Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/754815
December 2016 WINES&VINES 43 UNIFIED PREVIEW FAMILY OF TANK CLEANING PRODUCTS www.cloudinc.com 8784-Cloud-Products-Ad-(3.5x4.875).indd 1 10/6/15 1:31 PM materials and who doesn't. The speakers booked for the Unified panel will discuss vi- ruses they are concerned about and what test- ing is available. Golino will offer a preview of what FPS is working on, and the wine grape growing pan- elists will offer real-life examples of how they have successfully (or unsuccessfully) worked to acquire clean vines. With the cost of re- planting a vineyard starting around $35,000 per acre, not using clean materials is a huge threat to any investor. Spanish sessions The program committee also included a panel discussion about clean plant materials in the lineup of Spanish-language sessions taking place Jan. 26. Speakers will include Enrique Herrero of Inglenook, Joshua Puckett from UC Davis and Lucia Varela, North Coast IPM advi- sor for the UC Cooperative Extension. Most of the Spanish sessions booked for Jan. 26 are mirroring panels the program com- mittee developed for English-speaking audi- ences at Unified. Leticia Chacón Rodríguez of Safe Harbor Wines in Napa, Calif., will moderate the Spanish- language session "The Art of Finding a Wine's Ideal Balance" on Jan. 26, discussing how alco- hol, acidity, tannins, sugars and carbon dioxide work together to impact sensory attributes. Another Spanish-language session, "Lead- ing-Edge Technology in Grapegrowing and Winemaking," will focus on mechanized sort- ing and harvesting for uniformity and fruit quality. Filtration technologies, satellite map- ping and mechanized irrigation also will be discussed. The impressive list of speakers includes Federico Casassa of California Poly- technic State University as well as vineyard and winery experts from Atlas Vineyard Management, Trinchero Fam- ily Wine Estates, E. & J. Gallo Winery and Walsh Vineyard Management. The trend toward mechanization For Asimont, recurring concerns about labor and water have highlighted ways to utilize vineyard mechanization, but she said even vine- yard owners who have adopted mechanization aren't necessarily making the most of it. "What I hope people leave with is that mechanization is a standard operating proce- dure for us. I fear that our wine industry feels that mechanization is a compromise and hand labor is better, and that is not true. For instance, the optical sorters on some of these mechanical harvesters truly bring in more perfect grapes than any hand harvester can," Asimont said. "I hope people will be enlightened with the ability to grow exceptional wine grapes through mechanization. The idea of the no-touch vine- yard is pretty cool." Joint session and fermentation vessels The way vineyard management practices translate to finished wines is part of why the Development Committee chose Sauvignon Blanc as the topic of the joint grapegrowing- winemaking session for Unified 2017. More than other wine grape varieties, Asimont said, soil type, rootstock, climate and clone selection are evident in finished Sauvignon " We want to give attendees the tools they need to confidently go into a nursery and say, 'I want to test your stock." —Lise Asimont, director of grower relations, Francis Ford Coppola Winery