Membership
The Lake Tahoe Branch welcomes men and women members. Members are expected to actively participate in our organization. The total number of members may be set and/or changed by the Board of Directors based on the needs of the branch.
Prospective candidates are encouraged to attend at least two functions as guests to meet members and to learn more about the organization. Requests to sponsor prospective members should be sent in writing by an existing member (Use Application to Sponsor Prospective Members) to the secretary who will send membership information and an application to the prospective members. The sponsor shall be responsible for the progress of the application.
The decision to admit a new member shall be made solely by the Board of Directors. The main question regarding new admissions is whether the prospective member generally espouses the goals of the organization and whether he/she will blend harmoniously with the branch’s style and activities.
Admission of new members may occur at any time during the year. Upon receipt of the new members’ dues and initiation fees, induction of new members will be held at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
All branch members shall be full-time members, paying full fees except for limited, special cases. Members who have relocated to a distant site may, if the Board of Directors is willing, continue their association with the branch either by remaining fully active, dues-paying members or by being granted the status of a special guest who may attend an occasional branch event when visiting the branch location. Members who are granted sabbatical status by the Board of Directors must continue to pay national dues but are exempted from paying local dues during their leave.
New members shall pay a wine cellar assessment in addition to the initiation fee and national, international and local dues. The Board of Directors shall be responsible for determining the assessment based on the Wine Cellar Committee’s valuation of the wine cellar.
The wine cellar is owned by the branch. No member shall have claim to any part of the wine cellar. If a member resigns, wine cellar fees are non-refundable.
The Lake Tahoe Branch is very active, holding eight to ten functions per year. A variety of monthly events is planned, including luncheons, dinners at restaurants and in members’ homes, outdoor gourmet picnics, wine tastings and multiple day tours to wine areas. Usually there are no events planned during January, February, October and November.
The first annual wine getaway was held in Napa Valley June 22 - 24, 1997. Since then members have visited Dry Creek in Sonoma Valley, Monterey, Amador county in the foothills near Sutter Creek, San Luis Obispo/Arroyo Grande and Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Smaller groups also traveled to France in 1998, to Tuscany in 2000 and to Chile in 2008.
The Lake Tahoe Branch maintains its own wine cellar to enable us to purchase wines when they are affordable, to age wines properly and to be able to serve fine wines at reasonable prices at our functions. Currently, the branch’s wine inventory contains about 12-1500 bottles and is located in a large underground wine cellar in Reno. The wine cellar committee researches and purchases wines, as appropriate, with a three to five year projected cellar storage.
A portion of the branch’s initiation fee and annual membership fee is used to build and maintain the wine cellar. When wine from our cellar is used, the function fee includes an amount necessary to replenish the wine. The wine cellar is owned by the branch. If a member resigns, wine cellar fees are non-refundable.
Dues assessment is made annually and dues are payable December 1st each year to the local Branch and the Board of Governors of the Americas. A portion of the national dues is forwarded to the International Wine and Food Society’s headquarters in London. Dues are the same for married couples or singles, since single members have the privilege of bringing one guest to every affair at regular members’ prices. Initiation fees include international, national and local dues plus a pro-rata share of the annual wine cellar valuation. Dues are subject to change.