled by security staff who may not be as familiar with where products should be directed)
  • Send your fee payment, application form and labels to VQA early and make sure it arrives no later than two weeks after submitting your wine samples (results will not be released for unpaid accounts)
  • Make sure the application form is complete, signed and includes all the information required (for Icewine, the late harvest forms filed in November and harvest information)
  • If you submit packaging separately from your wine samples, please call us first and obtain the VQA reference # to ensure your labels are properly handled and don’t get lost