2018 LIVE Annual Meeting

Join us for educational sessions, luncheon, and our annual membership meeting. Doors open at 8am. Coffee, pastries, and lunch by The Rogue Gourmet Catering Company. 

$65 early registration through April 1. $80 from April 1-19.

Schedule (Subject to Change)

8:00    Check in and Continental Breakfast     

9:00    LIVE Board Meeting and Organizational Updates

10:45  Clean Plants: James A. Stamp, Ph.D. - Stamp Associates Viticulture, Inc.

Grapevines are a naturally weedy species and physically or pathologically challenged plants grow well under nursery conditions. Most US vines are produced in California but the CDFA regulations that govern their production are insufficiently rigorous. Consequently, diseased or physically imperfect vines are frequently delivered to winegrowers. The following will be discussed:

• The process of grapevine propagation and opportunities for disease contamination and avoidance: the importance of timing of order placement in relationship to propagation schedule
• Why it is important to test grapevine nursery stock: historical observations and the present day situation including detection of virus and crown gall in Protocol 2010 nursery stock
• How to test nursery stock for important viruses: up front testing of mother vines, testing of finished product
• How to examine nursery stock to detect physical imperfections and the relationship with fungal pathogens
• Green potted and dormant vines in relation to virus pressure

About James Stamp

Dr. James A. Stamp is a Sebastopol, California scientist who specializes in grapevine nursery plant material quality and propagation, and the critical evaluation of vineyard performance issues. He has more than 30 years of experience in California viticulture and established Stamp Associates Viticulture, Inc. after founding Novavine grapevine nursery, working in the agbiotech industry and completing a post-doctorate at UC Davis. Stamp Associates advises growers and winemakers in the U.S. and overseas in the establishment and management of high quality, pathogen-tested vineyards.  

11:15    Guest Perspective: Fred Merwarth - Winemaker & Vineyard Manager, Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard

Hermann J. Wiemer is regarded as one of the pioneers of viticulture and winemaking in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State. As a native of Bernkastel, Germany who emigrated to the Finger Lakes in the 1960s, Hermann J. Wiemer was uniquely qualified to help establish and create a wine region now known for its Riesling identity. Today, Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyards has three properties, all at different stages of sustainabile production: from organic and biodynamic, without the use of herbicides since 2004; to a vineyard with minimal input but challenged by mildew; to a new property with a history of heavy inputs that they are in the initial stages of cultivation and a shift away from herbicides.

About Fred Merwarth

In 2003, Hermann’s long-term apprentice Fred Merwarth took charge of winemaking and vineyard management. Fred’s talent and ambition brought fresh energy and vision to the winery, placing it on a new trajectory. In 2007, Hermann officially retired, handing over the winery to Fred, who has perfected Hermann’s detail-oriented approach to viticulture and winemaking, extensively working on understanding the relationship between the vines and soils of the Finger Lakes. The winery has been recognized for the last 9 years as one of the world’s Top 100 Estates by Wine & Spirits Magazine; Wine Spectator listed the winery on the top 100 Wines in the world in 2010; and critics and connoisseurs such as Robert Parker, Eric Asimov, Stuart Piggott, consistently mention Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard as the top Riesling producer in the US.

12:15   Lunch, Award Ceremony & Board Elections

1:15     Keynote Address: Joe Whitworth - President, The Freshwater Trust

The Freshwater Trust is a freshwater conservation and restoration organization based in Portland, Oregon. TFT understands that fixing the water quality and quantity issues in the West can and will not be done in a silo and certainly not in the absence of the largest water users in the country. Today, under the direction of Whitworth, the nonprofit works with dozens of farmers, ranchers and winemakers in Oregon, Idaho and California to protect and restore local waterways. For example, TFT partnered with Red Lily Vineyards and Pearl Family Vineyards to restore the streamside running along the winery properties. The native trees and shrubs planted filter nutrients, reduce erosion, sequester carbon, and improve native fish habitat. Out in Eastern Oregon, the organization compensates farmers and ranchers for not taking water out of rivers and tributaries in certain times of the year when fish need it the most. Their projects are proof that working lands and healthy rivers can coexist. Furthermore, the organization uses new tools and technologies to quantify the amount of impact each restoration project is having over time, so they can guarantee that the effort is making a difference. Whitworth will provide an overview of the current state of water in the West and the role winemakers and other agricultural entities have to play in its future. 

About Joe Whitworth

Joe has been responsible for strategic direction of The Freshwater Trust for more than a decade, growing the organization’s budget tenfold during that time. He is focused on the next generation of conservation tools at the intersection of technology and finance to get results on the ground. In addition to formal advisory roles in B Corp, foundation and government settings, he is a patented inventor, author of the book “Quantified: Redefining Conservation for the Next Economy” published by Island Press, and has served as founding board chair of the Council for Responsible Sport. Joe has also served as a guest lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Lewis & Clark College with an emphasis in natural resources and water law.

2:45    Closing Remarks & Adjourn

The 2018 LIVE Annual Meeting is Presented by TricorBraun Winepak