Is the Future of Fine Wine Plant-Based?
Wednesday 2nd March 2022 – 4pm GMT – Online
According to Bloomberg, the plant-based food market is growing exponentially, and is predicted to exceed $162 billion within the next decade. This growing interest in plant-based diets and solutions is already impacting the way that fine wine is being produced and distributed.
What could a 100% plant-based system look like?
Major themes to be addressed:
- What does plant-based biodynamics mean? How is this concept relevant for viticulture?
- From tannins to fining agents, how do plants impact the winemaking process?
- What is the latest development in plant-based wine packaging?
- When fine dining goes 100% plant-based, what does this mean for the wine list?
We are pleased to welcome the following panellists:
Mike Barrow, Director, OpenVino, Argentina
Mike Barrow is the owner of Costaflores, a boutique organic winery in Mendoza, Argentina, and the director of the OpenVino project, an open-source winery creating crypto-backed wine assets.
Driven by the desire to explore the many facets of sustainability, Mike’s latest project involves a ground-breaking concept for plant-based wine packaging.
Watson Brown, Wine Director, Eleven Madison Park, USA
Originally from the Midwest, Watson joined the wine team at three-star Michelin restaurant Eleven Madison Park in 2017, after it was named World’s Best Restaurant on the San Pellegrino World’s 50 Best List. Through the early stages of the pandemic, he led a core group of volunteers to repurpose Eleven Madison Park to prepare and deliver boxed meals to first responders. He was named Wine Director of Eleven Madison Park in the Spring of 2021. At the same time, the Manhattan restaurant announced its re-opening with a 100% plant-based menu.
Sebastiano Castiglioni, Owner, Querciabella, Italy
Born in Milan, Italy, Sebastiano Castiglioni is an award-winning entrepreneur, activist, investor, and advisor to businesses and governments. While his expertise spans the food, finance, wine, technology, life sciences, and art sectors, his greatest passion is animals. A vegan and animal rights activist, Sebastiano’s primary focus is on promoting the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle globally. In 2000, Sebastiano introduced a 100% plant‑based approach to biodynamics in Querciabella, his family winery in Tuscany.
Christophe Lavelle, Biophysicist and Researcher at CNRS, France
Christophe Lavelle is a research scientist at the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France’s National Center for Scientific research), working at the National Museum of Natural History / Sorbonne University in Paris. He is an expert in biophysics, epigenetics and food science and teaches in many universities and professional schools. He is the author of more than 50 research papers and 15 books, including the “Handbook of Molecular Gastronomy: Scientific Foundations, Educational Practices, and Culinary Applications” (CRC Press, 2021).
A key conversation moderated by Pauline Vicard – Executive Director, Areni Global – and
Elin McCoy – Journalist, Bloomberg, Decanter and The World of Fine Wine, USA
Elin McCoy is an award-winning journalist and author, focusing on the world of wine. She is a wine and spirits columnist for Bloomberg News, where she writes for their global news wire, and is a columnist for Decanter magazine. McCoy’s most recent book is The Emperor of Wine: The Rise of Robert M. Parker, Jr. and the Reign of American Taste, which garnered international praise and has appeared in five foreign editions. She is also the co-author of Thinking About Wine.
This Insight Series is free and open to all but spaces are limited. Register below.