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December 2017 WINES&VINES 45 UNIFIED PREVIEW GINA GALLO TO GIVE KEYNOTE ADDRESS T he Gallo name alone is enough to get the attention of wine industry professionals looking for insights on making it big in the world of wine, but Gina Gallo has more than three gen- erations' worth of family knowledge to share. As a graduate of the viticulture and enology program at the University of California, Davis, and winemaker for Gallo Family Vineyards, she identifies specific blocks that show the best of Napa Valley, Sonoma County and Monterey County for the company's small-lot Signature Series, which bears her name and sells for $30-$45 per bottle. On Jan. 23, she'll give the keynote address at the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium and reveal how she balances the family business with her own winemaking vision. Past keynote speakers have includ- ed Jerry Baldwin, co-founder of Peet's Coffee; Rick Tigner, CEO of Jackson Family Wines; Eric Asimov, wine writer for The New York Times, and Fred Franzia of Bronco Wine Co. Gallo will be the first woman to take center stage since Unified host- ed its first keynote address in 2014. Lise Asimont, program devel- locations including Washington state to take part in the conversa- tion about growing grapes and making wine for three distinct price points: production (up to $15 per bottle), premium ($15- $25 per bottle), and luxury (more than $25 per bottle). The joint session will discuss grapegrowing practices and winemaking management for dif- ferent styles of Cabernet, from the bold and tannic Napa Cab to the fruit-forward style of Califor- nia's Central Coast to the austere varietal Cabernets created in the Pacific Northwest. Spanish language sessions In recent years, the organizers of the Unified Symposium have sought to mirror the focus of the annual event's sessions in its Spanish language of- ferings. This year that includes a session titled "Diversity and Trends in Cabernet Sauvignon," featuring moderator Enrique Herrero, vine- yard manager for Inglenook; Gaspar Roby, general manager and project director for Treasury Wine Estates, and Adolfo Alarcon, winemaking technical liaison for Trinchero Family Estates. Leticia Chacón Rodríguez of Safe Harbor Wines is moderating a grapegrowing session in Spanish about aromatic potential in white wine varieties. Speakers include Montserrat Reece, the winemaker at Pedroncelli Winery in Califor- nia's Dry Creek Valley. "Our Spanish-track sessions are kicking it up," Asimont told Wines & Vines, adding she may attend the Spanish session about aromatics with a translation app in hand. The session reflects a similar winemak- ing session taking place Jan. 24 called "Red, White and Sparkling: Optimizing Wine Aromas from Har- vest to Bottle." The final Spanish breakout session, "Vineyard Practices to Optimize Phenolic Composition," features Cecilia Aguero from the University of California, Davis, and speakers Federico Casassa from California Polytechnic State University and Johann Martínez- —continues on page 46