Executive Director
Donniella is the Executive Director of the Ohio Wine Producers Association, chair of their Vintage Ohio wine festival, and coordinator of the License to Steal national 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 is an adjunct professor at Kent Ashtabula teaching occasional wine-related courses. Donnie 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 has been executive director of Ohio Wines for over 40 years.
Marnie Old is a “breath of fresh air in the wine world”, according to Michael Mondavi, and Kevin Zraly has described her as “one of the most efficient and entertaining wine educators in the US”. An engaging performer, she is known for her upbeat approach to wine and the real-world relevance of her message. Marnie’s first book, He Said Beer, She Said Wine made a splash in 2008, when she teamed up with craft beer guru Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery for a tongue-in-cheek battle of the sexes. In 2013, her first electronic book, Wine Simplified, was honored by Digital Book World with a Publishing Innovation Award for Best Non-Fiction App. However, Marnie is most proud of her most recent book, the award-winning Wine: A Tasting Course, published by DK in 2014, which Anthony Dias Blue called “perhaps the BEST wine basics book I’ve seen to date” for its ingenious visual explanations, jargon-free language and intuitive flavor-mapping of wine.
Since leaving the sommelier ranks to start her own business in 2001, Marnie has done it all. She served as the director of wine studies for Manhattan’s esteemed French Culinary Institute, and as the founding education chair of the American Sommelier Association. She has designed beverage programs for high-profile restaurants like Morimoto in Manhattan, designed training programs for some of the country’s largest wine companies, and even advised the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, one of the largest retailers of wine and spirits on earth. Nowadays, Marnie is sought-after for corporate entertaining on the national circuit and for innovative content marketing projects for the wine and beer trades. She has a cheeky monthly column for consumers called “Cheap Buzz” in the Philadelphia Daily News and writes features for professionals in Beverage Dynamics. Most recently, however, she wrote, produced and starred in a series of animated wine videos commissioned by the government of Spain, allowing her to finally achieve her lifelong dream of becoming a cartoon character.
Marnie Old
Old Wines LLC
www.MarnieOld.com
If you can’t find Susan Myers among the vines she planted in the Grand River Valley, you’ll likely find her at work publishing TheWineBuzz® magazine. Celebrating its 15th year in circulation, TheWineBuzz® is distributed to more than 500 retail locations and 100,000 readers throughout the State of Ohio.
Her experience as a grower, as a vineyard manager, and as publisher of TheWineBuzz® served Susan in her capacity as advisory committee member for the Kent State University, Viticulture and Enology Science and Technology Alliance (VESTA) program, and uniquely qualifies her as a tasting panel member for the Ohio Quality Wine Assurance program.
Passionate about all things wine, Susan has thoroughly enjoyed contributing as subject matter expert, speaker and instructor for wine enthusiast tastings and educational programs at the Cleveland Fabulous Food Show, and at Music in the Valley at the Hale Farm and Village in Bath, Ohio.
In addition to her successful publishing business, Susan is principal of Clear Blue Sky Design, LLC, a graphic and visual communications enterprise specializing in the development of corporate identity, outdoor, tradeshow, web and print design and graphic communications programs and materials. Susan is an active member, and served on the Leadership Team of the Cleveland Elite Professionals Chapter of BNI, a networking organization for entrepreneurs and small business owners.
A proud graduate of The Ohio State University, Susan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Design – Visual Communications, and cheers for her Buckeyes, every game day.
Susan can be reached at sdmyers@thewinebuzz.com.
Valerie Knoblauch serves as President and CEO of Finger Lakes Visitors Connection, Ontario County’s tourism promotion agency. This is a position responsible for the economic development of the tourism industry in Ontario County. She has held the position since 1984. Prior to this position Valerie worked in the wine industry with pioneers such as Charles Fournier at Gold Seal Vineyards as a tour guide and as public relations manager.
Valerie has served various roles in a variety of community organizations including fourteen years on the Board of Education of the Canandaigua City School District. She has also served on the Finger Lakes Community College Foundation Board of Directors and the F.F. Thompson Health System Continuing Care Center Board of Directors. She has been recognized by the Canandaigua Chamber of Commerce as an Athena award winner. She is an advocate for economic development and engaged with the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council.
Within the hospitality industry she is active on the national level with the U.S. Travel Association. Within New York State Ms. Knoblauch has leadership responsibilities with I Love NY and on the New York State Travel Industry Association. She is a frequent speaker on panels related to strategic marketing and planning, destination management, and small business marketing. She has held adjunct faculty positions at Rochester Institute of Technology (R.I.T.) and at Finger Lakes Community College, where she also sits on the advisory board to the tourism and hospitality program.
Mrs. Knoblauch is a graduate of Oswego State University College at Oswego with a degree in English Education. She graduated from the R.I.T. Simon School of Business with an M.B.A. with a concentration in marketing.
Travel, photography, culinary interests and bicycling are some of her hobbies; but she claims that her greatest achievement is “being the mother of three fine young men”. Valerie lives in Canandaigua, NY with her husband, Kurt.
George Hodson is the General Manger of Veritas Vineyards and Winery as well as President and Principal of Flying Fox Vineyards. After a 10 year career in Surgical Device sales and marketing, George joined the family business and took on the role of General Manager. George is an active voice in the emerging Virginia wine segment and is President of “Nelson 151” as well as President of the Monticello Wine Trail. He lives in Crozet Virginia with his wife Tralyn and two daughters.
Vice President
Tara Good is the Vice President of Wine America where she works to develop and enrich WineAmerica’s partnership with its members across the country. She has been a leading voice in the effort to provide relief from the PRO music licensing agencies impacting wineries across the nation.
Prior to WineAmerica she worked at Distilled Spirits Council of the United State as the Administrative Assistant for Government Relations.
Previous to working in beverage alcohol she was the Program Manager for the Levantine Cultural Center in Los Angeles where she managed cultural programming related to the Middle East and North Africa. A two-time recipient of the United States State Department’s Critical Language Scholarship she lived in Jordan and Oman where she studied Arabic. She received her M.A. from NYU in Performance Studies and her B.A. from Fordham University in International/Inter-cultural Studies and Theater.
Wine and Spirits Author
Carlo is the former owner of the Hudson-Chatham Winery and the author of more than 20 books. He has edited and written on wines, beers, and spirits. His authors include Kevin Zraly, Oz Clarke, Matt Kramer, Tom Stevenson, the New York Times, and Wine Spectator among others. He has been profiled in Beverage Media, the Wall Street Journal, Edible Hudson Valley, Hudson Valley magazine, and many other journals and magazines. He is a member of the New York Wine Media Guild, a contributor to The Cork Report and edits the blog East Coast Wineries. His winery’s Paperbirch line of sherries are made using a 20 barrel solera and have won numerous awards.
W02b | Panel Tasting: Sherry Wine
Vice President, Strategy
Northlich Agency is Adweek’s top agency in Ohio. Dan uncovers powerful ideas and insights that lead to emotional connections with customers while driving exceptional business results. He loves problem-solving and enjoys the varied nature of the challenges advertising presents. In his day-to-day work, Dan draws on the array of expertise he has developed over 10 years in varying roles in the marketing world: leading strategy, planning, measurement, relationship marketing, brand development, first-person consumer research, and business development. Dan is constantly staying ingrained in the digital space. He has worked with clients in industries such as finance, fast-moving consumer goods, food and beverage, and healthcare.
Author, Innovator and Researcher
Tim Hanni MW is the one of the first two Americans to earn the title Master of Wine a professionally trained chef and has been professionally involved with food and wine for over thirty-five years. Hanni is a widely recognized leader in developing wine marketing and education programs that break down barriers that historically hinder the unfettered enjoyment of wine. He is involved in sensory and behavioral research projects focused on fostering a better understanding of consumer wine preferences. He has recently joined forces with Dr. Virginia Utermohlen, M.D. to form Taste Science, a new research and consultancy venture with aims of expanding global wine consumption.
Hanni has a unique perspective and passionate curiosity in the worlds of food, wine and sensory sciences. He is known for his modern and innovative approach for creating consumer-centric education programs, products and services. His techniques for creating easy to use wine lists, including the invention of the Progressive Wine List format, and retail wine programs are combined with tried and tested culinary philosophies on “balancing” food and wine flavors and are employed by thousands of restaurants and hotel outlets around the world. His work in the sensory and culinary fields led to the development of Napa Seasoning Company’s unique new product, Vignon™, the first Flavor Balancing Seasoning design to make food delicious while eliminating unpleasant wine and food interactions.
Tim is a frequent keynote speaker, combining a sense of humor with first class presentation skills and an intimate knowledge of wines and international cuisines while making the enjoyment of wine and food much more accessible.
