2016 Ohio Grape and Wine Conference set for Feb. 15-16

The 2016 Ohio Grape and Wine Conference will be held Feb. 15-16 in Dublin, Ohio. Key topics being covered include fruit quality, winemaking and product branding practices, and spring frost protection.

The conference is being jointly organized by the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at Ohio State University, the Ohio Grape Industries Committee, and the Ohio Wine Producers Association.

It will be held at the Embassy Suites Columbus-Dublin, 5100 Upper Metro Place, Dublin. Full conference registration costs $225. There are additional options for partial registration.

“This year’s conference consists of both general and concurrent sessions covering a wide range of interesting topics for grape growers and winemakers,” said Imed Dami, associate professor in the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science and Ohio State University Extension viticulturist. Both the department and OSU Extension are part of the college.

Conference highlights include four Monday general sessions:

• James Osborne, enology Extension specialist at Oregon State University, will talk about fruit quality as it relates to processing considerations in the cellar. He will also provide an overview of Oregon’s grape and wine industry.

• Bill Oliver, owner of Oliver Winery in Indiana, will focus on branding and the steps taken by his winery to achieve the success it enjoys today. Oliver will also provide an overview of wines, winemaking and vineyard practices at his winery.

• Glenn McGourty, winegrowing and plant science advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension, will present some of his research on chemical trials in grapes for spring frost protection.

• John Tull, research vineyard manager at the University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center, will talk about his experiences with cold-hardy varieties and their characteristics as alternative grapes for Ohio growers.

“Many of our sessions will focus on disseminating important information regarding new or alternative varieties of interest for commercial grape and wine production,” Dami said. “This stems from the possibility of replanting due to the harsh winter conditions we have experienced over the past two years in Ohio.”

Ohio State experts will also give presentations on a variety of topics, including vineyard disease and weed control, grape insect management, managing grapevines after winter damage, herbicide drift protection, winemaking regulatory updates, and yeast strain selection.

The full schedule and registration information is available at go.osu.edu/BKps. For more information, contact Imed Dami at 330-263-3882.