2026 Sessions
Session Titles, Speakers, & Descriptions are being added as speakers confirm their session information.
WELCOME & GENERAL SESSION
SPEAKER COMING SOON
8:30 - 9:30 a.m.
SESSION COMING SOON
SPEAKER COMING SOON
VITICULTURE
Dr. Suzanne Slack, Dr. Ben Smith, Dr. Sarah Al-Mazroa Smith
Preventing Pesticide Resistance in Vineyards: Essentials of Antimicrobial & Fungicide Stewardship
9:45 - 10:45 a.m.
Dr. Suzanne Slack, Dr. Ben Smith, Dr. Sarah Al-Mazroa Smith
Microbial resistance is changing how we manage disease, quality, and safety in grape production. This session focuses on practical strategies and the latest research on identifying resistant pathogens, managing vineyard diseases, and improving spray application techniques.
Maria Smith
Preparing for Early Season Abiotic Stress in Midwest Vineyards
1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Maria Smith
Unexpected events in the spring, including herbicide drift and spring frost, can cause significant injury and yield loss in the vineyard. This presentation will cover methods for protecting vines, reducing impacts related to abiotic spring stressors, and ways to prepare and react to the unexpected.
ENOLOGY
Session Description Coming Soon
Session Coming Soon
Dan Lubben & DJ Lubben
Session Description Coming Soon
Mark Germany
Fermenting Opportunity: Hard Cider Production & Its Place in the Modern Wine Industry
1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Mark Germany
In this session we will discuss cider production, the multiple methods in which cider is produced, and production needs and difficulties. We will also dive into cider trends, marketing, demographics, and packaging.
BUSINESS/MARKETING
Session Coming Soon
Session Description Coming Soon
11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Becca Ritz
Session Description Coming Soon
Speaker Coming Soon
Session Coming Soon
3:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Speaker Coming Soon
Session Description Coming Soon
Individual Business/Marketing Support
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
9:45 - 10:45 a.m.
Advisor Coming Soon
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Advisor Coming Soon
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
TUESDAY, MARCH 24TH
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WELCOME & GENERAL SESSION
Train the Trainer and Tasting Room Best Practices
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Session Coming Soon
8:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.
Liz Mercer
Session Coming Soon
VITICULTURE
Max McFarland & Seth McFarland
Cold Hardiness: It Takes More Than A Cold Hardy Cultivar
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Max McFarland & Seth McFarland
Midwest winters can be harsh, even brutal and certainly damaging to grapevines. With ambient temperatures that can plummet to the -10 to -25 (degrees F) range for anywhere from one night to a week; volatile temperatures which result in 60 degree F temperatures in January and February, and late frosts (even late into May), extensive damage to early budding grapevines can and will occur. It has been well documented that the application of a vegetable based surfactant (Amigo Oil)to dormant grapevines, will in fact delay bud break anywhere from several days to almost three weeks depending upon the winter and the specific cultivar (Dami; McFarland & McFarland, 2007-2012). This amount of delay can mean the difference between a bountiful harvest and catastrophic loss due to early spring warm-up and late spring freezing episodes.
Randall Vos
Assessing the Vineyard
1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Randall Vos
In this session, weather permitting, we will explore the host site at Oscar Carl Vineyard. We will evaluate vine balance, examine different pruning responses, and discuss insights gained from our 2025 tissue sampling.
ENOLOGY
Sara Pirtle
Exploring Lower-Alcohol Wines: A Guided Tasting and Discussion
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Sara Pirtle
Join this interactive session and explore lower-alcohol wines made from cold-hardy grapes to learn how different approaches influence balance, flavor, and structure. Sample wines, ask questions, and discuss practical, permitted techniques for adjusting alcohol levels cost-effectively, without fully removing alcohol. Walk away with practical tips you can apply in your own winery.
Dr. Aude Watrelot
Sulfur Dioxide and Its Alternatives: Research Insights
1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Dr. Aude Watrelot
Sulfur dioxide is widely used throughout the winemaking process to protect wines from oxidation and microbial spoilage. However, at high concentrations, it can cause adverse reactions in some consumers. We developed a research project to evaluate the effects of alternative products, such as enological tannins and chitosan, on wine quality throughout the winemaking process. This session will focus on sulfur dioxide management and will present data on the use of these alternative products in ‘La Crescent’ and ‘Frontenac’ wines. The session will include a wine tasting.
BUSINESS/MARKETING
Liz Mercer
Time Management
11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Liz Mercer
Session Description Coming Soon
Liz Mercer
Wine Clubs
2:45 - 3:45 p.m.
Liz Mercer
Session Description Coming Soon
Individual Business/Marketing Support
Advisor Coming Soon
Advisor Coming Soon
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Advisor Coming Soon
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.
1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Advisor Coming Soon
These one-on-one consultations with a business & marketing consultant are designed to provide practical guidance tailored to your winery or vineyard, covering topics such as marketing strategy, customer engagement, branding, and business growth. Whether you’re refining current efforts or exploring new ideas, this individualized support offers actionable insights you can put to work right away.