rye made for whisky-lovers, by whisky-lovers

Sons of Vancouver is a small distillery on Vancouver's North Shore. It was born out of a young, foolhardy desire to follow passions and contribute to a growing community of independent distillers. Well-known for their ever-popular No. 82 Amaretto, the distillery is now running a fast-growing whisky program and changing the face of rye whisky in Canada and beyond.

Meet the Team

  • James Lester

    FOUNDER - PARTNER - BLENDER - GENERAL MANAGER
    One of the founding owners of SOV, he started the distillery in 2015. James has a vast knowledge of the whisky industry and spent time making bourbon at a distillery in Seattle, Washington. He makes sure the bills get paid and is the leading expert in answering emails professionally.

  • Jenna Diubaldo

    PARTNER - BLENDER - WHISKY PROGRAM MANAGER
    A graduate of the SOV Distillery School and the Seibel Institute, Jenna oversees the whisky program and manages production at the distillery. Originally hoping to open a distillery in her hometown Winnipeg, MB, she jumped at the chance to move out to BC to join the team at SOV, and became a partner in 2022. Jenna insisted the bar get a slushy machine, so you have her to thank for that.

  • Max Smith

    PARTNER - BLENDER - DISTILLER
    Max has been working in production for the last 10 years at various breweries and distilleries around Vancouver, and recently became a partner at SOV in 2022. Max is a wizard of all things mashing and distilling, and makes sure the whisky gets made and barrels get filled. He can often be found in the back making sandwiches on a half broken panini-maker he found in the distillery.

  • Emmet Groves

    PARTNER - BAR MANAGER
    A veteran of the Vancouver bartending industry, if there’s a solid cocktail bar in town there’s a good chance Emmet had something to do with it. The bars he’s managed in the past are too long list here, but suffice it to say he makes a damn good cocktail. He manages the tasting room, and became a partner in 2023. He loves breakfast foods, but is vehemently opposed to the idea of brunch.