When the 2020 Wine Media Conference in Eugene was postponed due to COVID, a Virtual Summit sprung up in its place. From Thurs. August 20 through Saturday August 22, 2020, participants from all over the world joined sessions on a range of topics starting as early as 7am Pacific and continuing every other hour until 4pm with wine tastings at 4:30pm for fifteen people registered for the now- postponed 2021 conference.
As mentioned in my post on Day 1, I attended most of all of the sessions, and took as many notes as I could considering my left wrist is broken in two places and with two fingers injured on my right hand — and that there was a lively discussion going on at all times in the comment section!
Here’s a few highlights and an overview of Day 2; next I’ll post Day 3 and finish up with thoughts about the Velenosi virtual tasting pictured above. I’ve asked fellow attendees for their highlights or takeaways, or beverages but haven’t got too much to work with yet. NOTE:. Session images provided by Zephyr conferences; wine images by me. Stay tuned! Subscribe!
Instead of tasting wine in Eugene, it was in my backyard…
We’ve all been zooming, attending live tasting sessions, and various other virtual events replacing live gatherings now for a lifetime it feels like.
In the Before Time, I had planned on attending the Wine Media Conference in Eugene Oregon this week. I’ve attended previously: 2008 and 2009 in Santa Rosa, 2010 in Walla Walla, 2012 in Portland, 2013 in BC (that’s CANADA!), 2014 in Santa Barbara, 2016 in Lodi, and 2017 in Santa Rosa again.
But COVID hit, and this one — to be held in Eugene– was postponed to 2021 with a virtual conference held instead.
The 2020 Wine Media Conference Virtual Summit took place from Thurs. August 20 to Saturday August 22, 2020 with sessions starting as early as 7am Pacific and continuing every other hour until 4pm with wine tastings in the evening for those fortunate enough to get in on them early enough.
And I must say, I think it was quite a success! And I’m quite sure that most of the attendees agree! Kudos to organizers for putting together diverse offerings and presenters! Continue reading →
Summer in a glass. More than any other wine — that’s what people say about sauvignon blanc.
It truly is an ideal wine for summer: it embodies summer fresh scents of citrus, grass, and white stone fruit, and it pairs so well with summery foods like salads, vegetables, and goat cheese.
That definitely goes for sauvignon blanc from the Loire River Valley, Continue reading →
The excitement of verasion in the vineyard becomes the high intensity of harvest.
Picking began already in one vineyard in Ventura County! And I was there in the Mitchell vineyard in Saticoy where volunteers were picking chardonnay to go into the Clos des Amis Chambang sparkling wine!! Time to celebrate!
As with all farming, there’s many questions at harvest including: Continue reading →
Since 2000 BC, people have been making wine from the abundant indigenous grapes in Portugal– second only to Italy with almost 300 grapes being made into wine today. Surprisingly few people are familiar with the grapes, the region, or the wine… beyond Port, a fortified beverage originating in northern Portugal that traveled well.
Why? Well, for many years all of the wine made in Portugal was enjoyed by the Portuguese or people visiting Portugal!
Now it’s time for a change– time to get to know the wines of Portugal!
I’ve been investigating and tasting wines from Portugal, starting in 2009 when I traveled there on a press trip with Jo Diaz and hosted by Enoforum Wines to visit the Alentejo.
when I fell in love with the culture, the cuisine, the cobbles, the castles, the coastline and more.
How about easy meals cooked on the grill or the stove top paired with a nice light bright chilled wine and enjoyed outside on a warm evening with friends?
To beat the summer heat, try these four dry rosato from Italy paired with Sicilian panelle and crabcakes! Continue reading →
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 