Ep 29: How Daniel Rodriguez Raised $1.4M to Launch a Disruptive Wine Brand in an Aluminium Bottle

What kind of founder quits a high-paying tech job to launch a single-SKU wine brand in an unfamiliar package — and manages to raise $1.4 million to do it?

In this episode, Felicity talks to Daniel Rodriguez, founder of Currently Wine Co., a Sauvignon Blanc from California’s Central Coast packaged in an aluminium bottle. The packaging isn’t just a gimmick: it’s core to the bigger mission of lowering the carbon footprint of wine while supporting nearshore environmental projects, from oyster bed regeneration to coral reef restoration.

Daniel explains how he:

• Raised nearly $1 million from friends and former colleagues in a friends-and-family round

• Opened up a second round via crowdfunding to let everyday consumers invest

• Acquired the assets of ProudPour and turned them into a more focused brand

• Solved the technical nightmare of bottling wine in aluminium with a closure nobody had standardised

• Chose to launch with just one wine, in one region, despite distributor pressure to go wide

We also cover:

• Why distribution is the biggest bottleneck for new wine brands

• The branding lessons he brought over from tech (and why wine needs to catch up)

• The rigorous taste-testing process behind the wine itself—and why he scrapped several early blends

Whether you're a founder, investor, distributor, or just curious about how wine brands actually get built, this is a rare, nuts-and-bolts conversation about what it really takes to launch something new in a saturated market.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Currently Wine

• Republic (crowdfunding platform)

• Drinks Insider newsletter — it's great! Sign up now

Meet your host:

Felicity Carter is an award-winning wine and drinks journalist, editor, speaker trainer and content strategist. She led Meininger’s Wine Business International to become the world’s most must-read wine trade magazine, and was founding Executive Editor of The Drop/Pix, which the Wall Street Journal named one of the most trusted sources of wine information. A regular keynote speaker at international events, she was named a 2024 Industry Leader by WineBusiness Monthly.