CRUSHPAD BACKGROUNDER
FOUNDED
Crushpad was founded in 2004 by CEO Michael Brill, a software industry executive, long-time wine enthusiast and home winemaker.
FOCUS
Crushpad focuses on small-lot production of custom, ultra-premium and luxury-class wines. Customers include wine enthusiasts, restaurants, wine retailers and professional winemakers.
LOCATION
Crushpad is a 34,000 square foot facility located in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood. Crushpad sources grapes from up and down the West Coast including Napa, Sonoma, Carneros, Anderson Valley, Mendocino, Russian River, Chalone, Paso Robles, Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, Red Mountain and Willamette Valley.
PRODUCTS
Custom Wine
Custom Wines are barrel-size lots (25 cases, 300 bottles) of wine made to customer specifications. From grape to bottle, customers can make all winemaking decisions with Crushpad professional winemaker support. Customers may also participate as much or as little as they like in the process and monitor winemaking progress over the internet. At the high end of Custom Wine is My Cult Cab - a cult-level Napa Valley Cabernet experience that includes the highest-end fruit, winemaking and packaging.
Adopt a Barrel
Customers may adopt a barrel of wine that's already in progress as opposed to buying the wine while it is still in grape form. The advantage to the customer is more immediate gratification. However, customers do not get to participate in the harvest and processing stages of winemaking. They will still taste barrel samples periodically, create the final blend and design the label and packaging.
Crushad Commerce
For wine enthusiasts that want to go pro, Crushpad Commerce provides a "winery in a box" that removes the hard work of compliance, storage, order processing and direct shipping. Wine enthusiasts can launch their own wine brands at a tiny fraction of the cost, complexity and time required to do it themselves.
ANNUAL PRODUCTION
Grape Varietals
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Grenache, Malbec, Marsanne, Merlot, Pinot Gris, Petite Syrah, Pinot Noir, Roussanne, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Viognier, Zinfandel
2007 – 25,000 cases
2006 – 15,000 cases
2005 – 10,000 cases
2004 – 5,000 cases
CUSTOMERS
Over 5,000 client winemakers
California – 59% ( San Francisco Bay Area – 40%)
Other US – 39%
International – 2%
COMPANY GOAL
Redefine the wine industry in a customer-centric model, providing education, community and customization of wine products to the over two million high-end wine enthusiasts.
MORE INFORMATION
Patrick Hurley, VP of Marketing patrick@crushpadwine.com, 415-864-4232