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Schedule

Welcome to the 10th annual Southeastern United Grape and Wine symposium.

"Sustainability: Continuous Improvement"

Symposium Schedule

Wednesday, November 16, 2022

  • 9:00 AM

    Introduction

  • 9:30 AM

    Keynote - Sustainability from Grapes to Glass: Sustainable Winegrowing in California

    The California wine industry is committed to sustainable winegrape growing and winemaking. For over two decades, vineyards and wineries that represent a vast majority of the state’s acreage and wine production have been participating in voluntary sustainability educational and certification programs and, more importantly, adopting practices that conserve water and energy, maintain healthy soil, protect air and water quality, enhance relations with employees and communities, preserve local ecosystems and improve the economic vitality of family farms and businesses. Lessons learned from the California wine industry’s sustainability initiatives will be shared, along with on-the-ground examples of how California winegrape growers and vintners are using sustainable practices in their vineyards and wineries.

    Lisa Francioni | Program Director, California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance

  • 10:30 AM

    Break

  • 10:45 AM

    Keynote (continued)

  • 11:45 AM

    Break

  • 12:00 PM

    Lunch

  • 1:00 PM

    Sponsor Showcase

  • 1:30 PM

    1st Breakout Session

    Viticulture Track

    Sustainable Business Practices for the Wine Industry

    This interactive presentation will explain the history of sustainable business practices across a multitude of businesses with an emphasis in agriculture and wine businesses. The presentation will give examples of existing sustainability programs and certifications and their benefits. We will also discuss how through your own grass roots efforts you can create your own local suitability program.

    Aaron Debeers | Grape and Wine Consultant | Vinoptic

    Enology Track

    Modern Winemaking: Advancements in Product and Technology to Promote Best Practices

    The topic will cover the use of yeast to negate the need for acid additions. In doing so prevents the shipping of 50lb acid bags globally. The additive approach to cold stability significantly reduces manpower, electricity usage, water use, and waste cleanup.

    Tyler Franzen | Technical Sales Representative, Enartis

    Co-presenting and sharing his findings from utilizing the Uvarum and KPA products.

    Justin Taylor | Winemaker, Parker-Binns Vineyard

    Consumer Experience Track

    NC Wine Industry’s Spotlight on Sustainability

    In this session, we look at the consumer experience towards sustainability, why it’s difficult to take those first steps towards sustainability, and how you can get involved at the state level. We’ll explore the NC Wine and Grape Council’s view of sustainability and provide a case study example of an NC winery that has put it into practice.

    Briana Burns | Wine Marketing Specialist/Wine Educator

  • 2:30 PM

    2nd Breakout Session

    Viticulture Track

    Digging into the data: biopesticides for grape disease control

    "Biopesticides" are moving into the mainstream. While earlier versions gained a reputation for only modest efficacy in comparison with conventional synthetic fungicides, new products are proliferating—and offer comparable performance that sometimes rivals the "gold standards" that growers rely upon. In disease management spray trials at Cornell, we have been evaluating biopesticides for the past nine years. So, how well do they work? Where do they fit into a disease management program?

    Dr. Kaitlin Gold | Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist of Grape Pathology at Cornell University

    Enology Track

    Waterloo Closure Systems

    We will discuss Waterloo’s sustainable ECO closures, permanency of glass & closures, and carbon footprints of different closure systems.

    George Hall | Territory Sales Manager | Waterloo Containers

    Consumer Experience Track

    Social Sustainability

    In this session, we’ll explore why it’s important to socialize our sustainability efforts even if we don’t have an established organization that monitors these efforts. We will provide some ideas about what should be communicated and how individuals can provide a consistent message about their sustainable practices.

    Joe Brock and Matt Kemberling | NC Wine Guys

  • 3:30 PM

    Networking

    Join us for a special networking session to engage with other members of the Southeastern Wine Industry to share ideas, wine, and build valuable connections. This event will be held in the Teaching Winery within the SBVE and will feature wines made by the students at Surry Community College poured by faculty and staff. Join us for a valuable peer to peer experience.

  • 5:00 PM

    Grand Wine Tasting

    5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

    The Grand Wine Tasting features wines poured from North Carolina wineries with heavy hors d’oeuvres including soups, stews, meat, veggies, and a variety of chocolates. This session is a great opportunity to learn from other North Carolina wineries, taste and network with attendees.