2025 Eastern Winery Exposition

Dana Acimovic

AHS AREC

Research Associate

Dana holds the position of Research Associate at the AHS AREC in Winchester, VA, while also instructing a viticulture course at Virginia Tech. Originally from Serbia, she earned her BSc in Fruit Growing and Viticulture from the University of Belgrade. With a master’s degree in Horticulture from Michigan State University, Dana brings over ten years of extensive experience in cultivating grapevines and tree fruits. Her research primarily focuses on grapevine nutrition, fruit quality enhancement, and evaluating grapevine adaptability amidst climate change challenges.

Andrew Adams

WineBusiness Analytics

Writer and 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.

Mary-Kate Baldalmenti

Boundary Breaks Vineyard

Sales and Marketing Manager

Mary-Kate is the sales, marketing and wine club manager for Boundary Breaks vineyard on the east side of Seneca Lake. As a native of the area, born and raised just 5 miles from the winery, she has been fully immersed in the rural culture and collaborative community of the region.

With a Bachelor’s degree in Public Relations and International Business from St. John’s University, she has brought a versatile perspective to practical use in marketing campaigns and wholesale efforts for the brand.

With the mindset that “high tides raise all ships,” she also positions with the Seneca Lake Wine Trail, Finger Lakes Wine Alliance, the NYS Department of Ag and Markets associated with the NYWGF, and the Finger Lakes chapter of Women for Winesense in an endeavor to showcase the cross-collaborative network within the regional wine industry.

Allegra Barnes

Early Mountain Vineyards

Assistant Vineyard Manager

Allegra studied religion and political science at Boston University and quickly learned that an office job was not for her. After several summers farming organic vegetables and bartending in the off-season, growing wine grapes offered a natural combination of both. She has worked with various vineyards in Maryland, California, and now Virginia. She is enthusiastic about participating in a future of progressive, sustainable viticulture on the East coast.

Chris Brubaker, CPA

Hantzmon Wiebel LLP

Partner

Chris is a partner with Hantzmon Wiebel LLP in Charlottesville, VA, and is a leader of the firm’s robust winery and vineyard practice. He provides tax and business advisory services to closely held businesses and their owners. His practice focuses primarily on tax planning, strategic planning, profit improvement, and exit planning. He enjoys learning about business owners’ needs and helping them to achieve their goals.

Chris is a Certified Public Accountant and holds the Accredited in Business Valuation credential from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He also achieved the Certified Exit Planning Advisor designation from the Exit Planning Institute. Chris has both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree from the University of Virginia with concentrations in Accounting and Taxation.

Nova Cadamatre MW

Trestle Thirty One

Consulting Winemaker & Owner

Over the course of almost two decades, Nova has become one of the most versatile and experienced winemakers in the industry. She holds a Bachelors from Cornell University in Viticulture. In 2017 she achieved the title of Master of Wine, the first female winemaker in the U.S. to do so. She has worked with some of the best vineyards in the world, including significant time at the iconic To Kalon vineyard while working as the senior director of winemaking for Robert Mondavi Winery in Oakville, CA. While there she crafted the #6 wine of 2022 for Wine Spectator’s top 100 list. She has been named to Wine Enthusiast’s Top 40 under 40 and has numerous 90+ scoring wines from both coasts to her credit.

Nova owns three brands of her own; Trestle Thirty One and Snowshell Vineyards from the Finger Lakes and Fiadh Ruadh (Fay-ah Roo-ah) in Napa, CA. As a true “flying winemaker” she travels between Napa and the Finger Lakes to manage both her projects and several consulting clients.

David Campbell

Penn State

Graduate Researcher

David is a graduate researcher pursuing a PhD at the Penn State University’s Department of Food Science. He has worked in the lab of Dr. Joshua Lambert since 2021, studying grape phenolic chemistry and regional variability related to hybrid grapes grown in Pennsylvania. David has received grants from the USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program as well as Penn State’s Competitive Grant Program to study wine tannin extractability, regional variability in grape chemistry, and grape cell-wall composition. He has presented the results of this work at the American Society of Enology and Viticulture’s National Conference in 2023 and Eastern Conference in 2024.

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

The focus of Fererico’s research lies in the broad areas of grape and wine chemistry and biochemistry and their sensory implications, with especial 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 dosis), and their sensory impact as evaluated by formal sensory evaluation techniques.

Kimberly Noelle Charles

Charles Communications Associates

DipWSET President and Founder

Kimberly Charles’ name is synonymous with wine marketing at its best level. Over her 40 year career she has, through her creative marketing strategies, versatility and natural story-telling gifts, helped brands attain a level of distinction and draw in the marketplace. Her firm, Charles Communications Associates celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023 and specializes in strategic branding, and corporate social responsibility with a focus on women in leadership. Kimberly holds the Diploma of Wine Spirits from the WSET. A passionate supporter of good causes, she serves on the board of the Glancy Wine Education Foundation, most recently the San Francisco chapter of Les Dames Escoffier and formerly the board of Dress for Success San Francisco and the Society of Wine Educators. She is an omnivore of history and culture and a passionate yogi. Follow her firm on Instagram @AlltheSwirl.

Scott Cosseboom

Cornell Plant Pathology

Senior Research Associate

Scott works in the Cornell’s Plant-Microbe Biology department and is stationed at the Hudson Valley Research Laboratory in Highland, NY. He focuses on enhancing disease control in New York’s critical specialty crops through sustainable approaches. His expertise lies in epidemiology, modeling of fungal pathogens, chemical control, and fungicide resistance management. Previously, at the University of Maryland, he delved into identifying causal pathogens of grapevine bunch rots and strawberry fruit rots in the Mid-Atlantic, alongside developing and assessing disease prediction models to minimize pesticide use while ensuring effective disease management.

Tony Debevc

Debonné Vineyards

President

Chalet Debonné Vineyards was established during the third generation of the Debevc family’s viticulture history. Anton Debevc, a 1914 immigrant from the Slovenian State of Yugoslavia, purchased a fruit farm in Madison, OH in 1916. Anton’s son, Tony Sr., helped expand the vineyard in the late 1960’s. In 1971, Tony Sr. and his son, Tony, began their journey as commercial winemakers, establishing world class standards in the Lake Erie and Grand River Valley regions. Chalet Debonné Vineyards was founded as a winery in 1972 with the construction of a winemaking facility and a charming Chalet.

Tony oversees the general operation of the business and Tony Sr. remained as vineyard manager emeritus until he passed away in 2010. Tony, and the vineyard and cellar crews, manage 175 plus acres of vines and produce over 85,000 gallons of wine each year, including a variety of nationally recognized award-winning wines. Debonne Vineyards is best known for Riesling and Ice Wine, but also produces excellent Cabernet Franc and Chambourcin red wines, and Chardonnay and Pinot Gris white wines.

The Debevc family was the first winery to be named by Vineyard & Winery Management magazine as “Wine Family of the Year” and wines from their premium line Debonné Vineyards garner awards every year in national and international competitions from California to New York.

Kelly Downs

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau

Technical Advisor

Kelly Downs is a Technical Advisor in the Application Services Division of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Kelly began her Treasury career in 2008 with the Internal Revenue Service as a Business Contact Representative. In 2018, Kelly joined TTB as a Call Center Specialist providing guidance and explanation to specific inquiries including permit applications and maintaining compliance including reporting requirements and federal excise taxes.

In her current role as a Technical Advisor, she is responsible for providing training to Application Specialists/Technicians as well as providing guidance, responding to complex inquiries from industry members and TTB Specialists involving Wholesaler/Importer, Winery, Brewery, and Distilled Spirits Plant applications and related operations.

Sarah Eighmey

Anthony Road Winery

Business Manager

Ann and John Martini moved to Yates County in 1973 to grow grapes and raise their family on 100 acres overlooking Seneca Lake. Ann managed the vineyard and raised the children while John worked for Cornell University at the Agricultural Experiment Station. The grapes from their vineyards were first sold to the Taylor Wine Company an eventually to wineries across New York state. In 1990, Ann and John opened Anthony Road Wine Company made from their 1989 crop. Their children, Peter, Sarah, Maeve and Elizabeth have been involved in the vineyard and winery throughout their growing years and are now full-time employees/co-owners of Anthony Road Wine Company. The joy of growing grapes and producing fine wines still motivates and excites the Martini family…more than a quarter century after the first vines took root.

Sarah grew up on Anthony Road, she left for school, adventures and careers elsewhere. In 2013 she left her profession as a registered dietitian to work full time in the family business. Sarah and her husband Mike have 4 children and live in Geneva, NY. Running has been and continues to be a lifelong passion, racing in all distances and terrains since the age of 13.

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.

AJ Greely

Hark Vineyards

Winemaker

AJ has been in the Virginia wine industry for well over a decade and is the current president of the Virginia Vineyards Association. Having worked with and been mentored by many of the great winemakers and viticulturalists in the state, the collaborative nature of Virginia wine is a source of inspiration for her. AJ especially enjoys blending her passion for viticulture, science and the creativity offered by winemaking. To her, the wine in the bottle isn’t just about the varietal, terroir or vintage: it’s about the people involved and the love they put into their craft. Her goal as winemaker is to produce finally crafted bottles where her passion shines through.

Lee Hartman

Bluestone Vineyards

Winemaker

Lee has worked in the Virginia Wine industry for the last 16 years as a grape grower and winemaker for his family’s farm, Bluestone Vineyard. Formerly the President of the Virginia Wine Council, he has always taken interest in the industry beyond his own vineyard, and is currently the President of the Shenandoah Valley Winegrowers Association and is a Board Member of the Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange. As a way of expanding the industry beyond his family’s farm, he also helps neighbors with vineyard management and custom crush programs. This year, his 2017 Petit Verdot was his fourth wine to be included in the Governor’s Case, the top 12 wines in Virginia’s Governor’s Cup competition.

Dr. Long He

Penn State

Associate Professor and Extension Specialist

Long joined Penn State in January 2018 and is located at Penn State Fruit Research and Extension Center (FREC) in Biglerville, PA. Prior to Penn State, he was a postdoc scholar and research engineer at Washington State University and the University of California, Davis. His research interests are agricultural machinery, precision agricultural technologies, and agricultural robotics for specialty crop production.

Megan Hereford

Scott Laboratories

Field Sales Representative

Megan has been the Field Sales Representative for Scott Laboratories for the Southeastern US for 13 years and has worked within the wine industry for over 20 years. She holds a Bachelor of Biology and a Master of Science in Food Science from Virginia Tech as well as a level 3 WSET diploma. Her career has allowed her to develop broad knowledge of the wines and ciders found in the U.S., as well as how to handle the challenges that the production of them can present. She is passionate about the wine and cider industry of the east coast and is now a partner in the emerging brands Daring Wine Company and Daring Cider Company.

Cain Hickey, PhD

Penn State

Assistant Teaching Professor of Viticulture

Cain is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Viticulture in the Plant Science Department of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. He has been engaged in viticulture research and extension since 2007. Cain has presented at state, regional, national, and international academic and industry conferences, and has developed and coordinated numerous extension workshops. He co-coordinates the Eastern Viticulture and Enology Forum webinar series with regional colleagues. Cain has authored peer-reviewed journal articles, extension publications, facts sheets, and trade publications. He currently teaches fundamental and applied viticulture in the classroom. Cain works with Penn State Grape and Wine Team colleagues and the Pennsylvania grape and wine industry to solve vineyard management issues and optimize grape production.

Emily Hodson

Veritas Vineyard and Winery

Head Winemaker

Emily graduated from Emory University with a B.S. in Neuroscience & Behavioral Biology, with a focus in Infectious Diseases. She moved to Virginia from Atlanta in 1999 to take a year off, and work alongside her parents in the development of Veritas Vineyard and Winery. It didn’t take long for her to realize that she was not going back to her original field of study. After completing her Masters in Oenology at Virginia Tech, Emily joined the family venture full-time. Allowing the Virginia terroir to show through in her wines, Emily focuses primarily on vineyard-specific qualities. Emily won Virginia’s Wine Person of the Year in 2017, is one of the founding board members of the Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange which was developed to further the progress and growth in the Virginia wine industry through winery-driven research. She is a co-founder of ViRV (Virginia Resistant Varieties), a wine grape breeding program that is a cooperation between the Virginia wine industry and USDA-ARS focusing on breeding downy mildew resistant varieties. She is also active nationally, as an executive board member of the National Grape Research Alliance.

Bill Holden

Buccia Vineyards

Owner & Winemaker

Bill grew up in Ohio Wine Country on a cattle farm in Northeast Ohio. After a 35-year career in manufacturing, human resources and IT, Bill returned to Ohio to purchase Buccia Vineyard Winery and Bed & Breakfast where he is the owner and winemaker. Bill produces a broad range of wine styles from 13 acres of both vinifera and French-American hybrids on their estate vineyards.

Maya Hood White

Early Mountain Vineyards

Winemaker

With an excitement for environmentally low-impact viticulture, wine chemistry and sensory inputs, Maya manages the vineyards at Early Mountain and leads wine production in the cellar. Born in California, Maya has found a new love of wine in central Virginia. She earned an M.S. in Viticulture and Enology from U.C. Davis, with her research focusing on time-dependent sensory profiles and bubble nucleation of sparkling wine, as well as studies of Viognier wines from France, California and Virginia. She gained previous experience at several local boutique wineries around the state. Before getting into wine, Maya studied mathematics and engineering.

Craig Hosbach

Fox Run Vineyards

Head Winemaker

Born and raised in New Jersey, Craig Hosbach’s winemaking journey began in 2004, close to home before finding his calling in the Finger Lakes of New York. After his time in New Jersey he continued his professional path, accumulating over a decade of experience across multiple wineries within the northern New York winemaking region before assuming the role of head winemaker at Hunt Country Vineyards in 2017. From there, Hosbach honed his craft and shared his boundless enthusiasm for winemaking. Hosbach joined Fox Run Vineyards as head winemaker in August of 2022, infusing his expertise and passion into every bottle. During his tenure, Hosbach’s presence at Fox Run has been apparent. From his first vintage through his current releases, he has received consistent high praise from some of the most well-respected names in the wine industry.

Michael Kaiser

WineAmerica

Executive VP & Director of Government Affairs

Michael is the main voice of WineAmerica on Capitol Hill, taking WineAmerica’s message to Members of Congress and their staff.

Michael is also the main point of contact between the organization and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and handles general regulatory concerns for WineAmerica members. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Free the Grapes. 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, USA Today, Wine Business, and Wine Spectator.

Prior to joining WineAmerica, 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 a MA in Political Science from American University in Washington, DC.

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.

Garrison Kuhl

Fox Run Vineyards

Marketing Manager

Garrison leads the marketing efforts at Fox Run, focusing on innovative ways to engage with consumers while improving the experience for all visitors. He plays a pivotal role in driving social media growth, hosting media events, collaborating with the sales team to boost promotion, and staying on top of market trends to keep Fox Run ahead in the evolving industry.

Garrison, a Keuka College graduate, got his start in the wine industry in the Fox Run tasting room & café just five years ago. He has worked closely with local businesses, specializing in market research and social media management, helping him gain insights and dynamics to the Finger Lakes region and the wine industry. Alongside his marketing role at Fox Run, Garrison also leads the Food & Wine Experience tour every Friday in the summers and fall; while also helping with events and in the tasting room. He has a passion for the region, community, and the wine industry as a whole.

Jacy Lewis

Texas A&M University

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.

Jana Mckamey

Ohio Wine Growers Association

Executive Director

Jana was promoted to Executive Director in 2020 after serving in various capacities within the organization since 2012. The breadth and complexity of the policy, legal and business issues facing the wine industry keeps her engaged and focused on delivering positive results on behalf of wineries and growers around the state.

Jana has 20 years of international, national and state policy experience in addition to more than a decade of non-profit management experience. Prior to joining OWA, Jana served as Senior Advisor to the European Union Delegation in Washington, DC and in the lobbying practice of a DC law firm. She also brings an agricultural perspective to her role from growing up in a farming family. Jana received her M.A. from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in History and German from the University of Northern Colorado. She is a recipient of a Fulbright grant to Germany.

In her free time, you will find her biking around Portland, practicing her yoga skills, cooking and gardening, volunteering, reading, and spending time with her young family.

Adam McTaggart

Casanel Vineyards

Winemaking Consultant

Adam is the consulting winemaker at Casanel Winery in Leesburg, VA where he assists the on-site winemaking team with the planning and implementation of the entire production in the winery and vineyard. He was educated at Brock University in Biology and at CCOVI Brock University in Enology & Viticulture. Adam’s career started by gaining valuable vineyard and cellar experience for five vintages at The Malivoire Wine Company. He moved to Virginia in 2005 to lead production at Boxwood Winery working with consultants Lucie Morton and Stephane Derenoncourt. In 2013 Adam accepted a position in Maryland where he continues to produce premium quality Maryland wine. Over the years, Adam has also assisted several well-regarded wineries in Virginia and Maryland with winery design as well as equipment, vineyard and production strategies.

Liz Mercer

WISE

Coach & Content Developer

Liz grew up in the Napa Valley, instilling a deep respect for the culture and lifestyle of wine and the industry supporting it. She left the area to attend Northwood University in Michigan, where she studied Finance & Business Management. She joined the wine industry in the tasting room at Sterling Vineyards in 1999. Shortly thereafter, she was drawn into direct-to-consumer sales via wine clubs and e-commerce at Mumm Napa, where she led a team to re-brand the wine club, establishing it as one of the largest wine clubs in the country. Nearly six years with Gallo DTC leadership included a stint on the Central Coast of California. She returned to the Napa Valley, and spent time at Round Pond Estate and Bluxome Street Winery in San Francisco, then as GM of Judd’s Hill in the Napa Valley.

Liz earned her Masters of Professional Studies in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America. Liz witnessed the landscape of direct-to-consumer sales environment change drastically over the last 20+ years as the industry has matured, and is excited to be a part of developing the next generation of direct marketers.

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.

Robert Muse

Muse Vineyards

Owner

Robert is an attorney in Washington, DC with an international practice. He divides his time between the city and Muse Vineyards, one hundred miles west in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. Thirty-two acres are planted there to vinifera vines of fifteen different varieties, including Gamay. The wines from those vines are intended to provide a bright red-fruit profile that contrasts with the vineyard’s more traditional Cabernet Sauvignon, Franc and Petit Verdot. Robert’s winemaking is low-intervention with minimal additions beyond cultured yeast. The emphasis at Muse is on the production of interesting wines in the belief that while there will always be a place for a room-temperature, tannic 14.5% alcohol Cabernet Sauvignon, something else is needed – wines that are more versatile, more light-hearted and spirited. Gamay – the topic of Muse’s presentation – is such a wine.

Mizuho Nita

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.

Kyle Anne Pallischeck

Finger Lakes Wine Alliance

Executive Director

A Finger Lakes native, Kyle Anne Pallischeck has been a passionate advocate for the region’s wine well beyond her decade-and-a-half career in the industry. Dedicated to elevating the Finger Lakes on regional, national, and international stages, she combines degrees in Hospitality Management and Interior Design with wine certifications including a Sommelier Certification through the Court of Master Sommeliers, WSET Level 3, and Certified Specialist of Wine. Her expertise spans hospitality leadership, brand management, sales, and education, with a knack for connecting people and creating opportunities for collaboration.

Since stepping into the role of Executive Director of the Finger Lakes Wine Alliance in 2021, Kyle continues to promote the Finger Lakes AVA as a leader in the wine industry. She has expanded the organization’s reach through the launch of new marketing programs, promoted inclusivity in the wine industry, and strengthened partnerships with trade and media. Kyle lives in Penn Yan, NY with her rescue dog, Maverick. When they’re not digging in the backyard, hiking, or playing fetch, they’re likely floating on the waters of Keuka Lake.

Phil Plummer

Montezuma Winery

Winemaker

Phil has been making wine in New York’s Finger Lakes region for over a decade, spending the bulk of those years at Montezuma Winery, where he has served as head winemaker since 2013. In his time at Montezuma, Phil has led the development and production of a wide array of innovative wines made from grapes, fruit, and honey. Working on such a diverse portfolio of wines has given Phil a wide understanding of what wine can be, and he’s always hungry to learn new winemaking techniques and approaches.

Rebecca Rainbow

Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange

Exchange Coordinator

Rebecca’s first vintage was 2011 in her AP Biology classroom making plum wine in the lab. While the experiment was technically successful (read: drinkable at best), it piqued a lifelong interest in the art of fermentation. Now, with five years of experience in vineyard management and winemaking across Virginia, California, and New Zealand, she has returned to her roots in research as the Exchange Coordinator for the Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange where she hopes to contribute her expertise and perspective to ongoing quality improvement in Virginia wine. Rebecca loves the collaborative nature of wine, recognizing that each bottle carries the story of every person involved in the journey from grape to cork. In her spare time, Rebecca enjoys crafting ceramic wine cups for herself and her friends to savor delicious local wines.

Joyce Rigby

Winery Business Consultant, Rigby Viniculture & Vineyard Manager, Boxwood Estate Winery

Joyce has been involved with Eastern viticulture since the early 1980s. Her degree in Industrial Engineering has been advantageous, as she now applies those concepts and experience to business planning and winery design. In 2000 she began a vineyard management and winery design consulting firm and has consulted for vineyards and wineries in MD, NC, PA, RI, TN and VA. For seven years she taught viticulture and winery design in the Enology and Viticulture associate degree program at Harrisburg Area Community College in PA. Since 2019 she has been the Vineyard Manager for Boxwood Estate Winery in Middleburg, VA.

Stephen Rigby

Winery Business Consultant, Rigby Viniculture & Winemaker, Boxwood Estate Winery

Stephen is a managing partner of Rigby Viniculture, a consultancy that specializes in all things wines and vines – from dirt to bottle. He started his career as a harvest intern, then as full-time assistant winemaker, in 1979 for Mississippi State University’s Enology Lab. He moved to Virginia in 1982 and began a long career as a winemaker and consultant for wineries primarily in VA, NC and PA. Currently he is winemaker at Boxwood Estate Winery in Middleburg, VA, which specializes in Bordeaux varieties. Career steps have included winemaker under Bruce Zoecklein’s direction at Virginia Tech’s enology research and extension lab, winemaking for several Virginia wineries from 1982-1999, before moving to NC in 2000 to work in the young and developing wine industry there. His last position in NC was as a custom crush winemaker for nine clients making about 75 wines each vintage. In 2019 he joined the Boxwood team and once again makes wine from grapes that his wife and vineyard manager Joyce grows.

Clark Smith

WineSmith

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.

Jeanette Smith

VineSmith Vineyard Services

Proprietor

Jeanette began working in Virginia vineyards in 1981 while studying Horticulture at Virginia Tech. Since receiving her Bachelor’s degree in 1983, she has been involved in the planning, management, and maintenance of wine grape vineyards in NY, NC, PA, MD and VA. Jeanette has worked as a vineyard laborer, manager, agricultural extension agent and consultant. She founded VineSmith Vineyard Services in 1998 and operates her own farm in Shenandoah County, VA.

Scott Spelbring

Bluemont Vineyards

Winemaker

Scott is the Director of Winemaking and Viticulture at Bluemont Winery and the cidermaker at Henway Hard Cider, both located in Bluemont, VA near the Blue Ridge Mountains. Scott manages close to 65 acres of vinifera and guides the wines for Bluemont’s 10,000+ annual case production. Scott is currently a board member for the Virginia Cider Association.

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.

Jim Trezise

WineAmerica

President

Jim is the president of WineAmerica, the National Association of American Wineries based in Washington, DC. WineAmerica has more than 500 winery members and associations from 40 states, and focuses on national grassroots public policy advocacy to protect and enhance the business climate for the American wine industry.

Jim was on WineAmerica’s Executive Committee for more than 25 years before becoming President in 2017. He also co-created and ran the New York Wine & Grape Foundation for 32 years, as well as the International Riesling Foundation for 10 years concurrently. He serves on many industry boards, judges in major wine competitions, and has received numerous awards for his contributions to the American wine industry.

Dr. Dean Volenberg

Grape and Wine Institute & University of Missouri

Director & Extension Program Leader

Dean cut his teeth on cold-climate viticulture in the far reaches of Wisconsin. During his tenure there, he established three replicated cultivar trials in three different USDA plant hardiness zones. In the far northern zone trial, the objective was to learn which cultivars would survive and produce grapes in extreme cold temperatures ranging from -45 to -50 °F. Further, Dean helped establish the Wisconsin Grape Growers Association and over his eight-year tenure in WI, its wine industry grew from 40 wineries to more than 120.

Dean was first to confirm the presence of Grapevine Red Blotch virus (GRBV) in MO. His current research program is focused on applied and hypothesis-driven discovery of pests that have economic implications for Eastern U.S. grape growers. He led a statewide survey of grapevine viruses. Further research on GRBV is surveying potential insect vectors of the virus. His Extension program is multifaceted with attention focused on fungal and viral pests and their management.

Dean is passionate about repatriating American grape cultivars lost to Prohibition. He focuses on cultivars with Vitis aestivalis genetic backgrounds with the goal of moving the grape industry to improved sustainability.

Christine Vrooman

Ankida Ridge Vineyards

Owner & Vineyard Manager

As co-owner and vineyard manager of Virginia’s Ankida Ridge Vineyards, one of the East Coast’s premier Pinot Noir producers, Christine is passionate about implementing environmentally sensitive practices in the vineyard and balancing the considerations of nature with the pragmatism of producing a crop in the humid Mid-Atlantic regions. She embraces the French philosophy of “la lutte raisonnée,” the reasoned struggle.

Ankida added a planting of Gamay in 2017, with the first commercial crop in 2023. The role of serendipity was prominent in the family’s decision to plant a Pinot Noir vineyard in 2008. This journey is being documented in Christine’s forthcoming memoir, Terroir of a Dream, that tells the story of her journey of creating this family business where her son Nathan became the winemaker.

Christine has been active in the Virginia wine industry and is currently working on a new AVA petition for High Elevation Vineyards in Virginia. She has served on the Virginia Wine Marketing Grant Committee and is enthusiastic about the future of the Virginia wine industry.

Donniella Winchell

Ohio Wine Producers Association

Executive Director

Donniella coordinates the annual Vintage Ohio Wine Festival and the License to Steal wine 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, Tuesday Tidbits, and speaks at numerous wine and tourism conferences. She teaches occasional wine related courses at Kent State Ashtabula, is a graduate of Allegheny College with a BA in History and taught in Ohio public schools before retiring to raise a family and take the Ohio wines position.

She and her husband have 3 adult children with wonderful families, own a family entertainment center in Geneva on the Lake and live adjacent to the Grand River Valley AVA.

Conference & Workshop Speakers

Dana Acimovic

AHS AREC

Andrew Adams

WineBusiness Analytics

Mary-Kate Baldalmenti

Boundary Breaks Vineyard

Allegra Barnes

Early Mountain Vineyards

Chris Brubaker, CPA

Hantzmon Wiebel LLP

Nova Cadamatre MW

Trestle Thirty One

David Campbell

Penn State

Dr. Richard Carey

Tamanend Wine Consulting & Wine Business Monthly

Federico Casassa, Ph.D.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Kimberly Noelle Charles

Charles Communications Associates

Scott Cosseboom

Cornell Plant Pathology

Tony Debevc

Debonné Vineyards

Kelly Downs

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau

Sarah Eighmey

Anthony Road Winery

Dr. Joseph A. Fiola

University of Maryland

AJ Greely

Hark Vineyards

Lee Hartman

Bluestone Vineyards

Dr. Long He

Penn State

Megan Hereford

Scott Laboratories

Cain Hickey, PhD

Penn State

Emily Hodson

Veritas Vineyard and Winery

Bill Holden

Buccia Vineyards

Maya Hood White

Early Mountain Vineyards

Craig Hosbach

Fox Run Vineyards

Michael Kaiser

WineAmerica

Molly Kelly

Penn State University

Garrison Kuhl

Fox Run Vineyards

Jacy Lewis

Texas A&M University

Jana Mckamey

Ohio Wine Growers Association

Adam McTaggart

Casanel Vineyards

Liz Mercer

WISE

Lucie Morton

Morton Viticulture

Robert Muse

Muse Vineyards

Mizuho Nita

Virginia Tech AREC

Kyle Anne Pallischeck

Finger Lakes Wine Alliance

Phil Plummer

Montezuma Winery

Rebecca Rainbow

Virginia Winemakers Research Exchange

Joyce Rigby

Winery Business Consultant, Rigby Viniculture & Vineyard Manager, Boxwood Estate Winery

Stephen Rigby

Winery Business Consultant, Rigby Viniculture & Winemaker, Boxwood Estate Winery

Clark Smith