Workflow Secrets From a Small Production Winemaker

Workflow Secrets From a Small Production Winemaker

Running a small winery with a lean team means living in a state of organized chaos. In this episode of Expert Talks by InnoVint, Bertus van Zyl (FARM Collective) explains how he runs three brands and 20-25 unique wines a year with a three-person cellar team, and what changed when paper notepads stopped scaling.Bertus is the head winemaker at FARM Collective, where he oversees production for Tank Garage, the never-repeat DTC brand sourcing from across California, James Cole, a classic Napa-focused estate, and his own personal label, Belong. In this conversation with Lauren Heindel of InnoVint, he shares the workflow systems, planning rhythms, and team structure that let a small producer move serious volume without burning out the people running it.In this episode, we discuss:• How small wine producers keep many SKUs organized without micromanaging the team• Why compliance and inventory tracking break before anything else when a small winery scales• How Tank Garage plans 20-25 unique wines each year from 50+ varieties• Why empowered teams and front-loaded work orders make remote management possible• What's worth investing in for small producers, and which wine-industry tools are over-hypedGuest: Bertus van Zyl, Head Winemaker at FARM CollectiveHost: Lauren Heindel, Marketing Manager at InnoVint00:00 Welcome and Overview00:59 Bertus Origin Story03:59 Scaling Pain Points06:19 Fixing Chaos With Software07:59 Daily Workflow and Remote Ops12:05 Tank Garage Never Repeat Model17:55 Costing and Compliance Setup18:34 Advice for Small Producers20:54 Lean Team Bottling Machine23:37 Adopt Sooner vs Overhyped26:06 Wrap Up and Thanks🔗 Full episode page: https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/small-winery-workflow/🔗 Learn more about Expert Talks: https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/Expert Talks is a series from InnoVint, the winery operating system used by thousands of winemakers to manage production, inventory, and operations. Each episode features conversations with wine industry leaders about improving winery operations, profitability, and long-term business health.

Making Better Sparkling Wine Blends With Data and AI

Making great sparkling wine isn't just about picking great grapes — it's about mastering the art of blending dozens of unbalanced components into something greater than the sum of its parts. In this episode of Expert Talks by InnoVint, winemaker Kyle Altomare (Gloria Ferrer) breaks down the technical and intuitive sides of sparkling wine production, from assemblage philosophy to how AI is changing the way his team works during harvest. Kyle has spent over 15 years working his way from small production cellars to leading winemaking at one of California's most respected sparkling houses, with stops at Clos Pegase, Charles Krug, and Artesa along the way. In this conversation with Lauren Heindel (InnoVint), he shares how he approaches blending for texture over aromatics, why sparkling wine requires thinking backward from the finish line, and how InnoVint AI helped his team work smarter during the 2024 harvest. In this episode, we discuss: ▶ Why sparkling wine blending requires a completely different mindset than still wine production ▶ How Kyle evaluates base wines for weight, finish length, and acid purity — not just aromatics ▶ The philosophy behind using oak in sparkling wine without letting it overpower delicate base wines ▶ How vintage variation (like the dramatic difference between 2023 and 2024) shapes blending decisions ▶ When blending becomes intuitive — and why the final tweaks never get easier if you're doing it right ▶ How InnoVint AI features like image import, voice-to-text work orders, and custom reporting changed the way the Gloria Ferrer team works during harvest Guest: Kyle Altomare, Winemaker at Gloria Ferrer Host: Lauren Heindel, Community Manager at InnoVint 🔗 Full episode page: https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/making-better-sparkling-wine-blends-with-data-and-ai/ [https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/%5Bepisode-slug%5D/] 🔗 Learn more about Expert Talks: https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/ [https://www.innovint.us/expert-talks/] Expert Talks is a series from InnoVint, the winery operating system used by thousands of winemakers to manage production, inventory, and operations. Each episode features conversations with wine industry leaders about improving winery operations, profitability, and long-term business health.

Why Your Tasting Room Isn’t Converting, and What to Do About It

On this episode of Expert Talks, Wine industry insights by InnoVint we sat down with tasting room educator Liz Mercer, partner at WISE. She has dedicated her life to teaching wineries how to improve their tasting room staff, processes, and customer experience and has joined InnoVint to share her secrets. Liz and Lauren dissect what is currently working in tasting rooms, and what isn't and why. Then Liz shares some tactical first steps you can take today to start increasing your tasting room conversions.

Winemaking for Multiple Brands with Modern Technology

In this episode of Expert Talks, powered by InnoVint, host Lauren Heindel chats with Mike Tracy, Director of Winemaking for Trois Noix and Consulting Winemaker for Peter Paul Wines. Mike shares his journey from early exposure to viticulture in Sonoma County to managing multiple wine brands with data-driven strategies.This episode highlights the distinct challenges of working across both estate wineries and custom crush facilities, the importance of small details in winemaking, and balancing wine styles across different labels. Tune in for an insightful conversation on the art and discipline behind multi-brand winemaking and the pivotal role data plays in ensuring wine quality.

Behind The Scenes of Harvest Watch 2025

Join InnoVint on a special bonus episode of Expert Talks as host Lauren Heindel sits down with Anna Muthig, the data analyst behind Harvest Watch, InnoVint's new real-time harvest progression dashboard. They discuss the origins and functionality of this innovative tool, which offers real-time data on harvest progression, improving informed decisions during harvest. Anna shares her journey from working in wine production to specializing in data analytics and explains how Harvest Watch helps winemakers from different regions track their harvest progress, validate their decisions, and respond to environmental factors like air quality and fire risk. Discover how this tool is continuously evolving based on user feedback and find out how you can contribute to its development.