Winemaking innovator BarrelWise has raised a seed round of capital.
The wine-tech startup believes that the ancient traditions of winemaking are ripe for merging with cutting-edge technology—a “union of art and science” which creates fertile ground for innovating in the market space.
Based in Vancouver, BarrelWise secured its $3 million seed funding from Conexus Venture Capital through its Emmertech fund, with additional investment by Ag Capital Canada.
“With this investment from our partners Emmertech and Ag Capital Canada, we look forward to making high-precision quality control the global standard for wine production,” stated Jason Sparrow, CEO of BarrelWise.
Ready-to-rocket BarrelWise designs integrated measurement and data systems which improve efficiencies and control in winemaking.
The company’s flagship product, the FS1, is a cloud-connected SO2 analyzer for winemaking. It allows wineries to take routine measurements up to 15x faster than traditional lab analysis, directly in the cellar.
“We are thrilled to be working with some of the largest and most innovative winery groups in the world to refine our FS1 product,” said Sparrow, CEO.
High-resolution datasets on barrels and tanks helps prevent expensive incidences of wine quality loss while also providing deep insights into production processes to winemakers, according to a statement from the BC startup.
“Given the large variations of SO2 from barrel to barrel that can occur in a winemaker’s cellar, we believe that the industry will greatly benefit from the solution BarrelWise has developed,” commented Scott Crawford of Ag Capital Canada.
“BarrelWise places the traditionally slow and expensive lab process of identifying SO2 levels directly into the cellar,” praised Sean O’Connor, Managing Director of Conexus Venture Capital & Emmertech. “With our Emmertech fund, we love finding opportunities in the world of agriculture where innovators are bringing speed and simplicity to solving problems across the supply chain.”
Earlier this year, Linda Trotta, Director of North Coast Winemaking at WX Brands, joined BarrelWise’s Board of Directors. In 2018, Linda was named the North Bay Business Journal’s Napa Valley Winemaker of the Year. Trotta now oversees the execution of company’s strategy to establish itself as a go-to supplier for luxury wine production in North America.
“It’s wonderful to see determined entrepreneurs tackle age-old problems inherent in the winemaking processes,” she said in January. “Given how busy our days can get, every minute saved on routine tasks is a minute spent on improving quality and driving for the winery.”
Canadian wine producers leveraging BarrelWise technology include Mission Hill and Sandhill Wines.
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