The 1st European Wine Bloggers Conference 2008 will be held at the Dinastía Vivanco Museum, one of QDO Rioja’s most prestigious bodegas and, “one of the most outstanding regions in the world, where major innovation carried out by the bodegas is clearly visible”, the organisers stated. The gathering will take place during the last weekend of August.

The event is organised by Ryan and Gabriella Opaz, authors of the blog Catavino.net, and Robert McIntosh, blogger for The Wine Conversation. The Opazs launched the idea a year ago and it finally came together thanks to McIntosh’s involvement, who also happens to work as a marketer for QDO Rioja wine in the United Kingdom.

The main idea behind the conference is to exchange different points of view and analyse the way in which bloggers can work together; for which they hope to attract a large number of authors from various countries.

The three-day programme includes three round tables focusing on blogging technology, writing, standards and the monetisation of this viniculture media channel. Furthermore, the conference also features tastings, dinners and visits to the region’s bodegas. “Any conversation about wine ought to be accompanied by a shared bottle or two among friends. After all, this is a blog’s raison d’être”, the promoters stated. For that reason, being true to their nature, the programme and its content are open to suggestions from other bloggers, who can find information and leave their comments on the conference website.

The event organisers believe that now is the “optimum” moment for regular wine bloggers, “because the wine trade is starting to get interested in the possible benefits they can reap from interacting with internet users, a potential alternative to traditional media channels of communication”.