Winegrowers plan virtual conference

CASHMERE — Like most industry conferences and expositions in the time of COVID-19, this year’s Washington Winegrowers Association conference is going online.

But with two big twists — the conference has been renamed and the program is being stretched out over the course of two weeks, from March 9 through 23.

“We have a new name, Winevit,” said Sara Higgins, a spokesperson for the Washington Winegrowers Association. “We’ve branded it, but it’s still the same event.”

Higgins said this year’s conference will feature industry insiders talking about the state of grape growing and winemaking in Washington, along with a virtual trade show and time to network. But organizers of Winevit decided rather than try to do everything online over the course of two or three very busy days, they would spread the sessions out over two weeks.

“We’re not doing something every single day,” Higgins said. “We’re offering sessions on specific days in approximately two-hour increments, so folks can balance some learning and networking with the rest of their schedule.”

“We’ve broken it out a little bit to make it easier for folks,” she added.

Sessions this year will focus on managing rootstock in Washington, bottling techniques, different filtration technologies that will include tasting kits to taste wines filtered by different processes, and a tasting room session that will allow winery and tasting managers to learn about how to run a tasting room better, Higgins said.

In addition, Higgins said there will be an overview and update of recent federal legislation expanding aid to grape growers and vintners whose crops have been damaged by wildfire smoke and out-of-season freezes.

“There’s all kinds of stuff that we’re doing,” she said.

Higgins said this year’s conference will also include a session on Washington State Department of Agriculture pesticide programs, and will offer two Washington pesticide credits, with event organizers waiting for approval for Idaho pesticide education credits.

And like most event organizers and publicists, Higgins said the Winegrowers Association hopes to have an in-person gathering next year.

“I don’t think anyone really wants to have to continue only interacting virtually,” she said. “There’s obviously some great benefits at times for webinars and virtual seminars and sessions. But the reality is, we miss the in-person connection and we’re looking forward to returning to that when we can.”

For more information or to register for the conference, go to winevit.org and click on “register,” or call the Washington Winegrowers Association at 509-782-8234.

Conference schedule

Tuesday, March 9

• 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. State of the Industry
• 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tasting Room #1: Hindsight is, Literally, 2020: What We Learned This Year

Wednesday, March 10

• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. WSDA Compliance Pesticide Program—Who Are They, What They Look For, and What You Need to Know (WA 2 Credits, ID Pending)
• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Bottling Obstacles and Hurdles

Thursday, March 11

• 10:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. All Those Who Filter Are Not Lost—A Filtration Deep Dive (with tasting)
• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Making Use of Federal Disaster Relief Programs

Tuesday, March 16

• 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Rootstock for the Next Generation of Washington Viticulture
• 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Tasting Room #2: Pandemic Proofing Your DTC, and Where to Go From Here

Wednesday, March 17

• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Risk Management—Learning from Recent Growing Seasons and Harvests
• 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Poster Session

Thursday, March 18

• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Evolution of Winegrape Trellising and Its Modern Application
• 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Working Without a Net: Low S02 Winemaking

Tuesday, March 23

• 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Tasting Room #3: Introduction to Sustainability

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabasinherald.com.