Lodi Keepin It WEIRD for WBC16 Friday Excursions Into Wine Country

Wondering what the Friday evening excursions are all about?  Find out some (surprises still await) of what is in store for #WBC16 attendees below.  

If you haven’t already noticed, Lodi isn’t particularly concerned with coloring inside of the lines, so to speak. Nope. Not us. We’re all about thinking outside of the box; pushing the envelope; keepin’ it weird. If you need more proof that we’re a region defined by innovation and experimentation, take the sheer number of winegrape varieties grown here. There are more than 100. Name another U.S. wine region that grows even close to as many. Go ahead, we’ll wait…

Given our experimental nature, it should come as no surprise to you that this year’s WBC “Excursions into Lodi Wine Country” on Friday evening will be, well, a bit different. Now before you get yourselves all worked up, allow us to clarify: The traditional format for the excursions will remain the same i.e.:

1. Excursions into Lodi wine country will take place at 4:00pm on Friday, August 12, immediately following the close of Live Wine Blogging – White & Rosé.
2. Lucky participants will be whisked away from the conference location to a number of Lodi’s top vineyards and wineries where they will be treated to entertaining and informative experiences, all the while being wined and dined by some of the region’s most passionate and fun-loving winegrowers.
3. Details of each excursion – location, host(s), activities, etc. – will remain top secret and will only be revealed after they have kicked off.

But here’s where tradition ends and innovation begins… This year’s excursions will be weirder in the following ways:

1. No. of excursions: Where past WBC “Excursions into Wine Country” have traditionally featured 8-10 excursions, there will be 18 intimate experiences available to you at this year’s WBC (think 10-15 attendees each versus 25-30).
2. Unconventional titles: Each excursion will proudly bear a zany title – Grenache Guru, Bordeaux Bonanza, etc. Titles will be based off of particular characteristics embodied by the host winery or wineries and/or the theme of the excursion.
3. Sign-ups: Individuals planning to attend Friday evening’s festivities will have the opportunity to call dibs on their desired excursion beginning during early registration at the opening reception on Thursday evening, August 11, from 6:00 to 8:30pm. Excursion sign-ups will continue during registration on Friday morning, August 12, beginning at 8:00am.
4. Pieces of flair: Upon selection of their desired excursion, individuals will be awarded with “badge bling” indicating their chosen excursion. Badge bling may be swapped out amongst fellow friends up until excursions depart on Friday evening.

We’ve seen the lineup of activities and course-by-course dinner menus that our winegrowers have prepared for your enjoyment so you can trust us when we say: You do not want to miss out!

Please note! 

Remember, each excursion is only open to 10-15 people so do yourself a favor and attend Thursday evening’s opening reception on August 11 for a first chance to sign up for the excursion of your desire.

The titles of the excursions will be released for the first time at the opening reception; not before.

Winery hosts and locations, excursion descriptions, and social handles will be reveled when WBC attendees have “left the building” on Friday night.

Can’t wait!!  Looking forward to having you #keepitweirdwithLodi next week!

Have you registered? Get on board with #WBC16!

Stay tuned with @winebloggerscon on Twitter for any updates and new information.