fbpx
Conference

2024 Conference Speakers

STEPHEN BARNARD is the President of the Monticello Wine Trail and local winemaker of Mountain & Vine Vineyards and Winery. He began his journey with wine in South Africa and with many opportunities, including studying Enology and Viticulture at Elsenburg Agricultural Training Institute, Barnard began an accomplished winemaking career. Join Stephen on Fri., May 31 when he talks about Carbonic Maceration and then as our keynote speaker for lunch the same day.

PETER BREHM is the owner of Brehm Vineyards where he has been helping amateur winemakers make better wine for over 45 years. He founded the retail shop Wine and the People in Berkeley, California in 1970 and began introducing home winemakers to fresh premium and ultra-premium grapes from renowned regions such as Carneros, Dry Creek, Stags Leap, Rutherford Bench, the Columbia River Gorge and Willamette Valley. In 1991 Peter created White Salmon Vineyard and Winery and assisted in the birth of the Columbia Gorge AVA. Brehm Vineyards is a leading provider of fresh and frozen grapes. Peter will answer your home vineyard questions in “Grape Growing Q & A” on Sat., June 1.

CHIK BRENNEMAN is the Winemaker and partner for Baker Family Wines. In 1998, Chik graduated with a Master’s degree from UC Davis’s school of Viticulture and Enology and upon graduation, he went to work for Amador Foothill Winery, in Amador County, CA, Terre Rouge Easton Winery, and eventually became the production lab manager at Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi in Lodi California. In 2006, Chic was approached by the University of California at Davis to manage their winery. Chik retired from the University in March 2019 to devote full-time energy to Baker Family Wines. As well as being an enthusiastic home winemaker, in any given harvest he will make wine from over 50 different varietals. Chik also writes the “Varietal Focus” column in every issue of WineMaker magazine. Chik will lead “Winemaking Math: Calculate your Way to Better Wine” seminar on Friday and later this same day, he will also conduct the “Advanced Winemaking Q&A“. On Saturday, Chik will begin the day with “Managing Nutrition of Juice and Wine” to answer your winemaking questions, and later Chik will participate in the “WineMaker Columnists on 15 Winemaking Keys to Success”.  On Thursday, May 30, Chik  will lead the pre-conference “Home Wine Lab Tests Boot Camp” and Sunday, June 3 will end the weekend with the post-conference “Wine Stabilization” Boot Camp.

ANDREW CENTOFANTE turned an encounter with sake in Japan into a full fledged business. Now, he’s not only responsible for a brewery and restaurant, but also serves as chair of the board for the Sake Brewers Association of North America. Meet Andrew as he discusses “Making Sake at Home” on Fri., May 31.

PATRICK COLLINS co-founder of Patrois Ciders & Wines , is originally from Washington, DC. Patrick returned to Virginia to pursue cidermaking after his love of beverage was formed by time working in restaurants.  After working three years for more commercial cideries in Virginia, he began exploring native fermentations, sourcing heirloom fruit, and caring for previously abandoned orchards with more sustainable growing practices on their own.  Patrick will be speaking on Friday on “Grape and Non-Grape Co-Ferments”.

KIRSTY HARMON General Manager and winemaker of Blenheim Vineyards, Kirsty is a traditional winemaker, but has a vast scientific background that allows her to maintain better control over some of the more technical aspects of the winemaking process. With a background in yeast genetics, she worked in a microbiology lab at UVA and earned a degree in biology continuing on to graduate with an M.S. in Viticulture and Enology from the University of California at Davis.  Kirsty then spent six months at Domaine Faiveley in Nuits St. Georges, France, and worked as a harvest intern at Craggy Range Winery in New Zealand, officially joining Blenheim Vineyards in 2008.  On Saturday, Kirsty leads “Keys to Making Fruit Forward Wines”. 


MARC AND MATTHEW NORDEMANN-KELLER
are brothers and Partners/Co-Owners of Corks Winery Brampton Inc., an award-winning Ferment-On-Premise Winery located just west of Toronto in Brampton, Ontario Canada. Marc and Matthew have won a combined 23 medals from the WineMaker Amateur Winemaking Competition across multiple categories as well as yearly Readers Choice awards for Best Wine Making Store in their Market. Having both apprenticed under experienced kit winemakers, Marc and Matthew have made and sold thousands of wine kits for customers all over the Greater Toronto Area in Canada. Join them on Friday when they lead “Kit Wine Troubleshooting” seminar.

BOB PEAK Before joining The Beverage People in 2003, Bob was General Manager at Vinquiry, a wine testing laboratory in Windsor, California. Bob holds a degree in Chemistry from Harvey Mudd College and has pursued additional studies in wine at Santa Rosa Junior College and the University of California-Davis extension. Bob has a 1/3 acre hobby vineyard where he grows Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and writes the “Techniques” column for the magazine. Bob will lead the pre-conference “Hands-On Bench Trials” 1/2 day Boot Camp and post-conference 1/2 day “Hands-On Wine Blending” Boot Camp. On Friday, Bob will talk about “Finding & Buying the Best Grapes” and later that day will discuss “Acid & pH “. On Saturday, he will be part of the  WineMaker Columnists on 15 Winemaking Keys to Success”.

ROBERT RAMSEY was bitten by the Grape Bug relatively late in life; although a lifelong gardener, he didn’t make the transition to grape farming until his late 40’s. He started managing his vineyard of 1512 Vidal Blanc vines in 2004, and a year later poured his first wine down the drain. In 2006, he began to experiment with cryoconcentration of the Vidal to make a dessert wine. The resulting “Vidulce” wine has won Best in Show at the Virginia State Fair, a Silver Medal in the VA Governor’s Cup Competition, and a Double Gold Medal from the American Wine Society.  Bob opened a commercial nano-winery in 2017 and enjoys giving his customers a hands-on tour of the vineyard so they can more thoroughly appreciate the work and art of wine growing. Bob has two sessions at the conference: Saturday, June 1: A One-Man Band Guide to Growing Grapes and later, Grape Growing Q&A.

AUDREY SKINNER is the President of Imbibe Solutions, and a and Gastronomical Chemist. She graduated from Saint Mary’s College of California with a B.S. in Chemistry and a minor in Eastern Religious Studies. She then circumnavigated the globe with Semester at Sea, earned an M.L.A. in Gastronomy with a minor in Food Politics and Certificate in Culinary Arts from Boston University, and then backpacked through Europe for nearly four months before landing in Charlottesville, VA. In 2015 she founded Imbibe Solutions to combine her loves for chemistry, gastronomy, and public service.  Join Audrey on Friday when she covers “YAN & Yeast Health”.


CLARK SMITH has been in the wine industry since 1972 and making wine since 1976.  Besides producing an eclectic mix of wines under and his own WineSmith label, he has dedicated for four decades his widely varied talents as a consulting winemaker, inventor, author, musician, and teacher to the Wine Industry throughout the globe with a particular focus on supporting small winery businesses.  Besides service to small winery business throughout the country, we also work to support the Sonoma community.  Clark will conduct a pre- and post-conference “2-Day Fundamentals of Modern Wine Chemistry Boot Camp“. You can also hear Clark on Saturday when he leads the “Methods to Reduce Acidity” seminar. 


J. RICHARD SPORTSMAN, PH.D. is the President of Vinmetrica, a company specializing in products for wine, beer and kombucha analysis, with a focus on simplicity, low cost, and quality. Rich has a Ph. D. in analytical chemistry from the University of Arizona and was the Vice President of Reagents and Assays at Molecular Devices from 2002-2008. He has over 25 years experience in life sciences research and development. Join Rich on Friday when he presents “Preparing to Bottle” seminar and on Saturday with “What I Learned Opening a Winery”.


KEN STAFFORD
entered entered the wine world early by growing up on winery-owned property in central California  where his father worked for 40 years as a maintenance supervisor keeping all of the winery’s equipment in operation. In 2011 Ken started making wine and traded labor in a small commercial vineyard for Zinfandel grapes. In 2015, Ken and his wife, Leah, purchased a home that included property with about an acre of planted vines to support their winemaking hobby and interests. Having retired, he and his wife have immersed themselves in the wine world with constant focus on making ongoing improvements to their vineyard and with his wife’s involvement, developing the skills and knowledge to make award-winning wines. On Friday, Ken will present “Top 5 Lessons Learned Growing My Own Grapes” and will continue with the “Keys to Making Award-Winning Wines” seminar on Saturday.


JESSICA TRAPENI
COO & Enologist for Imbibe Solutions, graduated from Virginia Tech with a B.S. in Biochemistry and a minor in Chemistry. Her first job out of college was as a process developer at a Biotech company in Blacksburg. After moving to Charlottesville, Jess changed fields and accepted a job as the laboratory manager at Michael Shaps Wineworks.  She immediately fell in love with the science of winemaking and during her 6 years at Wineworks, both in the lab and as Production Manager, she saw and tasted hundreds of wines throughout their life cycle.  In 2021, she completed her Winemaking Certification from UC Davis. Jess will lead “Heat and Cold Stability” on Friday.