IWFS EAZ AGM 2024 Weekend in West Yorkshire
This year’s AGM weekend will be hosted by West Yorkshire Branch on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th September, with an optional event on the evening of Friday 13th September.
Highlights of the weekend are:
- a dinner at Moortown Golf Club, home of the 1929 Ryder Cup, made up of winning products from the Deliciously Yorkshire Taste awards.
- a tour of the 4,000-acre Harewood Estate and the State Floor of Harewood House, followed by a private dinner at The Hovels, the Estate’s main event venue.
- An optional Pinot Noir event using the Society’s video package in a trial recruitment event, which is designed to be a model which branches may wish to use to attract new members.
The AGM will take place on the morning of Saturday 14th, at the Marriott Hotel in Leeds, followed by a complimentary lunch for members at the Hotel. All members of IWFS Europe Africa may attend the AGM.
The cost of the weekend is £390pp (Saturday and Sunday), or £430pp for all 3 days, and includes all the events, as well as coach travel from the Leeds Marriott hotel to each event. Hotel costs are not included in the weekend cost; however, we have secured a block booking of rooms with Leeds Marriott at a preferential rate.
The programme for the weekend is as follows:
Friday 13th September
Optional Extra Event: Pinot Noir Masterclass, Bardsey Village Hall, Bardsey 7pm
We will be running a masterclass aimed at raising the Society’s profile in the West Yorkshire area. A video package has been produced featuring Anne Krebiehl, MW, author of the excellent IWFS Pinot Noir monograph. Join us for the trial run of an event which, if successful, we plan to roll out across the Zone as part of a campaign to raise awareness of the Society and sell the many benefits of becoming a member. Bardsey Village Hall is the unlikely “spiritual home” of the WY Branch, where we host many of our events. Coaches have been booked to transport members to and from the Marriott Hotel to Bardsey, a village 8 miles from central Leeds.
Saturday 14th September
Morning: AGM and Members’ Forum
Join us to have your say on the future of our Society. A complimentary buffet lunch will be served in the hotel meeting room suite following the meeting.
Afternoon at leisure: visit the shops, take in a football match at Elland Road (if you enjoy masochism), visit the Royal Armouries museum, or just have a well-earned nap.
Evening: Deliciously Yorkshire Dinner, Moortown Golf Club
Join us at the venue of the 1929 Ryder Cup, and of the recent England versus France competition, for the West Yorkshire Branch’s most popular event of the year. The menu is built from the shortlisted finalists and award-winning products from the Deliciously Yorkshire Regional Taste awards and paired with carefully chosen wines. This being Yorkshire, you’ll need a big appetite! A huge celebration of the county’s food and drink businesses, the Taste Awards are now the biggest of their kind in the north of England and attract hundreds of entries from food and drink businesses throughout Yorkshire and the Humber.
Coaches have been booked to transport members from the Marriott Hotel to and from Moortown.
Sunday 15th September
Morning at leisure.
We will be arranging a guided walking tour of the heritage of the city as it developed through the Industrial Revolution. Otherwise, feel free to enjoy a coffee or a bite of lunch in a city centre café.
Afternoon: Tour of Harewood Estate.
Coaches will ferry guests to the beautiful Harewood Estate, the land surrounding the famous Harewood House. The Harewood Food & Drink Project (HFDP) was set up in 2016 to celebrate and promote produce that’s grown, reared and foraged on the Estate. Produce sourced from the land features heavily on all HFDP menus, with sustainable and seasonal eating at the forefront of the Project’s ethos.
We start with a tour of the beautiful 4000-acre Harewood Estate, with a talk on its approach to regenerative farming, a tour of the historic 18th century, 7 acre walled Garden and a tour round the State Floor of Harewood House, one of England’s Treasure Houses including a collection of Renaissance masterpieces, Turner paintings, Chippendale furnishings, ceilings by Robert Adam and a 1000 acre landscape created by 'Capability' Brown. The tour of the kitchen garden will be escorted by Eddy Lascelles, Managing Director of (HFDP) www.harewoodfoodanddrink.com
We will conclude the visit with a glass of something fizzy on the terrace overlooking the magnificent Capability Brown designed landscape, before coaches return to the Marriott in Leeds.
Evening: Dinner at The Hovels, Harewood Estate
Coaches will collect members from the Marriott to return to Harewood. Dinner will take place at the Hovels, a Grade II listed stable block conversion managed by HFDP. The venue has lots of charm and historic features and is the main event space on the Estate. Dinner will be a 5-course meal, paired with wines, and will be a black-tie event.
We look forward to welcoming you to Yorkshire!
Accommodation
We have reserved Deluxe rooms on a Bed & Breakfast basis at the Marriott Hotel in Leeds for guests. The rates are £179 per room per night (single occupancy) / £189 per room per night (double occupancy).
Dress Code
The dinner at Harewood will be black tie, and medals can be worn if desired. At Moortown Golf Club there is a strict no jeans and trainers policy – we suggest jacket with or without tie for men. On the Friday, dress is “smart casual”.
Daytime wear is casual, but please no ripped jeans! Stout shoes and an anorak (it has been known to rain in Yorkshire) are recommended for the afternoon trip to Harewood where you will be riding in the back of a shooting trailer for part of the tour.
BOOKING
Click here for booking details of the 3 day event.
Click here for booking details of the 2 day event.