Order Up! Delivering the Goods to People on the Go

Accessible asset management designed for use for the sales team, trade, and media which has lasted a decade—through platform and ownership changes.

I created the site architecture/ layout for the Mendocino Wine Co. Trade & Media page in partnership with James Davenport of Cakewalk Design. The goal was to organize the massive trove of assets for the parent brand’s multiple sub-brands (and those brands’ sub-tiers) in a way that was easy for both the press and the winery’s international sales team to access. The brief I brought to James included a set of sketches, examples from across the web, and description of the goals and audience.

The information required on the back and front labels of a wine bottle is highly regulated, changes vintage to vintage, and must undergo a stringent approval process by the TTB.

The client needed a way to organize 5-7 assets per product vintage (more or less depending on the presence of awards or special designation, such as a flagship product.) What’s cheering to me is the client has gone through several website refreshes (and most recently a sale) and continues to use this clean and highly functional layout. Good, sturdy design!

I experienced my first perfect food and wine pairing from a lovely wine in the SketchBook, Mendocino Collection. Each element of the 1997 Grenache and simple French-style ham sandwich I had for lunch that day enhanced the other to create a perfectly balanced combination.

Not only was I the original keeper of all things brand kits—ensuring the assets were posted in an orderly manner—but I developed much of the copy for back labels, tasting notes, and general brand POS. A post on some of my favorite tasting notes coming soon!