4 Lessons Product Teams Can Learn From a Famous Napa Valley Winemaker (The Irrational Mind Podcast)

January 18, 2025  |  By: The Irrational Mind

Winemakers have mastered the art of pricing as a cue for value. We see a $9 bottle and judge it as lower quality than a $14 or $30 bottle, even though this is not always true. Pricing signals value. 

Dan Petroski of Massican Wines knows this. He has tested his wine’s pricing and landed on an achievable but still premium anchor.  In the episode, we dive into that and other hacks he has figured out along his journey of selling white wine in a predominantly red-heavy market. 

Here are four key insights from their conversation (beyond pricing!) that product teams can apply.

1. Distribution is your first product feature

Most tech companies follow a familiar pattern: build the product, then figure out your distribution channels. But Dan flipped this model on its head. Before producing his first bottle, he had already mapped out:

  • Which restaurants would feature his wines
  • How he’d differentiate in retail environments
  • What strategic partnerships could amplify his reach

Product team takeaway:

Your distribution strategy shouldn’t be an afterthought – it should influence your product decisions from day one. Ask yourself:

  • Where will users first encounter your product?
  • What partnerships could accelerate adoption?
  • How will your distribution channels affect your product design?

A few companies who have done this include: 

  • Warby Parker built their initial product strategy around home try-on because they knew selling glasses online would require overcoming consumers’ hesitation to buy without trying
  • Spotify’s early success came largely from their partnership with Facebook, which gave them immediate distribution to millions of users
  • Dollar Shave Club designed their entire product lineup around direct-to-consumer delivery, making their razors specifically for shipping efficiency

2. Make your category play before your product play

In Napa Valley, known for bold red wines, Dan chose to focus exclusively on white wines. This wasn’t just a product decision – it was a category strategy. By being one of the only premium white wine producers in Napa, Massican:

  • Stood out in a crowded market
  • Created a unique narrative
  • Carved out its own price segment

Product team takeaway:

Sometimes the biggest opportunity isn’t in building a better product, but in defining a new category:

  • Look for underserved segments in your market
  • Consider how you can reframe the conversation
  • Build your product to own a specific niche

A few companies who have done this include: 

  • Airbnb didn’t just create a better hotel booking platform—they created the home-sharing category
  • Red Bull created the energy drink category, turning a Thai health tonic into a global lifestyle brand

3. Brand isn’t just a logo

Dan doesn’t just sell wine—he sells an experience. Massican is about:

  • Mediterranean culture and lifestyle
  • Accessible language (“sunshine in a bottle” vs. technical wine terms)
  • Rich storytelling across multiple channels (playlists, recipes, film recommendations)

The result? A $30 bottle that commands premium pricing in a market dominated by $14 options.

Product team takeaway:

Your brand isn’t just your logo or messaging. Actually, it’s the entire ecosystem around your product:

  • How do you make complex features feel accessible?
  • What lifestyle or identity does your product enable?
  • How can you extend your product experience beyond its core functionality?

Some companies who have done this include: 

  • Peloton isn’t just selling exercise equipment – they’re selling a lifestyle of convenience, community, and elite fitness training
  • Patagonia extends their brand through environmental activism and repair services, making sustainability part of their product experience

4. Create contingency plans when you can’t test your way to growth

Winemaking has year-long feedback cycles. You can’t A/B test your way to success or pivot quickly if something goes wrong. Dan’s solution? Build flexibility into the core product:

  • He blends multiple grape varieties, so no single crop failure is catastrophic
  • He maintains backup plans (like converting wine to vermouth if needed)
  • He starts small and scales gradually based on proven demand

Product team takeaway:

In any business with long feedback cycles:

  • Build adaptability into your core product architecture
  • Maintain multiple paths to success
  • Create backup plans for key failure modes

Examples of companies who have pulled this off: 

  • Amazon Web Services was originally built as an internal tool for Amazon’s own use – if external sales failed, it would still provide internal value
  • Google’s famous “20% time” policy created a portfolio of experimental products, spreading risk across multiple potential innovations
  • Netflix maintained both DVD-by-mail and streaming services during the digital transition, ensuring they wouldn’t lose customers if streaming adoption was slow

The bottom line

Dan’s success with Massican shows that product strategy isn’t just about building something great – it’s about understanding your distribution channels, managing risk, owning a category, and creating a brand that resonates deeply with users. These principles apply whether you’re selling wine or software.

The key is starting with strategy rather than just features. As Dan’s story shows, sometimes the most important product decisions happen before you write a single line of code or, in his case, crush a single grape.

Check out the full episode of The Irrational Mind for more insights from Dan’s journey building Massican Wines. Be sure to subscribe to The Irrational Mind so that you don’t miss future episodes. Have a question for Kristen? Hit her up: [email protected]


🔑📈  Enjoyed Kristen’s deep dive into behavior change and Massican? Irrational Labs works with top companies to unlock product growth and customer value through behavioral design. Get in touch to learn more about our consulting services. Or get a taste of behavioral science by joining one of our bootcamps.

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