Santa Rosa, Calif. -- A new Internet tool was launched at the first annual Green Wine Summit (GWS) Dec. 1 and 2, enabling vineyards, wineries and suppliers to showcase their contributions to sustainability. The Green Wine Channel, produced by GWS sponsor Paige Poulos Communications, already is airing video clips of interviews with summit participants and presenters, as well as segments from
Fetzer, Bonterra and Sanford wineries detailing their philosophies and practices in organic and Biodynamic grapegrowing.
Joel Quigley, senior director of creative services at Paige Poulos, Richmond, Calif., conducted the interviews during the GWS' trade show. His subjects include Jeff Kunde, board chairman of
Kunde Estate Winery & Vineyards, recent recipient of the Governor's Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA).
California's highest environmental honor, GEELA recognized Kunde in the category of Sustainable Practices and Facilities for its pioneering efforts to integrate environmental values and conservation into long-term decision-making and management of its 1,850-acre estate in Kenwood, Sonoma Valley.
Click to play one of Sanford Winery's clips detailing resource conservation practices at the Central Coast operation.Quigley also interviewed suppliers Dan Thompson, founder and president of SPG Solar, the summit's biggest sponsor and inventor of the Floatovoltaic water-mounted systems now in use at Napa's Far Niente and Sonoma's Gundlach Bundschu; and Janos Radvany, commercial director of Scholle Packaging, which has led the alternative packaging movement with earth-friendly bag-in-box presentations.
Other wine producers online are Fred Buonanno, owner of Mendocino's remote, off-the-grid, 1,500-case
Philo Ridge Vineyards; Josh Metz, director of sales and marketing for Magnanimus Wine Group, a collaboration of Biodynamic growers in Ukiah, Calif.; and Mark McAdam, winemaker at VinFuzion, a Paso Robles winery that makes organic and Biodynamic Rhône and Bordeaux varietals and infuses them with herbs and subtle extracts after fermentation; Tom Thornhill and Paul Dolan, partners in Mendocino Wine Co., and iconic figures in the green wine community.
This eclectic cast of characters is representative of the attendance at the GWS: suppliers included packaging sources, solar specialists, certifying organizations and transportation companies. Winery and vineyard principals both presented and then heard each other's stories.
A standing-room-only audience was inspired by a panel that included a veritable pantheon of the green wine movement: Jim Fetzer (Ceago); John Williams (Frog's Leap); Peter Mondavi (Charles Krug); Chris Benziger (Benziger) and Paul Dolan spoke genially of why and how they became pioneers on the ladder of sustainability, in a session moderated by educator and GWS co-chair Mack Schwing.
According to Kathy Archer, president of the Wine Symposium Group, which organized the event at Santa Rosa's Hyatt Vineyard Creek hotel, the attendance of 320 surpassed expectations. A second summit is planned at the same location for Dec. 1 and 2, 2009.
In the meantime, whether or not you were in attendance at this innovative event, wineries, vineyards and suppliers are encouraged to visit the Green Wine Summit channel at
empivot.com/greenwinesummit and post videos of their authentic green practices.
Log in using the GWS universal login: greenwinesummit, and password: greenwine. Click submit, click "upload video," fill in the requested information, and submit the clip. Videos should be in MPEG4 or .MOV file format (the site does not accept WMV files.) Videos can be as large as 500 MBs, and there is no time limit. "Please be sure this video is a good quality version," Quigley asks, and adds, "Be sure you have a reliable Internet connection when uploading…The progress bar will tell you how long it will take. Be patient: the upload tool holds just a little bit longer on the 99% uploaded, and then will send you to a confirmation page once it's completed. Don't close the page during upload."
To place an emPivot.com video on your website, copy the HTML below
