The American Wine Society Invites all Wine Appreciators, Winemakers & Wine Novices to the. Co Sponsored by:

Transcription

1 The American Wine Society Invites all Wine Appreciators, Winemakers & Wine Novices to the 2015 Co Sponsored by: Presque Isle WINE CELLARS On behalf of the regional American Wine Society Chapters of Western Pennsylvania, it is my pleasure to invite you to our 31 st annual wine conference and amateur winemaking competition on Sunday March 15, 2015 from 10:00am to 6:30pm at the Masonic Center 3579 Masonic Way, off of Cemetary Lane, North Hills, Pittsburgh, PA The American Wine Society is all about the appreciation of wine through education and that is what this conference is all about. We are glad once more to serve the surrounding Pittsburgh area with what has become a Spring tradition for wine lovers and winemakers! Again this year we are excited again to have national and internationally known members of the wine community offer seminars, tastings and a wealth of knowledge to enhance your appreciation of wine and winemaking. You can hear from special presenters such as Ron and Rick Lanza from Wooden Valley Winery of California, who not only make wonderful wines but willingly help the amateur winemaker enhance their wine. Acclaimed wine consultant Linda King and winemakers,walt Vinoski, Dan Wolfe and others will join us along with a Winemakers Round Table Forum for home winemakers, There are new presenters, new educational tastings, vendors and of course it all ends with the Showcase of Wines, commercial winery walk-around tasting. All this for a great price. So please register early so you won t get shut out of the seminars you want to attend! We look forward to seeing you. Richard Ryba, RVP American Wine Society Chairman, Pittsburgh Wine Conference and Amateur Wine Competition

2 CONFERENCE SEMINARS Select one seminar from each hour by entering the appropriate ID letter in the registration form 10:00- A. " Making Sparkling Wines for the Home Producer". Winemaking 11:00am Ted Woehr, Award winning sparkling wine maker. You might be one of those winemakers that would like to branch out and try something new and different. Making sparkling wine can be that venture. Ted will cover the process, equipment and all that you need to know to give a try. B. Aspects of Good Blending Techniques Winemaking Stephen Rigby, Winemaker, at Hauser Estate Winery in Biglerville, PA. (near Gettysburg) An overview of the various considerations taken into account when blending wines. Attendees can bring in a small sample (limit to one small bottle) of their own blends to discuss with Stephen during the seminar. While not everyone can have their wine evaluated during this time, Stephen will set aside time during the Showcase to share his thoughts with you. C. Beyond Oil and Vinegar: Quality Olive Oil & Balsamaic Vinegar Tasting/Educational Hersh Petrocelly Owner The Olive Tap Sample various 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oils (EVOO) as well as distictive and PGI certified Balsamic Vinegars of Modena.Each kind you taste will have you saying WOW! 11:30am - D. Little Things That Can Make A Big Difference in Your Wine Winemaking 12:30pm Tom and Jan Cobett. Wine Educators and Winemakers, AWS national officers. A review of the many things that are necessary to make really good wine, followed by a hands-on demonstration of how easy it can be to improve a wine with a few, simple measurements and adjustments. E Making The Best Wine From Juice Buckets Tasting/Educational Dan Wolfe Associate Winemaker at Presque Isle Wine Cellars. Dan started making wines from wine kits in 2007 and the hobby quickly became an obsession and eventually a profession. His habit escalated to buying fresh grape Juice at harvest time and he started experimenting with blending different wines. Learn from his experience how to get the best out of that bucket of juice to ensure a great wine! F. " North Carolina - A State Of Wine! " Tasting/Educational Linda King Wine Consultant, former principal winemaker for Rag Apple Lassie, North Carolina. From 20 to 150 Wineries in 12 Short Years. Taste award winning wines from the premier winemakers of the South and learn some amazing history!! G. Evolution of Wines Throughout the World Tasting/Educational Milko Miladinov, A wine and spirits representative for Wine Bow Distributors. What has been happening to the wines of world over the years? Listen, taste and compare how the wines of the world have evolved whether in organic or biodynamic, traditional, New World versus Old World processes. Milko Miladinov of WineBow Distributors will take you on a time traveling journey to see what this world favorite beverage has gone through in its evolution. This is a relaxing journey that won t require an old Deloren with a flux capacitor. 12:30 to 1:30pm LUNCH BREAK. 1:30-2:30pm H. Dealing With High Brix Fruit In Winemaking Winemaking Ron Lanza, Rick Lanza Wooden Valley Winery, California. Recognized as one of the premier wineries, Ron and Rick Lanza of Wooden Valley Vineyards will cover the causes and processes he has used to overcome the potential problems of winemaking with fruit having a high brix count. I. Transitioning From Whites to Red With Petit Syrah Tasting/Educational Walt Vinoski, Winemaker at Greendance Winery. There is a trend of wine drinkers from only white wines to reds. Walt will go over his experience in that trend and what he sees as the gateway wine that is paving the way for a transition from white wine to reds and how it works. J. Wine and Cheese Pairings Tasting/Educational Carol Pascuzzi/Penn Mac Cheese Monger Matt Kristofik/AWS member and Wine Judge Savor a cheese and wine pairing with Pittsburgh's resident cheese monger, Carol "Dear Heart" Pascuzzi of Pennsylvania Macaroni and Matt Kristofik, longtime AWS member and wine judge. Dear Heart will talk about the cheeses she has selected and Matt will discuss the wines that he selected to accompany them. K Do You ReallyKnow Why You Do What You Do? Winemaking/Tasting John Husk J and D Wine Cellar. John started out like many of you, making wine for personal use. With praise for his wines and encouragement he then started to create a larger volume of wine. The key though was understanding every bit of the why in the ingredients and processes. Understanding the why in making wine will get you to make consistently better wine.this is even more important as you consider making larger amounts! If you are just making your wine like you always have but don t honestly know why you need to be here.

3 3:00-4:00 pm L. Late Harvest Wines: They re Not Just For Desserts Anymore Tasting/Educational Thom Harding AWS Pittsburgh Chapter Chair Late harvest wines like ice wine are wonderfully sweet wines that we think of only as a desert wine. Come find new and exciting pairings you may not normally consider with that delicious glass of wine. M. All in the Family! A look at Grape Lineage! Tasting/Educational Ryta Mirisciotti Owner of NG Wine Services & Importing, Inc If you think your family tree is interesting, join us as we take a peek inside the family trees of grapes! Which grape begat which and where are these relatives now? Can Pinot Noir really be related to Sauvignon Blanc? (Or was Sauvignon Blanc adopted just like its big brother said?) Did all major grape varietals really originate in France? Answers to these questions as well as others will be discussed, debated and debunked. We ll sample some fruit from these zany family trees and enjoy a laugh or two as well! 3:00-4:00 pm N. Round Table Discussion With Commercial winemakers Winemaking Ron Lanza, Rick Lanza, Dan Wolfe,Doug Moorhead, Linda King, Stephen Rigby, Walt Vinoski, John Husk Ron Casertano of Consumers Fresh Wine will moderate this open forum with some of the attending commercial winemakers. This is both a listening and interactive session that will allow you to offer your questions to the panel as well. 4:15 6:15pm SHOWCASE OF WINES: Sample wines from wineries and distributors 6:30-7:00 pm AMATEUR WINE AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS AMATEUR WINE COMPETITION RULES 1. Entry deadline (wines received), March 7, NO LIMIT on entries. Entry fee is $15.00 for each wine entered. Only one (1) bottle per entry is required and include payment with your conference entry. DO NOT include checks with your wine drop off. 3. An amateur winemaker makes wine either alone or in collaboration with other amateur winemakers If there is collaboration of more than two winemakers, the wine should be entered under a "group" name. No individual or any member of the group shall be directly involved with a commercial winemaking establishment. 4. Wines may be dropped off at the following locations starting February 1, 2015: Pittsburgh Area North East/Erie Area Consumers Produce, Business Entrance Presque Isle Wine Cellars One 21 st Street 9440 West Main Road Pittsburgh, PA North East, PA (412) (dial 0 for Operator) (814) Monday through Saturday Monday through Saturday 5:00 AM to 3:00 PM 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Washington County. Southern Pittsburgh area Alternately, wines may be mailed to: J & D Cellars Winery AWS, Pittsburgh Amateur Competition, 290 Roupe Road 432 Chester Drive Eighty Four, PA 15330, Lower Burrell, PA Amateur winemakers may not use the products, other than juice (which may be sulfited) or facilities of a commercial winery during any stage of wine preparation or wine storage. 6. Wines entered in this competition must be free of artificial coloring and/or flavor enhancers other than oak. 7. Gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded to those wines meeting the judging criteria. All gold medal wines will be eligible for best-of-show award.

4 8. Wine should be clear (no haze) and free of visible debris. One 750 ml bottle will be required for each wine being entered. Wine must be contained in standard Burgundy, Bordeaux, or Rhine shaped bottles. Screw capped bottles are permitted, but will be disqualified if sealed with a cork. Sparkling wines must be entered in a 750 ml champagne-type bottle and sealed with a cork or plastic closure secured with the proper safety wire or crown cap. Ports and Sherries may be entered in fortified wine bottles with T corks. Novelty/Dessert wines (5%+RS) can be bottled in 325ml bottles. Bottles must be free of labels, wax, capsules, etc. other than the entry name information label. 9. Registration of Entries: Fill out the registration form completely and legibly and mail with your check payable to AWS Pgh Wine Conference, c/o RRyba, 2777 Leechburg Road, Lower Burrell, PA Your name and the corresponding wine name MUST BE on each bottle using the special labels on this form. Include the name of grape or fruit used and percentages of each for blends. If you have any questions as to the class a wine should be entered into, please call Matt at or him at pghwinecomp@comcast.net. If entering more than four wines, duplicate the entry form and make sure the number on the wine bottles correspond to the number on the registration. 10. Results of the competition will be announced on March 2nd at the end of the conference. Awards will be mailed to all awardees. (Awards are custom ordered and may take 4 to 6 weeks to receive.) Results will be ed or mailed to all participants. AMATEUR WINE CLASSIFICATION & REGISTRATION Class 1 A Class 1 B Class 2 A Class 2 B Class 3 A Class 3 B Class 4 A Class 4 B Class 5 A Class 5 B Class 6 A Class 6 B Class 7 Class 8 Class 9 Class 10 Class 11 Class 12 Class 13 A Class 13 B Class 14 Red Vinifera Varietal i.e. 75% of one grape Red Vinifera Blends White Vinifera Varietal White Vinifera Blends Red Hybrid Varietal Red Hybrid Blends White Hybrid Varietal White Hybrid Blends Red Native Varietal Red Native Blends White Native Varietal White Native Blends Rosé/Blush Fruit Sparkling Red or White Concentrates or Kits Cider Mead Red Mixed Species Blends (i.e. Native/Hybrid, Hybrid/Vinifera, etc.) White Mixed Species Blends (i.e. Native/Hybrid, Hybrid/Vinifera, etc.) Novelty/Specialty/Dessert (i.e. Port, Sherry, sugar levels greater than 5% and nontraditional, i.e. tomato wine) Sugar Levels Dry = Less than 1% residual sugar Semi-Dry = 1% to 2% residual sugar Semi-Sweet = 2% to 3% residual sugar Sweet = Over 3%-5% residual sugar Dessert = Over 5% residual sugar

5 BOTTLE LABELS FILL IN YOUR NAME AND TAPE TO THE BOTTLE WHICH CORRESPONDS TO WINE BOTTLE NUMBER ON THE ENTRY FORM. BE SURE THE ENTRY NUMBER ON YOUR BOTTLE MATCHES THE SAME NUMBER ON YOUR REGISTRATION FORM!!! Please PRINT clearly. Wine Entry #1 Registrant s Name Wine Entry # Registrant s Name Wine Entry # Registrant s Name Wine Entry # Registrant s Name

6 CONFERENCE and WINE REGISTRATION Mail in reservation forms must be postmarked by March 6th. No refunds after March 6, Name Seminars will be filled on the first-come-first-served basis of the postmark on the reservations. One name per form. PLEASE PRINT (This form may be copied if you have additional wine entries.) Address Phone: ( ) PART 1. Newsletter request (Circle) I would like to receive more information about AWS chapter -Alle-Kiski Chapter (meets at Hillcrest C.C. in Lower Burrell, PA) -Eastern Lake Erie Chapter (meets at Arundel Winery, Northeast, PA) -Pittsburgh Chapter (meets at Evergreen Community Ctr, North Hills of Pittsburgh) -Pittsburgh East Chapter (meets in Level Green near Murrysville, PA) -Washington County Chapter (meets at J n D Wine Cellars, Eighty Four PA.) -Beaver Falls Chapter (just starting and looking for members) -I am interested in starting an AWS Chapter in my location, contact me. PART 2. Seminars I wish to attend: (Enter the seminar code letter.) 10:00-11:00am 1 st choice 2 nd choice 3rd choice 11:30am-12:30pm 1 st choice 2 nd choice 3rd choice 1:30-2:30pm 1 st choice 2 nd choice 3rd choice 3:00-4:00pm 1 st choice 2 nd choice 3rd choice PART 3. Wine competition entries (you may copy if you are entering additional wines.) Make sure the numbers of each entry align with the numbers on the bottles you entered! Wine Entry #1 Grape/Fruit Wine Entry #2 Grape/Fruit Wine Entry #3 Grape/Fruit Wine Entry # Grape/Fruit PART 4. Payment - Conference Seminars fee $55 per person ($65 if postmarked after 3/6/15) $ -Wine Competition Entry $15 each bottle #Bottles x $15=.....$ Competition payment must be included with conference registration- Wine must be dropped off at designated sites before March 6, 2015 TOTAL DUE: (Do Not send cash or Money Orders)...$ Check is payable to: AWS, Pittsburgh Wine Conference Mail to: AWS, Pittsburgh Wine Conference, 2777 Leechburg Rd., Lower Burrell, PA FOR CONFERENCE USE ONLY: Date received or postmarked Sessions assigned: 10:00 11:30 1:30 3:00 Bottles entered