Warren Wilson College (WWC) To Host Sustainable Viticulture Conference

 

Ashville, NC – The 2nd Annual North Carolina Conference on Sustainable Viticulture will be held Wednesday, February 22, 2012 at Warren Wilson College. The goal is to assist people in learning about growing grapes as sustainable as possible in North Carolina and provide an alternative to tobacco for many local farmers. The program is being sponsored by Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard and the Sustainable Appalachian Viticulture Institute of Marshall NC.

 

The grape is the world’s most important fruit crop. Globally, grapevines cover more than 20 million acres, producing some 60 million tons of fruit, 80 percent of which is made into wine. For winemaking purposes at least, the grapevine thrives between 30-50 degrees latitude and is grown on all continents except Antarctica. WinesVinesDATA, the research arm of Wines & Vines magazine, identified 7,345 wineries now operating in the United States, up by 450 wineries or 6% from a year ago. Vineyards/wineries is the fastest growing industry in North Carolina that provided an economic impact of more than $1 billion in NC last year.

 

Conference speakers will include Alan Staton from Zirconia NC & John Kinnaird from Mars Hill NC. They are members of the French Broad Vignerons. Alan and John will be sharing their experience over the past few years with some cold-hardy grape varieties they have been growing and using to make wine.

 

Rudy Mullis from Hinnant Family Vineyards in Pine Level NC will tell us about how to make Neutraceuticals from Grapes. Western North Carolina provides about 70% of the herbs and natural products that go into the neutraceutical/health products made in the USA. North Carolina is one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet. Over 6000 plant species grow in the southeastern USA. 3000 grow in North Carolina. 2500 of the plants grow in the mountain counties of NC. These products provide income for thousands of farmers/gatherers in the mountains.

The viticulture conference will begin at 8:30 AM and run until 4:30 PM.  The conference registration fee is $40 paid in advance or $50 walk-in registration. Registration fee includes lunch, coffee break refreshments, handouts, and free parking. Online payment of registration is now available at http://www.JeweloftheBlueRidge.com/ – click on the registration link near the Warren Wilson College logo. Firms wishing to be a conference sponsor or wanting to place and ad in the conference program can do so at www.GrapeSAVI.org and select the appropriate sponsor level or ad size and submit payment via credit cards.

 

ABOUT:

Warren Wilson College (WWC) provides a distinctive undergraduate and graduate liberal arts education combining academics, work, and service in a learning community committed to environmental responsibility, cross-cultural understanding, and the common good. Warren Wilson College’s vision is to lead the nation toward a new model for liberal arts education through the innovation of its Triad educational program (academics, work, and service), the quality of its academic engagement, the fulfillment of its sustainability principles, the depth of its commitment to diversity, the vitality of its community, and its nurturing of individual well-being. For more information about Warren Wilson College see www.warren-wilson.edu

 

Warren Wilson College is listed as:

One of The Best Southeastern Colleges, One of The Best 376 Colleges, and The College with the Most Politically Active Students.

WWC was selected to be on The Princeton Review’s 2012 Green Rating Honor Roll.

WWC is the only private college in the Southeast on the honor roll, having received the review’s highest possible green rating of 99.

US News and World Report ranked Wilson one of 10 Eco-Friendly College Campuses.

Newsweek has selected Warren Wilson as No. 3 on its nationwide list of “Most Service-Oriented” colleges and universities.

Warren Wilson is No. 4 nationwide on Sierra magazine’s 2011 list of “Coolest Schools” – college and universities recognized for their efforts to stop global warming and to operate sustainably.

The nation’s first low-residency MFA program, a vital part of Warren Wilson College since 1981, has been ranked No. 1 among 46 current such programs by Poets & Writers Magazine.

The Fiske Guide to College 2012 ranks WWC in the Top 13 Most Interesting and Unusual Schools.

 

Warren Wilson is an ideal place to be holding the 2^nd Annual Sustainable Viticulture Conference.

 

Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard (JBRV) specializes in the rare Katuah Muscadine, the only native cold-hardy Muscadine in the world that grows wild in mountains of western North Carolina.  JBRV has planted the first vineyard with these special grapevines and is working to have a teaching vineyard by 2013. People from around the world who want to grow cold-hardy Muscadines will come to JBRV for training in propagating, planting, training, pruning and harvesting the Katuah Muscadines. Muscadines harvested from the JBRV will be sold to make value added products.

 

For additional information about the upcoming conference please contact Chuck Blethen, Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard, 828-606-3130, Chuck@JeweloftheBlueRidge.com

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There are now 110 wineries in North Carolina spread over 3 regions – coastal, piedmont, and mountains. North Carolina now has three American Viticulture Areas (AVA) – Yadkin Valley, Swan Creek, and Haw River Valley. http://www.visitncwine.com/wineries

 

This is the most recent report on the economic impact of the grape industry for North Carolina: http://www.nccommerce.com/Portals/10/Documents/NorthCarolinaWineEconomicImpactStudy2009.pdf

 

Here is a 10 minute video about the Katuah Muscadine that was presented as a TED talk at TEDxKatuah in 2011 at PIRI in Rosman NC: