Day 1 of the Unified Wine and Grape Symposium

Tuesday, January 24 was day 1 of the Unified Grape and Wine Symposium at the Sacramento Convention Center. My husband and I registered and made our way to the Hyatt to wait for the start of the first session, "Quality Grapes and Wine in Challenging Climates". Hans Walter Peterson from Cornell was the moderator for a panel consisting of the following people:
     Dr. Richard Snyder from UC Davis
     Dr. Wayne Wilcox from Geneva, New York Cornell Ag Experiment Station
     Dick Boushey from Boushey Vineyards, Washington
     Derek Wilber from Swedish Hill Vineyard, Finger Lakes, New York
     Harry Peterson-Nedry from Chehalem in Oregon
     Francesca Schuler CMO of BevMo!
Dr. Richard Snyder began the session with a discussion on global warming. Dr. Snyder said that carbon dioxide gas is increasing and this has had a measurable affect on the weather. The models that take all the data predict that by 2100, there will be a 3-4 ^oC increase in the temperature. The ramification is that there will be a longer growing season, a chance in precipitation, more droughts, faster growing periods and flooding and salinization of the water.
Dr. Wayne Wilcox from the Cornell Agricultural Experiment station at Geneva, New York spoke at length about the challenges of wet, humid weather on the grape vine and the threat of botrytis infection. Dr. Wilcox mentioned that under those conditions, the vineyard manager can resort to leaf removal at bloom to reduce fruit set, kelp applications, and fungicide applications during bloom and pre-bunch closure.
Dick Boushey from Washington said that reacting early, being prepared for extremes, using technology and keeping up with current research helps in years when the weather conditions are challenging. He mentioned that communication with the buyers of the grapes is important. Dick also mentioned that having diversity in plant varieties, locations, farming techniques and buyers helps in years such as 2011.
Derek Wilber from Swedish Hill Vinyards (Finger Lakes) also spoke of botrytis infection. He mentioned that field tiling every other row, improving air flow, training with narrow trellises and leaf pulling are all cultural practices that can help to prevent devastating botrytis infection. If botrytis is still a problem, then hot pressing can be used to get rid of laccase. Think also of increasing SO₂ on the grapes and in the must, separating the hard press from the low press, using polyclear fining and bentonite fining before fermentation and flash pasteurize to alleviate the problems stemming from botrytis infection.
Derek said that above all, don't rely on Hope. Pick when the fruit is in sound condition and have a plan in place.
Harry Peterson-Nedry from Oregon also reiterated the importance of diversity. He makes 20,000 cases in the Willamette Valley. Harry said don't waste valuable energy by worrying and have contingencies in place.
The last speaker in this session was Francesca Schuler CMO of BevMo! Being in the wine distribution business, Francesca was coming from a different perspective on the vintage 2011. Francesca said to treat the vintage like a brand. Even in years like 2011 when it can be challenging, she recommended that we should:
     1) Celebrate the uncertainty
     2) Have a proactive communication plan
     3) Speak directly to key influencers