The Team
In 2014, Alex traded a career in project and IT management in the financial services sector to explore the science of distilling spirits, and to learn about the state and trajectory of Canada’s distillery sector. Over the next decade, he has helped build awareness of both the craft and of artisan distilleries in British Columbia and across Canada, first as the founder of BC Distilled, Canada’s largest artisan distillery festival, and then by founding Artisan Distillers Canada and the Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition. His passion for all things whisky has led him to create the Canada Whisky Symposium, a long-overdue industry conference in Canada for whisky makers of all sizes, and to serve as inaugural conference chair. Since 2022, Alex has also supported the Canadian Whisky Awards as Operations Director.
Davin is the author of Canadian Whisky: The New Portable Expert and The Definitive Guide to Canadian Distilleries. He has written about whisky, has presented whisky seminars, and has led tasting workshops on four continents for the past two decades. He is a judge for international whisky competitions such as the World Whisky Awards and the Malt Maniacs Awards; in 2009, Davin founded the Canadian Whisky Awards, and continues as the chair of its judging panel.
Charlene is a Vancouver-based drinks journalist and educator, and lead judge for the Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition. She is WSET Certified in both Wine and Spirits, and a WSET spirits educator. She also holds the SWE’s Certified Specialist of Spirits, various category-specific certifications (for tequila, Scotch and more) and studied small-batch distilling at Moonshine University in Louisville, Kentucky. In addition to contributing to many publications dedicated to wine and spirits, Charlene is currently the Drinks Editor of the LCBO's magazine Food & Drink, a contributor to many other publications.
Colin is an experienced business leader and manager of business development, communications, marketing, and operations functions in complex organizations. Prior to joining the Canada Distilled team, he spent 25 years in the professional sports, financial services, information technology, and transportation sectors; beginning in 2014 as a volunteer with BC Distilled, he became interested in the growing community of artisan distillers in Canada, and in 2022 he officially joined the team. Colin manages production and operations of events for Artisan Distillers Canada and Canada Distilled, as well as relationships with all sponsors and exhibitors.
