Watgrid wants winemakers to follow fermentation without drawing samples by hand. The company, based in Aveiro, Portugal, sells Winegrid: fibre-optic sensors placed inside tanks, barrels and presses that send data on density, turbidity, colour, temperature and alcohol to an online platform, according to its EU-funded SME Instrument project, which said the system would replace costly manual sampling.
The EU paid Watgrid €50,000 for a feasibility study in 2018 and €1,594,119 for a development project from July 2019 to March 2022. At the March 2022 cut-off the EIC Accelerator selected it for blended finance, for a platform that would adjust vinification automatically. No Horizon Europe grant for that award appears on CORDIS. In November 2023 Enartis, the oenology division of Italy's Esseco Group, bought a majority of the company for an undisclosed price.
Company file
- Legal entity
- WATGRID LDA, Aveiro, Portugal; brand Winegrid
- Co-founders
- Rogério Nogueira (CEO), Lúcia Bilro (CTO)
- Owner
- Majority held by Enartis, Esseco Group, since November 2023
- Product
- Wineplus and e-bung sensors; SaaS platform with AI tools
- EU grants
- SME Instrument phase 1 (832214) and phase 2 (874190)
- EIC Accelerator
- Selected March 2022, blended finance; no CORDIS project
Where Winegrid Stands Now
After a distribution agreement in February 2023, Enartis took majority control in November 2023. Enartis's general manager, Samuele Benelli, called it "a milestone in the evolution of Enartis". Since then Winegrid's news page has announced launches in Chile, Argentina and Spain, a US presence, trade shows alongside Enartis, and industry awards in 2025. Watgrid names installations of more than 200 sensors at Rodney Strong Vineyards in California and more than 50 at Quinta Nova in Portugal on its highlights page. No figures on revenue or total installations have been published.
"Enartis represents an opportunity for WINEGRID to gain direct access to the wine production sector globally."
Rogério Nogueira, co-founder and CEO, Winegrid, November 2023The Technology: A Window Into the Tank
The SME Instrument phase 2 final report, to March 2022, says the density and alcohol sensors were upgraded "however not miniaturized", an AI tool was integrated into the dashboard, and in-house assembly was scaled to 50 tank sensor units and 100 barrel sensors a week. The EIC Accelerator proposal went a step further: using the data to adjust fermentation parameters automatically.
What the EIC Award Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The EIC's list of selected companies names Watgrid for the Winegrid project, "a path toward sustainable precision vinification", with blended finance. CORDIS has no grant agreement, budget or report for it, and neither Watgrid nor Enartis has announced EIC money or an EIC Fund investment. Whether the award was ever signed, and what happened to the automatic adjustment it described, cannot be checked.
- Automatic vinification controlUnknownNo project on CORDIS.
- Sensor platform (earlier grant)DeliveredSME Instrument report.
- Global distributionVia EnartisAcquisition, 2023.
- Report on the 2022 awardNoneNo CORDIS entry.
The Money
The EU's recorded support for Watgrid is €1.64 million across the two SME Instrument grants. The price Enartis paid has not been disclosed. Watgrid publishes no revenue figures that we could find.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
Whether the 2022 blended finance award was signed or withdrawn, whether any EIC money was paid, and whether the acquisition by Enartis affected the award are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The EU funded Watgrid's technology through two grants, and it now belongs to an Italian group, so it stays in European hands. The EIC's 2022 selection, however, leaves no public record of what, if anything, it paid for.
What the award promised
A real-time platform that adjusts vinification automatically, for sustainable precision winemaking.
What the record shows
No EIC project on CORDIS, a sensor business built with earlier EU grants, and a sale to Enartis in 2023.
The Verdict
An exit, not an EIC project
Winegrid found a strategic buyer in its own industry. The EIC selection in 2022 is the part of this story with no public record behind it.
Watgrid, Enartis and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
