From Binders to Blended: Scaling Complexity at CRŪ Winery

Nestled in California’s Central Coast, CRŪ Winery has built its reputation on relationships among family, friends, and farmers. Since its founding, CRŪ Winery has taken a focused yet flexible approach to winemaking, sourcing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah, and Albariño from some of the region’s most acclaimed vineyards, including North Canyon, Fiddlestix, Sierra Madre, Bien Nacido, and Smith & Lindley.

As the winery’s footprint expanded, so did its ambitions. The winery grew from a 6,000-case operation in 2019 to 35,000 cases, fueled by expanding distribution nationally and internationally, demand from major retailers, and an increasingly diverse portfolio of both estate and custom-crafted wines. Alongside the CRŪ Winery’s Burgundian and Rhône focus, the team took on private label Cabernet, Merlot, Zinfandel, and Rosé—each regionally rooted, quality-driven, and designed for everyday enjoyment.

But growth brought more than opportunity. With more vineyards, more SKUs, and more custom work came new layers of complexity. Each vintage required tighter coordination across sourcing, blending, compliance, and cellar execution—all managed by a lean team still relying on binders and spreadsheets.

The system that once supported the business was now holding it back.

A Team Built for Growth, A System Built for the Past

As CRŪ’s winemaking needs evolved, so did its team. Head Winemaker Jose Reyes led the charge on quality and style. Still, the growing operational complexity required more than just winemaking talent; CRŪ Winery needed process leadership and winemaking software that could grow with it.

CRŪ Winery focused on expanding its winemaking team to meet the demands of increasing case production while maintaining its high-quality standards. In 2023, Eriq Davila joined the team as Enologist, and Melissa Smith joined as Cellar Master and Production Manager in 2024. One of their first priorities was identifying and implementing winemaking software. 

With over 14 years of hands-on experience, Melissa brought a rare blend of cellar knowledge, managerial savvy, technical expertise, and deep experience with winemaking software. Having used systems like AMS, Process2Wine, and the ubiquitous spreadsheet, she understood both the promise and the pitfalls of winery tech. Eriq brought over three years of experience running winery laboratories to CRU Winery, and he understood the importance of precision and data-driven decision-making.

Together, they began vetting systems that could keep up with the winery’s scale, blend precision, and lean team structure.

Their goal wasn’t just to find a database—it was to find a system that would actually support how winemaking happens on the floor. The stakes were high, and the options weren’t all equal.

A Tip Leads to “Love at First Sight”

Melissa and Eriq had seen what the wrong system could do to a winery’s workflow. Both had wrestled with the nightmare of spreadsheet-based calculations, spent hours untangling errors, and waited days—sometimes longer—for responses from hard-to-reach software vendors. For CRŪ Winery’s next chapter, they wanted something different.

Melissa and Eriq were looking for software that was simple, visual, and forgiving—something that made it easy to fix mistakes, not amplify them. More than that, they wanted a real partner: a team that understood winemaking, moved quickly, and made the transition from paper not just possible but painless.

But the search was proving frustrating. Many of the systems they evaluated felt cold and clinical—“medicinal,” as Melissa put it. Others were too expensive for a midsize operation like CRŪ Winery. A few were bloated with features they didn’t need, but missing the flexibility they did. 

Then a tip pointed Melissa and Eriq toward Blended.

From the very first conversation, it clicked.

“It was love at first sight,” Melissa says with a laugh. “Everything we wanted was right there.”

Blended stood out—not just because the software was intuitive, modern, and visually clear—but because the people behind it spoke the same language. Melissa and Eriq recall their early conversations with Matt, Blended’s Co-Founder and CEO, as refreshingly human.

“Matt was easygoing, like talking to a friend. This industry is a giant family—you see people you’ve known for years at events like the Symposium. That’s what Blended felt like: familiar, approachable, and genuinely committed to helping us succeed.”

CRŪ Winery had come to the table with a long checklist. They’d seen everything on the market, and none of it got them excited.

Blended did.

Familiar, Flexible, and Built for the Way CRŪ Winery Works

For a team coming from meticulously kept binders and pen-and-paper logs, the idea of switching to software was both necessary and daunting. But from the start, Blended felt different.

Melissa and Eriq quickly found that Blended’s protocol-based approach mirrored how winemaking actually works. Rather than forcing CRŪ Winery to conform to rigid structures or rewire their internal processes, the system flexed to fit their style. Whether entering vineyard data, tracking weigh tags, recording lab work, or building final blends, the team could move at their own pace, adopting the platform step by step as they were ready.

“Data input is so easy via protocols. I can quickly write work orders when needed for the team or simply input directly from the protocol.”

Melissa Smith, Production Manager

Blended didn’t overwhelm the team with a giant change. Instead, it helped modernize their workflow gradually, without slowing them down. Protocols matched CRŪ Winery’s house styles and custom work, making work orders and data capture 5–10x faster than what they had experienced with other systems.

Today, key data is always at their fingertips:

• Vineyard sourcing is tracked by block and crop year
  
  
• Weigh tags—both fruit and bulk—are recorded and accessible
  
  
• Additions, analyses, and cellar activities are entered and visualized
  
  
• Final blends and bottlings are easy to review and trace
  
  
• TTB 5120.17 (formerly 702) reports are generated at the push of a button
  
  

Even better, the mobile interface rotates and expands naturally, making it easy to use anywhere in the winery, not just behind a desk.

And unlike other systems, Blended doesn’t block users with rigid alerts or frustrating error messages.

“Nothing prevents me from doing something, and not doing something else,” Melissa explains. “I’m not blocked by doing things out of order. I can overfill—without being quizzed—and without receiving an error for being a gallon over.”

That flexibility has made all the difference. The CRŪ Winery team didn’t have to overhaul their approach. They didn’t have to rush their rollout. They just started where they were and improved from there.

When they needed help, Blended’s team was there. From the initial data migration, where Founder Matt personally ensured CRŪ Winery’s binder-based records were translated cleanly into the system, to custom protocol setup and fast, human support, the transition felt less like a software installation and more like a partnership.

“If I need help, I’m not submitting a ticket and waiting days,” Melissa says. “I talk to a real person, sometimes in just a few minutes.”

For a winery that values relationships, clarity, and quality, Blended wasn’t just software; it was the right fit.

Looking Ahead with Blended

With CRŪ Winery’s core winemaking operations now fully transitioned from binders to Blended, the team is heading into harvest more prepared—and more confident—than ever.

The next chapter? Expanding what’s possible.

Melissa, Eriq, and the team are already planning to deepen their use of Blended by tracking barrel-level data more precisely, refining their protocols for even faster execution, and incorporating more robust management of case goods. Each step is designed to build on the foundation they've laid, adding more insight, speed, and clarity without creating complexity.

And CRŪ Winery isn’t stopping there.

They are excited to bring on the newest member of the team: Barry, Blended’s AI Assistant. From summarizing Lots to accelerating data entry, Barry is set to help CRŪ Winery move even faster, freeing up more time for what matters most: making great wine.

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If you're inspired by CRŪ Winery's story or curious about how Blended can support your winery, reach out to us at hello@blendedtech.com — we’d love to chat. And if you’re looking for your next pour, check out CRŪ Winery’s outstanding lineup at cruwinery.com. I’m a huge fan of José’s Rosé — crisp acidity makes it the perfect summer sipper.