FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

High Elevation/High Latitude Theme for Friday Seminar Developed for 2010 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium Program

SACRAMENTO, CA, October 7, 2009 – Cooler climates and higher elevations are attracting winegrape growers and winemakers as never before. The Unified Wine & Grape Symposium’s Friday, Jan. 29, 2010, program entitled High Elevation/High Latitude Seminar: Wine Growing On the Edge will take a close look at the challenges and rewards for those who choose to tread where few others have before them.

“We want to showcase the uniqueness of the wines coming from these regions,” said Glenn McGourty, UC Cooperative Extension viticulture advisor for Mendocino and Lake counties, who is coordinating the seminar details. “There is an old quote, ‘On the edge of adaptation you will find brilliance,’ and as our industry continues to focus on terroir, interest in the style and quality of the wines coming from these regions has never been greater.”

Speakers from several countries will give presentations, including Vittorino Novello, Professor of Viticulture, University of Torino, Piemonte, Italy, and Pat Bowen, Pacific Agri-Food Research Center, Okanagan, Canada.

In addition, some specific high elevation/high latitude regions, such as the Sierra Foothills, Lake County, coastal California, Washington, Argentina and New Zealand, will also be examined and discussed.

“Attendees to the seminar will gain a broader knowledge of the challenges of growing and making wines in these special regions,” said McGourty. “They will also learn about the flavors and quality that people are getting from these regions and what makes them truly reflective of their unique terroirs.”

The Unified Wine & Grape Symposium, which takes place at the Sacramento Convention Center in Sacramento, Jan. 26-29, is jointly hosted by the American Society for Enology and Viticulture (ASEV) and the California Association of Winegrape Growers (CAWG). It includes three days of program sessions devoted to topics in the areas of: Grapegrowing; Winemaking; Business, Economics & Operations; and Marketing & Public Relations. Friday’s High Elevation/High Latitude Seminar is set aside to explore the one topic in depth.

Built with the joint input of growers, vintners and allied industry members, the Unified Symposium serves as an annual clearinghouse of information important to wine and grape industry professionals. The Unified Symposium also hosts the industry’s largest trade show of its kind, with over 550 vendors displaying their products and services. For additional information, please call (530) 753-1342 or visit www.unifiedsymposium.org.