2026 Eastern Winery Exposition

Andrew Adams

Wine Analytics Report

Editor

Andrew has been a wine industry journalist for more than a decade. He grew up in the city of Sonoma, CA, and graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in journalism. While a reporter and editor for daily newspapers in Oregon and California, Andrew won awards for investigative and business reporting. In 2009, he left the newspaper industry for a harvest internship at a winery in Napa Valley. That internship led to a full time position in the cellar and laboratory where he worked for three harvests before joining the WineBusiness company in 2011. Andrew is the editor of the Wine Analytics Report, a monthly digital report on the U.S. wine industry featuring original reporting and information from the proprietary databases of WineBusiness Analytics and data supplied by partner research firms. In addition to overseeing all editorial content and data visualization for the analytics report, Andrew is a regular contributor to Wine Business Monthly.

Eric Aellen

Linganore Winecellars

Owner & Vineyard Manager

Eric is a second generation owner at Linganore. The Aellen family started growing grapes in 1972 after purchasing a dairy farm in the rolling hills of Mount Airy, Maryland. After finishing college, Eric came back to the farm to take over the vineyards. Over the last 30 years, their vineyard has expanded to more than 80 acres with a diverse mix of hybrid and vinifera varieties. The recent expansion of five acres include VCR (Italian) and PIWI (German) clones. His grapes have been used to produce award-winning wines in the state, including Albariño, Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, Traminette and Saperavi.

Eric Amberg

Amberg Grapevines, LLC

Owner & General Manager

Terri Beirne

Wine Institute

Eastern Counsel

Terri has been Eastern Counsel for Wine Institute since 2008, representing California wineries on legal and policy issues before Legislatures, ABC Boards and other alcohol industry groups in seven mid-Atlantic states where she manages all policy efforts that impact taxation, distribution and shipment of California wine. Among other things, she helped to open Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania to wine shipping. Terri speaks regularly at national trade meetings and conferences.

Prior to 2008, she practiced Virginia law at McCandlish Holton representing wine, utility and health care clients before the General Assembly, Administration, regulatory boards and the State Corporation Commission. In 2001 when the federal courts struck down in-state winery shipping, delivery and self-distribution privileges, Terri represented the Virginia Wineries Association in passing the first permit-based wine shipping law using Wine Institute language. In 2007 she lobbied to create the Virginia Winery Distribution Company (VWDC) to counter the loss of self-distribution. The Attorney General named her Special Counsel to establish and license VWDC. Terri received the 2009 Virginia Wine Industry “Person of the Year” award for her efforts. In 2007 she was named a “Legal Elite” by Virginia Business Magazine in the Legislative/Regulatory/Administrative Law category.

Annette Boyd

Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office

Director

Annette has over 20 years of wine marketing expertise.
The Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office handles the board’s education and marketing efforts on behalf of all Virginia wineries.

Damien Blanchon

Afton Mountain Vineyards

Winemaker

Damien has been making wine in Virginia since 2006, since attaining his degree in viticulture and enology in his native France. He joined Afton Mountain Vineyards in 2011 where he continued his family tradition of making wine and growing grapes. Damien oversees wine production and vineyard operations implementing sustainable, environmentally respectful practices in both areas. His philosophy is good wine comes from good grapes, focusing on understanding the specific terroir of our site and each vintage to create wines reflecting this philosophy.

Kovie Bowen

Veritas Vineyard & Winery

Assistant Vineyard Manager

Kovie has been interested in farming and winegrowing from a young age and joined the Veritas team as an intern while still in school. After earning his degree from Randolph-Macon College in 2022, he returned to Veritas full-time to manage vineyards in the Shenandoah and Monticello AVAs. Special interests include precision viticulture and the many benefits of technology use in the vineyard.

Sarah Bowman

Surry Community College

Viticulture Instructor

Sarah has been sharing her grape growing knowledge and experience in a straight-forward and approachable manner for well over a decade. Since 2018, she has served as Viticulture Instructor at Surry Community College and The North Carolina Center for Viticulture and Enology, which provides workforce training and industry support for the Southeastern U.S. Sarah teaches both hands-on and online courses and manages the college’s 5-acre demonstration vineyard, which produces fruit for Surry Cellars, the college’s bonded winery.

Before moving to the heart of North Carolina wine country, Sarah specialized in viticulture at Southern Illinois University, where she received her M.S. in Horticulture in 2013 and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Agricultural Science. While in the Midwest, she co-managed a commercial vineyard, conducted educational workshops with the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Alliance, provided viticulture consulting services to regional growers, and served as the Illinois State Viticulturist.

Matthew Brown

The Virginia Wine Coalition

Wine Business Consultant and Coordinator

Matthew Brown is an experienced wine business consultant and coordinator of the Virginia Wine Coalition, leading efforts to strengthen the competitiveness and visibility of Virginia’s wine industry in the traded sector. A candidate of the London based Institute of Masters of Wine, he combines advanced global perspective with deep regional insight to help producers grow profitability and expand market presence.

As a wine judge for the Virginia Governor’s Cup, Monticello Cup, and Shenandoah Cup, Matthew tastes hundreds of Virginia wines each year, providing an expert understanding of the Commonwealth’s evolving wine landscape. He also teaches at the Capital Wine School in Washington, D.C., leading both consumer classes and Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) courses.

Drawing on expertise in winery marketing, distribution strategy, and data analytics, Matthew translates market research into actionable insights that help Virginia wineries refine storytelling, strengthen distribution, and connect with today’s evolving consumers.

Robert Butz

Windridge Farm

Owner

Robert is a lifelong farmer and an owner of Windridge Vineyards in Darnestown, MD. Windridge is a diversified family farming operation with a history of growing row crops and producing livestock. The farm diversified into wine grape production in 2011 and currently produces and sells estate wine from their vineyards under the Windridge Vineyards label. Additionally, Windridge offers custom vineyard management and winemaking services and is the East Coast dealer for several lines of vineyard equipment. In addition to farming, Robert serves on the Montgomery Soil Conservation District Board of Supervisors and the Maryland Alcohol Producer Fund.

Dr. Richard Carey

Tamanend Wine Consulting & Wine Business Monthly

Wine Consultant & Technical Wine Journalist

After graduating from the University of California at Riverside in 1973, Richard spent seven years teaching college level botany and plant physiology. On March 20, 1977, he bought his first winery and hours later welcomed his baby daughter to the world. Since then, he built more than ten wineries for himself and others and consulted with more than a hundred.

After several years at another winery, Richard took a position at California State University, Fresno as research enologist in the Department of Viticulture and Enology in 1985, and also started Vitis Research, a consulting company. Through this company he worked with industry vendors to create new and innovative wine equipment. He also consulted with various wineries in California.

He moved from California to Pennsylvania in 1995, starting a small winery (L. and R. Wine Company, dba Tamanend Winery). In October of 2015 both companies were sold. This allowed him to return to his roots: consulting with wineries to help them learn how to make wine or to improve their wine quality. He currently works full time as a wine consultant, primarily in PA, DE, MD, NJ, NY, and VA. As part of this consultancy, Tamanend Wine Consulting operates a wine laboratory for the analysis and review of wines for all wineries and cideries, as well as a wine production service business.

He has also been writing technical articles about winemaking for publication in many of the wine and grape trade journals in the U.S. for more than 35 years. For more than 40 years, it has been both a pleasure and a joy for him to help other wineries across the U.S. and internationally.

Federico Casassa, Ph.D.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Professor of Enology & Sensory Analysis

Federico is a full professor of Enology and Wine Sensory Analysis with the WVIT département at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in California. The focus of Fererico’s research lies in the broad areas of grape and wine chemistry and biochemistry and their sensory implications, with special emphasis on applied research. He has been involved in research projects focused on the impact of irrigation techniques, especially Regulated Deficit Irrigation. He is also interested in the chemical and sensory aspects arising from intrinsic variations of berry size in red wine cultivars, and their impact during winemaking. Current and ongoing research projects include studies on the extraction of phenolics of sensory relevance during the course of different maceration techniques in red wines (cold soak, extended maceration, saignée, cofermentation, stem and whole cluster additions), coupled with other regulating factors (grape maturity and composition, ethanol content, SO2 dosing), hyperoxidation, oxidation reduction potential, acid chemistry and biochemistry in wine, and their sensory impact as evaluated by formal sensory evaluation techniques. Federico is responsible for two research labs at Cal Poly that cover the broad aspects of both wine chemistry and wine sensory composition.

Beth Costa

Wine Road Northern Sonoma County

Executive Director

Beth Costa is the Executive Director for Wine Road Northern Sonoma County, an association of 200 wineries and 50 lodgings.In that role she is responsible for creating the budget, managing staff and working with a committee to create and implement a yearly marketing plan. Beth oversees social media with a team that also creates the blog, newsletter and podcast to give visitors an insider’s view of Wine Road. In addition she facilitates the production of the Wine Road map and organizes educational seminars for members.

Beth is currently the chair for the Hospitality Advisory Board for Santa Rosa Junior College. She regularly partners with the tourism bureau in both Sonoma County and San Francisco on various press events. She also sits on the WIN Expo Advisory Board.

Tom Croghan

The Vineyards at Dodon

Executive Winemaker

A physician-scientist turned farmer, Tom is the co-owner and executive winemaker at The Vineyards at Dodon in Davidsonville, MD. He is also the founding Chair of the Dodon Center for Ecological Farming, part of Dodon’s Do Your Part Initiative. Widely recognized for its ecological approach to wine growing, Dodon seeks to restore functioning ecosystems, enhance biodiversity, sequester carbon dioxide, and reduce its chemical and physical footprint while producing good food and wine.

Raised in rural West Virginia, Tom holds an M.D. from West Virginia University. Until he retired in 2022, Tom was a Senior Fellow at Mathematica Policy Research, where his research and policy analysis focused on treating mental health conditions in primary care settings, measuring and incentivizing healthcare quality, and racial and ethnic disparities in access and quality of healthcare. Tom’s essays on farming, viticulture, and Maryland agricultural policy have appeared in the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, Meininger’s International, and Maryland Matters. He has served on the Board of Directors of Future Harvest, a regional regenerative agriculture organization, and he currently serves on the Board of Directors of WineAmerica, a national trade group. Tom is also a lead team member for The Porto Protocol’s Living Vineyards project.

Laura Cypress

Laffort USA

East Coast & Midwest Technical Winemaker

Born and raised in Nashville, Laura is an enthusiastic advocate for Eastern wines. Her interest in food science and fermentation brought her to University of California, Davis, where she graduated in 2013 with a degree in Viticulture and Enology and a minor in French Language. From there, Laura began to harvest-hop globally and domestically, with stints in Burgundy, Tennessee, California, Oregon, New Zealand, Australia, and New York. She ultimately found a home in the Hudson River Region, NY, where she spent seven vintages making wine with Benmarl Winery. Laura loves making wine knowledge accessible to everyone and is excited to help elevate the reputation of Eastern wines and be a resource for winemakers. When not troubleshooting tricky cellar situations, Laura enjoys hiking, biking, listening to the radio, donating blood, and exploring the Hudson Valley, where she calls home.

Christian Deakin

BevZero

Product Development Manager

Christian grew up on a vineyard in western New York and went on to graduate from Cornell University in 2015 with a B.S. in Microbiology and a minor in Enology. He then moved to California where he spent the next eight years working for Gallo; the first four as a research enologist and the next four as a production microbiologist. He joined the BevZero team as the product development manager where he works with clients to develop their no- & low-alcohol wine vision.

Massimo DeVellis

Insieme Winery

Owner & Winemaker

Massimo was raised by proud Italian immigrants and grew up just outside NYC. With family still in Italy, every summer as a child was spent on his grandparents’ farm just outside Rome. Grapevines and old cantinas were the norm and colored the landscape of everyday life. There he learned the basics of Old World farming along with basic winemaking and cellar practices.

After 25+ years in accounting and finance Massimo decided to return to his roots and opened Insieme Winery with his wife Jessica. Largely self-taught and with the help of pioneers like Clark Smith, Insieme Wines focuses on crafting Old World-style wines from plot-specific North American Fruit.

David Falchek | Moderator

EWE Moderator

David is a longtime wine writer having begun his career in the Finger Lakes. He continues to write a weekly wine column for several publications in Pennsylvania. He is the former executive director of the American Wine Society, the oldest and largest organization of wine consumers in the U.S., where he also served as publisher of the AWS Wine Journal. David has a Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership from the Kania School of Management at the University of Scranton and he teaches bartending and bar management. He is a member of the Order des Compagnons du Beaujolais. For several years he was an elector in the Vintners Hall of Fame in Napa Valley.

Dr. Joseph A. Fiola

University of Maryland

Professor and Specialist in Viticulture & Small Fruit

Joseph has over 30 years of academic and industry experience in research and extension in viticulture, small fruit culture, and enology. He is currently a professor and specialist in Viticulture and Small Fruit for the University of Maryland. He coordinates a statewide R&E program, concentrating on grape variety testing, as well as conducting small batch winemaking studies of the experiments. He also has been awarded 12 patents for small fruit variety development and has extensive experience fermenting berry and fruit wines.

Holly Fusco

Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery

Hospitality Manager

Holly transitioned to the wine industry after a 15-year career as a professional ballet dancer, most notably with The Pennsylvania Ballet. Her passion for hospitality began in Philadelphia, where she met her husband, Brandon, then Beverage Director for Iron Chef Jose Garces’ restaurants. Together, they discovered the Finger Lakes, eventually relocating there in 2018.

Holly began her wine career at Hermann J. Wiemer, growing from behind-the-scenes roles to guest-facing positions. She later became Tasting Room Manager at Domaine Le Seurre, gaining hands-on experience in every aspect of winery operations. During the pandemic, she singlehandedly maintained sales and reopened the tasting room, deepening her leadership and resilience.

In 2021, she joined Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery as Hospitality Manager, where she leads tastings, events, DTC strategy, and the Vinifera Wine Club. Her guest-centered approach has driven major innovations—including a seated tasting experience, the launch of Eugenia’s Garden (now a million-dollar seasonal venue), and the winery’s top-grossing Holiday Market. She’s also built local partnerships through creative products that enrich the winery’s story.

Outside of wine, Holly runs Nouveau Flower Farm and holds a degree in Fine Art Photography, which continues to shape her visual and aesthetic sensibilities.

Alex Gamez

Stone Tower Vineyard

Vineyard Manager

Alex is a passionate grape grower at Stone Tower Vineyard in Virginia. He started as a part-time hand laborer and worked his way up through dedication and a love for farming. He now specializes in canopy management, soil care, and equipment operation. He enjoys learning the science behind growing grapes and exploring new tools that make vineyards work more efficiently. He believes in creating a positive work environment and helping others grow in their roles. To Alex, farming isn’t just his job, it’s his passion.

Brittany Gibson

Seneca Lake Wine Trail

Executive Director

Brittany Gibson has served as the Executive Director of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail since 2018, where she leads one of the most recognized and successful regional wine organizations in the country. With a career rooted in tourism and wine marketing, Brittany brings both strategic insight and genuine enthusiasm to the business of building brands and destinations that inspire connection.

A passionate advocate for research-based marketing, Brittany believes the strongest strategies are those grounded in data and designed for collaboration. Her leadership extends well beyond Seneca Lake: she is Vice Chair of WineAmerica’s State and Regional Association Advisory Council, where she recently launched a marketing-focused subgroup to foster knowledge sharing and innovation across the U.S. wine industry.

Deeply engaged in her community, Brittany serves on multiple regional boards, is Vice President of her local school board, and President Elect of her Rotary Club. She also played a leading role in writing her village’s comprehensive plan and reestablishing its long-dormant Merchants Association.

When she’s not championing Seneca Lake and the Finger Lakes wine region or mentoring emerging leaders, Brittany is a proud mom of three young children—balancing board meetings, marketing strategy, and bedtime stories with equal passion and purpose.

Karl Hambsch

Loving Cup Vineyard & Winery

Vineyard Manager & Winemaker

Loving Cup is Virginia’s only certified-organic vineyard and winery where they have been growing organically since 2008, and just finished their 14th vintage as a commercial winery. Karl was awarded the Virginia Vineyards Association’s Grape Grower of the Year Award after the 2018 season, during which Loving Cup survived nearly 100 inches of rain. Karl credits Loving Cup’s success to his focus on disease-resistant grape varieties, the power of teamwork, and his desire to farm with humility.

Kirsty Harmon

Blenheim Vineyards

Winemaker

Born in the Netherlands, Kirsty has spent the majority of her life in Charlottesville, VA. After graduating from the University of Virginia in 1998 with a degree in biology, Kirsty developed an appreciation for wine through a job that allowed her to apprentice for famed Virginia winemaker Gabriele Rausse. After making wine for several years in Virginia, Kirsty moved west to pursue formal training at the University of California at Davis, where she graduated with an M.S. in Viticulture and Enology. After graduation, she spent six months at Domaine Faiveley in Nuits St. Georges, France as a recipient of the 2007 Confrerie des Chevaliers du Tastevin Scholarship. In 2008, she worked as a harvest intern at Craggy Range Winery in New Zealand as recipient of the Doug Wisor Memorial Scholarship, and has been the winemaker at Blenheim Vineyards since 2008.

Michael Kaiser

WineAmerica

Vice President

WineAmerica Vice President Michael is the main point of contact for the organization, Congress, and the Executive Branch. Working with WineAmerica’s government affairs team, Michael works to make sure the interests of WineAmerica’s members and the American wine industry are well served in our Nation’s Capitol. This includes working with the various state and regional winery associations and WineAmerica’s grassroots network, as well as our other alcohol commodity partners in Washington, D.C.Michael also manages all external communications for WineAmerica. This includes press outreach and membership communication. Michael also actively recruits new members for WineAmerica while getting the association’s message out to the masses. Michael is a regular fixture at industry trade shows and conferences throughout the country. He has been quoted in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Associated Press, Wines and Vines, and Wine Spectator. He is a board member of the Free the Grapes. Before joining WineAmerica in 2006, Michael provided research and logistical support to two DC-based lobbying firms. He also handled compliance issues with a major political party. Michael earned his BA in American Studies and Political Science from Rider University in Lawrenceville, NJ, and an MA in Political Science from American University in Washington, DC.

Jim Kamas

Perennial Crop Solutions

Vineyard & Orchard Consultant

Jim was an associate professor in the Department of Horticultural Sciences and has a 100% Extension appointment with Texas A&M Agrilife Extension. He worked closely with small fruit, tree fruit and grape growers across Texas to solve the problems of the commercial fruit industry. Through formal educational programming, onsite visitations, phone and email contacts, he assisted growers with cultural practice problems including fruit nutrition, pruning and crop-load management, orchard/vineyard ground cover management and disease and insect control. He was also involved in several applied research projects on Pierce’s disease, grape fungal trunk diseases and the impact of auxinic herbicides on grapevines. Jim currently works as a vineyard and orchard consultant with Perennial Crop Solutions.

Molly Kelly

Penn State University

Extension Enologist

Molly joined Penn State University as the enology extension educator in the Department of Food Science in February 2018. She has led workshops including winery sanitation, filtration, microscopy, wine analysis and berry sensory analysis. Her research has focused on the effect of nitrogen and sulfur applications on Petit Manseng wine aroma and flavor. Current research includes the impact of the spotted lanternfly on wine quality.

Prior to this, Molly was the enology extension specialist at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg VA. She also held the position of enology instructor at Surry Community College in Dobson NC, where she developed the enology curriculum and managed all aspects of the college’s 1,000-case bonded winery. Under her direction, Surry produced numerous international award-winning wines. Prior to her position at Surry, she was a biodefense team microbiologist with the New York State Department of Health.

Jocelyn Kuzelka

Daring Wine Co.

Winemaker

Jocelyn began making wine in Virginia in 2003, following her love of enology around the world with experience working wine grape harvests in the U.S., Italy, Australia and New Zealand. With a background in biochemistry and a Master’s in Enology and Viticulture, Jocelyn believes winemaking is more science than art, and in letting the fruit speak for itself. In 2021, she and longtime friend Megan Hereford started Daring Wine Company, a vision that grew from grapes without a home and a winery with space, where they produce only small-batch, high-quality wines and ciders from southwestern and central Virginia.

Jim Law

Owner, Linden Vineyards, Ltd.
Winegrower, Hardscrabble Vineyard

An Ohio native, Jim was raised in the 1960s and 1970s by parents who loved to share their passion for food and wine. Study in Europe and two years’ teaching agriculture as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zaire (Congo) led to his desire to grow grapes.

On return to the U.S. in the late 1970s, he worked at Ohio and Virginia wineries. He became intrigued with both the idea of virgin terroir and being part of a new winegrowing region. He saw this opportunity on the cool high elevation Blue Ridge Mountains of Northern Virginia. Linden Vineyards continues to remain true to discovering its terroir and keeping winemaking ego-free.

Jacy Lewis

TAMU AgriLife Extension

Program Manager, Viticulture & Fruit

Jacy is a PhD candidate at Texas A&M University in the department of Horticultural Sciences where her research focuses on translating ecological models to management of agricultural pests and disease. She models systems for vectored diseases of Xylella fastidiosa (Pierce’s Disease) and avenues for biocontrol.

Jacy holds a Master of Science in Biology from Texas Tech University where her primary areas of study were Plant Reproductive and Community Ecology. She is currently employed as the Program Manager for the TAMU AgriLife Extension Viticulture and Sustainable Fruit Applied Research Lab.

Jacy started working with Pierce’s Disease in 2005 as part of the Texas Pierce’s Disease Task Force where she explored epidemiology of the disease in Texas as a GIS specialist. She has continued to work in perennial fruit production including viticulture with a strong interest in understanding symptomology, diagnosis, and management of Pierce’s Disease. Complementary interests include sustainable agricultural production, utilizing the EIQ in IPM decision making, the impacts of spectrum modification fabric on growth, production, dormancy manipulation and pest management in perennial crops.

Rachel Martin

Oceano Wines

Co-Founder, CEO, and Winemaker

Rachel Martin is Founder & CEO of Oceano Wines and creator of Oceano Zero, a pioneering luxury non-alcoholic wine collection. She is also Co-Founder, Author, and Lead Instructor of AFNA Wine Certified™, the world’s first professional certification dedicated to non-alcoholic wine. Martin’s role as Executive Vice President at Boxwood Winery led her to author the successful 2012 petition establishing the Middleburg, Virginia AVA. She studied Enology and Viticulture at Napa Valley College and Wine Sensory Science at the University of Bordeaux, France. With more than two decades in the wine industry, Martin builds award-winning brands and is recognized as a leader in premium winemaking and the mindful drinking movement.

Brian Matson

TwoSix Digital

Digital Marketing

Brian V. Matson has been at the forefront of the digital marketing industry since 2003, constantly pioneering new promotional programs that leverage emerging technologies and trends. His innovative work has earned him both the Explore Minnesota Marketing Excellence Award and the North Dakota Governor’s Award for Marketing.

A sought-after speaker, Brian is known for his engaging presentation style that makes complex topics accessible and memorable for attendees at state, regional, and national conferences. He’s a valuable asset for any business or organization looking to stay ahead of the curve, drawing on his extensive experience to develop cutting-edge marketing initiatives for a diverse range of clients, from major destinations and sports organizations to a wide variety of small businesses.

Conor McCaney

Hawk Haven Vineyard & Winery

Head Winemaker

Conor has spent nearly a decade working in the Eastern U.S. wine industry. He holds an M.S. in Food Science & Technology, specializing in food chemistry, from Penn State University; a B.S. in Chemistry from Saint Joseph’s University, along with a Bachelor’s degree (Hospitality) and an Associate’s degree (Baking & Pastry Arts) from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. As the head winemaker at Hawk Haven Vineyard & Winery –located near Cape May, NJ– he oversees the sparkling wine, still wine, and cidermaking operations.

Ray Mitcham

Linganore Winecellars

Head Winemaker

Ray has been a key figure in the Eastern winemaking scene since 2005, starting his career in Southern Pennsylvania before finding his home as head winemaker at Linganore Winecellars. With a deep passion for enology, Ray is dedicated to crafting expressive, high-quality wines across a wide range of styles. Beyond his role at Linganore, he has consulted for numerous wineries and vineyards throughout the Mid-Atlantic, helping them establish and refine their winemaking programs. Recently, he expanded his expertise by launching his own label with his wife, Seven22 Wine Company, while also leading the winemaking for Simple Theory Wine Co.

Lucie Morton

Morton Viticulture

Viticulturist

Lucie is an independent viticulturist based in Virginia. She is an internationally recognized author, ampelographer, lecturer, consultant, research collaborator, and most recently film producer. Her higher education in viticulture occurred in Europe, while her practical education began as vineyard manager on the family farm along the banks of the Potomac River, Virginia-side. Her focus on rootstocks led her to collaboration with geologists to show the need to revise potassium recommendations based on soil analyses. She believes that integrated pest management is an ever changing challenge which requires ongoing collaboration with plant pathologists worldwide.

Dave Myers

University of Maryland

Extension Educator, Agriculture

Dave has been a lifelong resident of Anne Arundel County, and is currently the agricultural extension educator for both Anne Arundel and Prince George’s counties and serves as the Anne Arundel County Extension Director. Prior to assuming the University of Maryland Extension position, he served as agronomist/crops master for the U.S. Naval Academy Dairy Farm from 1980 to 1997. During this time, he also earned a BS in Agronomy, Crop Science and an MS in Agronomy, Weed Science from the University of Maryland.

Dave’s extension responsibilities include all field crop and livestock agriculture with an emphasis on fruit and vegetable production and marketing. He has taught the INAG 106 Pesticide Use and Safety Course every semester since 2005 as an adjunct instructor for the Institute of Applied Agriculture at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR). He is an affiliate faculty member of the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, AGNR. He also conducts fruit and vegetable research trials at the University of Maryland Upper Marlboro Research and Education Center, and the Anne Arundel Extension Urban Farming Research Clinic (AAUFRC).

extension.umd.edu/locations/anne-arundel-county/agriculture-food-systems/myersrd@umd.edu

Mizuho Nita, PhD

Virginia Tech AREC

Associate Professor and Extension Specialist, Grape Pathology

Mizuho is an associate professor and extension specialist at Virginia Tech’s AHS Jr. Agricultural Research and Extension Center and the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences. His area of expertise is the management of grape diseases. His research and extension objectives are: 1) Development of environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable wine grape disease management; 2) Study in epidemiology (change over time and space) of grape and other plant pathogens; and 3) Effective delivery of scientific information to growers. Mizuho’s research activities include disease risk assessment and surveillance, exploration of cultural and chemical means of disease and vector management, fungicide and fungicide-alternative testing, fungicide resistance examination, cultivar disease susceptibility evaluation, and development of novel diagnostic tools. In his extension program, he uses traditional and technology-based resources to disseminate educational materials to reach growers and Cooperative Extension agents in Virginia and nationally.

Tom Payette | Moderator

Winemaker & Winemaking Consultant

Tom is a hands-on, analytical, East Coast pioneering, winemaking professional with a Food Science Degree. His extended expertise focuses on winemaking, winery and vineyard start-ups and expansions, still and sparkling wine and general winery issues. Tom has over three decades of well-rounded experience in still and sparkling wine production in Virginia along with nine years in ultra-premium Bordeaux varietal wine production in Napa, CA. Tom studied under famed Bordeaux enologist Jacques Boissenot. He was awarded Winemaker of the Year in 1999 by Vineyard & Winery Management and most recently named a “Wine Industry Leader of the Year” by Wine Business Monthly. Visit winemakingconsultant.com to learn more about Tom.

Dr. Demi Perry

Virginia Tech

Assistant Professor of Enology & Extension Specialist

Demi has a strong interdisciplinary background spanning chemistry, sensory science, and food science. She holds a Ph.D. in Food Science and Technology from Cornell University, where her research focused on optimizing deodorization processes in native Vitis labruscana grape juices to improve their enological potential. With prior roles in academia, extension, and the wine industry, Demi brings a unique integration of hands-on cellar and vineyard experience with advanced analytical and sensory evaluation techniques. Her work has been recognized through numerous scholarships and awards, including multiple honors from the American Society for Enology and Viticulture. She continues to bridge research and practice by collaborating with grape growers and winemakers to develop science-based solutions for quality improvement in Virginia wine production.

Dennis Rak

Double A Vineyards

Owner

Dennis Rak is the owner of Double A Vineyards Inc. The nursery was established in 1990 and has grown into one of the largest suppliers of grapevine planting stock in the U.S. Dennis is a graduate of Cornell University with a B.S. in Horticulture and Plant Protection. He has worked in several areas of grape production including vineyard manager, farm supply sales, and nursery production. In addition to grapevine production, Dennis grows 500 acres of grapes and other nursery crops. He has also worked closely with breeders in the introduction of new varieties to ensure grower success and adaptation.

Cameron Rozell

Ag Drones East

Owner/Chief Pilot

Cameron was born and raised in Tyler, Texas. His father and grandfather started Rozell Sprayer Manufacturing Company in 1994, where they manufactured custom sprayers. They were also peach farmers (Rozell Peach Farm). Cameron grew up working the farm, as well as in the assembly side of the sprayer manufacturing business.

Once drones became a viable option for spraying, Rozell Sprayer created a drone division for sales and commercial applications. Cameron then started an East Coast division of Rozell Sprayers, Ag Drones East, headquartered in New Jersey. Ag Drones East has been operational since 2022, spraying thousands of acres a year in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Cameron also provides training, certification, and after-sales customer support.

Gabriel Rubilar

Winemaker & Consultant
Gabriel Santiago Rubilar is an Argentinian master winemaker specializing in premium boutique wineries. He has more than 16 years of experience crafting unique wines from Argentina Mendoza Uco valley (Trivento, Niesto Senetiner, Estancia Mendoza) to California (Lynmar Estate) and the East Coast of the U.S. With over 85 of his wines awarded nationally and internationally, Gabriel set his focus on connecting the terroir of each vineyard with the customer.

“I am passionate about the diversity and the honesty a wine can share with every sip, the story behind each bottle, where most of the time, the old is more appreciated, but the new can always surprise”.

John Saunders

Silver Creek Orchards

Co-Owner

John is co-owner of Silver Creek Orchards in Tyro, Virginia and has been growing fruit on their family farm since 1994. The first grapes were planted in 1999 and Silver Creek now grows 11 varieties of grapes and sells their grapes to wineries in Virginia and North Carlolina. John received a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech in 1989.

Davide Schiavetti

Rothwell, Figg, Ernst & Manbeck,

PC Attorney

Davide Schiavetti, an attorney at Rothwell Figg in Washington, D.C., assists clients in the wine, food, fashion, and automotive industries in building, protecting, and enforcing their brands. He advises on trademark and copyright matters, handling U.S. trademark prosecution before the USPTO and litigation in federal courts and before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB). Davide works closely with clients to craft tailored strategies that strengthen brand identity and safeguard intellectual property, ensuring their creative and commercial efforts are fully protected. Originally from Milan, Italy, Davide is fluent in French, Italian, and Spanish. He has been recognized as a Rising Star by Super Lawyers and named to Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.

Stephanie Siegel

Ashtabula County Visitors Bureau

Executive Director

Stephanie has been in the marketing industry for 29 years, spending the last 11 as the Executive Director for the Ashtabula County Visitors Bureau, where she has established the Ohio Wine Country brand. Her role has varied: Innkeeper for the Grapevine Bed & Breakfast at Debonné Vineyards, Marketing Manager for Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Marketing Director for the Cuyahoga County Public Library System, and Community Relations Director for Emeritus Senior Living. She is an active volunteer for Camp Sue Osborn for Special Needs, the Malone Scholarship Program, and is a foster for Lake Erie Labrador Rescue. Stephanie and her husband, PJ, have two boys, Patrick and Joey. On her list of favorites: hunting for Lake Erie beach glass, a turkey reuben at Briquette’s Smokehouse, and the sweet September smell of grapes in the Grand River Valley

Audrey Skinner

Imbibe Solutions

Gastronomical Chemist & Founder

Imbibe Solutions is an independent laboratory based in Virginia that specializes in quality control services for small and mid-sized wineries, breweries, cideries, and distilleries. With a BS in Chemistry, a Master of Liberal Arts in Gastronomy, and a Certificate in Culinary Arts, Audrey brings a unique blend of scientific precision and sensory awareness to the world of craft fermentation. Her work focuses on helping winemakers improve stability, reduce risk, and maintain consistency through targeted testing—including bentonite trials, yeast nutrient analysis, acid profiling, and microbial plating. Audrey’s mission is to provide actionable data and practical insights to help wineries make confident, quality-driven decisions from crush to bottle.

Clark Smith

WineSmith Wines & Consulting

Winemaker, Author

Winemaker for his own WineSmith brand and consultant for hundreds of winery clients, Smith has made wine for 65 vintages (14 in the Southern Hemisphere). He is the author of Postmodern Winemaking, Wine & Spirits Magazine’s 2013 Book of the Year. His Winemaking Fun-damentals Made Easy has received rave reviews from 4.500 winemakers since 1984 and is now available online. Wine Business Monthly named him 2016 Innovator of the Year and in 2018 listed him among the 48 Most Influential People in Wine.

Joy Ting

Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange

Research Enologist

Joy is the Research Enologist for the Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange, a non-profit organization founded in 2014 to promote innovation through experimentation and education in the wine industry. Each year, the WRE supports 30-40 production scale experiments around practical questions focused on improving wine quality in VA. Prior to joining the WRE, Joy was the winemaker and enologist at Michael Shaps Wineworks, and she continues to produce small batch wines under her own label.

Dr. Renee Threlfall

University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

Associate Professor, Food Science Department

Renee has worked in the Food Science Department at the UA System (Fayetteville) for over 30 years. She currently has a split position of 47% research, 35% Extension and 18% teaching. She completed her BS in Microbiology and MS and PhD in Food Science with an emphasis in enology and viticulture at the University of Arkansas.

Renee’s research and extension at the UA System is focused on processing and post-harvest storage of specialty crops (wine grapes, muscadine grapes, table grapes, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, etc.) and value-added processing of horticultural crops. She has over 50 refereed journal publications. She teaches an introductory enology and viticulture class Uncorked: Vines to Wines at the University of Arkansas each fall and teaches enology, viticulture and sensory topics for grape and wine production in other Food Science classes.

Renee is a member of the American Society of Enology and Viticulture (ASEV), ASEV-Eastern Section, American Wine Society, American Society for Horticultural Science, and North American Raspberry and Blackberry Association. She is on the Extension and Outreach Committee for the National Grape Research Alliance, is a member of the Arkansas Association of Grape Growers, and serves on the Arkansas Wine Producers Council. She is also the director of the Arkansas Quality Wine Program.

Phone: 479-575-4677 | Email: rthrelf@uark.edu

Donniella Winchell

Ohio Wine Producers Association

Executive Director

Winchell coordinates the annual Vintage Ohio Wine Festival and the License to Steal marketing conference. She is past chair of the WineAmerica State Advisory Committee and is active in Winegrape Growers of America, the Ohio Travel Association, and serves on several other state and national committees. She is a member of the Ohio Agriculture and Ohio Wines Halls of Fame, a Rotary Harris Fellow, a member of the Knights of the Vine, and the recipient of the Monteith Wine Award.

In 2020, she was named an industry influential by Wine Business Magazine and in 2021 was awarded the Rich Smith Award of Excellence in American Wine. In 2022 the Wine Industry Network named her one of the industry’s ten most inspiring people. She has contributed to several national wine publications, writes weekly wine columns for a dozen Ohio print and online publications, authors a marketing e-letter called Tuesday Tidbits, and speaks at numerous wine and tourism conferences.

Mary Beth Williams

Williams Compliance

President

Widely recognized as one of the foremost authorities on beverage compliance, founder Mary Beth Williams designed Williams Compliance to be a nimble, knowledge-based company. After years in the public sector and private practice as an attorney, Williams is well-versed in the regulatory challenges that can befuddle the best businessperson. In her role as Associate General Counsel in the Virginia State Corporation Commission, she prosecuted securities fraud cases and drafted legislation and rules for the regulation of securities trademarks, and franchises. This experience, combined with her background as a Deputy District Attorney in Colorado, provides her with great perspective and understanding regarding enforcement issues and the position of the enforcement agencies. Based on her background and experience, Williams knew West Coast wineries had been using compliance companies for years to bring in an expertise in the area at a significantly lower cost. She believed East Coast producers should have the same opportunity. Taking the calculated risk that all entrepreneurs face, she left her prestigious position as one of the state’s legal eagles and founded Williams Compliance. Today Williams Compliance serves dozens of clients in the eastern United States.

With her relaxed style and her clear understanding of the ever-changing regulatory environment, Williams is regularly invited to share her knowledge in speeches and seminars for state associations and other groups. Williams is well known for her hands-on approach to the beverage industry. She has bottled wine with clients, poured at consumer tasting events as well as assisted in harvest. In each case, such experience helps her develop real world solutions for her clients’ needs.

2026 Speakers

Andrew Adams

Wine Analytics Report

Eric Aellen

Linganore Winecellars

Eric Amberg

Amberg Grapevines, LLC

Terri Beirne

Wine Institute

Annette Boyd

Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office

Damien Blanchon

Afton Mountain Vineyards

Kovie Bowen

Veritas Vineyard & Winery

Sarah Bowman

Surry Community College

Matthew Brown

The Virginia Wine Coalition

Robert Butz

Windridge Farm

Dr. Richard Carey

Tamanend Wine Consulting & Wine Business Monthly

Federico Casassa, Ph.D.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Beth Costa

Wine Road Northern Sonoma County

Tom Croghan

The Vineyards at Dodon

Laura Cypress

Laffort USA

Christian Deakin

BevZero

Massimo DeVellis

Insieme Winery

David Falchek | Moderator

Dr. Joseph A. Fiola

University of Maryland

Holly Fusco

Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery

Alex Gamez

Stone Tower Vineyard

Brittany Gibson

Seneca Lake Wine Trail

Karl Hambsch

Loving Cup Vineyard & Winery

Kirsty Harmon

Blenheim Vineyards

Michael Kaiser

WineAmerica

Jim Kamas

Perennial Crop Solutions

Molly Kelly

Penn State University

Jocelyn Kuzelka

Daring Wine Co.

Jim Law

Jacy Lewis

TAMU AgriLife Extension

Rachel Martin

Oceano Wines

Brian Matson

TwoSix Digital

Conor McCaney

Hawk Haven Vineyard & Winery

Ray Mitcham

Linganore Winecellars

Lucie Morton

Morton Viticulture

Dave Myers

University of Maryland

Mizuho Nita, PhD

Virginia Tech AREC

Tom Payette | Moderator

Dr. Demi Perry

Virginia Tech

Dennis Rak

Double A Vineyards

Cameron Rozell

Ag Drones East