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46 WINES&VINES December 2017 UNIFIED PREVIEW Lüscher of UC Davis. Registrants who attend two of the Spanish sessions are eligible for a certificate of completion, which will be mailed after the symposium. State of the Industry Asimont teased that the annual State of the Industry session would be different in 2018, and indeed the speaker lineup contains some changes. "The State of the Industry is the trade- mark, the hallmark of Unified. It's why people go," Asimont said. "We want to keep it perti- nent, keep it timely, and keep it fresh." An expert in wine industry mergers and ac- quisitions, Mario Zepponi, principal of Zepponi & Co., is a newcomer to the State of the Industry session who promises to bring information about the market for winery and vineyard prop- erty sales, along with current assessment and evaluation rates. In addition to Jeff Bitter from Allied Grape Growers and Steve Fredricks of Turrentine Brokerage, Danny Brager of The Nielsen Co. will participate in the must-see event. Brager is senior vice president of Nielsen's Beverage Alcohol Practice, which provides consumer insights about the U.S. wine market. At the 2017 symposium he discussed trends such as millennial purchasing habits, hyperlocalization and the urban consumer. His predictions about sparkling wine and rosé were realized during the 2017 summer months, along with the con- tinuing premiumization trend that has consum- ers trading in their everyday $8-$10.99 wines in favor of $11-$14.99 bottles at retail. Mike Veseth, also known as "The Wine Economist," will return to moderate the State of the Industry address. Veseth told Wines & Vines he plans to do a quick survey of external threats to the wine industry. "The world wine market was blind-sided by Mother Nature in 2017, and the markets are now very tight," he said. "What else can go wrong? And how can we prepare ourselves?" Registration To learn more about the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium, or to register, visit unifiedsympo- sium.org. The price for full, three-day registra- tion is $315 for members of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture and the California Association of Winegrape Growers and $515 for non-members. One-day registra- tion, exhibits-only registration and Spanish sessions-only options are also available. At- tendees can save up to $200 by registering before prices increase Jan. 16. 707.942.5467 | 855.707.5467 | JimsSupply.com • Grape Stakes • Wire • Grow Tubes • Fencing • T-Posts • Anchors Your Premier Manufacturer of Trellising Materials We Deliver! Visit our online store and see our complete vineyard supply line. Our stakes can be manufactured to your exact specifications! • End Posts • Bird Netting • Wood Stakes • Vine Protection • Cross Arms • Tying Materials Visit us at Visit us at opment chair for the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium, said she is "over the moon" that Gallo has agreed to give the keynote address. "We reached out to her because her story is so inspiring," Asimont said. "She is one of the people I admire most." Having grown up on the family farm in Modesto, Calif., Gallo relocated to Califor- nia's North Coast as a young adult and en- tered the world of premium winemaking. Her family's wine company, 71-million- case E. & J. Gallo Winery, has followed suit in recent years, buying high-end la- bels and winegrowing properties such as Stagecoach Vineyard in Napa Valley and J Vineyards & Winery in Healdsburg, Ca- lif. The company also picked up Ranch Winery, a former custom-crush property located in St. Helena, Calif., to process grapes from its new vineyard holdings. In starting the Signature Series, Gallo has created a way to connect the heritage of her family (her brother farms the Sonoma County vineyards used in the label's Zinfan- del and Chardonnay) with her own legacy. Tickets to her keynote address can be pur- chased at unifiedsymposium.org for $125 or $75 for members of ASEV and CAWG. —continued from page 45