Wines & Vines

112 WINES&VINES Collector's Edition UNIFIED PREVIEW I 've attended Unified for the past 22 years, and it's been a part of my professional career since the beginning," said Lance Winters, master distiller at St. George Spirits in Al- ameda, Calif., and the 2019 Wine & Grape Symposium keynote speaker. With a professional career in distilled spirits, Winters prom- ises to provide a unique perspective on innovation within the wine industry. "The distilled beverage sector is heavily steeped in tradition, even more than in our own (wine) industry," said Tom Collins, assistant professor of grape and wine chemistry at Washington State University and co-chair of the 2019 sym- posium in a statement. "Sometimes, breaking with tradition can lead to successes." In an interview with Wines & Vines, Winters said he believes that many people enter either the wine or spirits industry be- cause of tradition, but then rely too heavily on traditional practices. "Think of it as a conversation," he said. "If you say the same thing as everyone else, no one will listen. But if you jump in with a new inspiration, you can be a conversation starter in the industry." Winters said his keynote speech will cover where he's drawn inspiration and how he's used that to build the St. George Spirit brand. Since joining the distillery in 1996, Winters has helped expand the business from a dedicated eau-de-vie distillery to one that includes a complete portfolio of spirits, including single-malt whiskey, absinthe, rum, gin and vodkas, among others. "I learned distillation as a medium for self-communica- tion, self-expression. I thought about what I wanted to express and used distillation to get my message across," Winters said. He acknowledged that there are those in the wine industry who have done the same, citing Dave Phinney as an example. "Think about The Prisoner. There's no winery or vineyard associated with that wine. All Phinney had was an idea for a non-traditional blend and a non-traditional label, flying in the face of all conventional wisdom," Winters said, pointing out that The Prisoner has been bought and sold as an identity only, several times over. In 2016, the Prisoner and a few other brands created by Phinney were sold by Huneeus Vintners to Constellation Brands for $285 million. "There are no assets, just a label and the goodwill that comes behind it," he said. But, Winters warned, to be real, genuine and sincere has to come from whoever is trying to break into the business. "I can only ask, 'Have you found something that really turns you on?' And if you have, work with that," he said. Symposium program While past symposiums have featured an overarching theme or focus, this year Collins and his co-chair, Nichola Hall of Scott Laboratories, said in a conversation with Wines & Vines that Drawing Inspiration From Innovation 2019 Unified Symposium set to feature trends, tech and packaging to help build better brands By Stacy Briscoe Wine economist Mike Veseth speaks during the state of the industry session during the 2018 Uni- fied Wine & Grape Symposium. "

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