Grapevine: The Tumultuous World of Consumers’ Wine Technology
Technology dominates our lives. For better or for worse we’ve become slaves to our smartphones and laptops. Many of us have panic attacks if we accidentally leave our electronic devices at home.
But if we step back for a moment, we realize that this phenomenon is very recent. It wasn’t so long ago that we were communicating with each other face to face, memorizing telephone numbers, printing MapQuest directions and dealing with so many other aspects of our lives that we’ve relinquished to the ubiquitous little device we carry in our pockets and purses.
This week I’m focusing on wine technology.
Not to bemoan how millennials reject visual and auditory interaction to obtain wine selection advice or recommendations.
Not to bemoan the lost art of removing a wine label from a bottle as a keepsake or as a reference point for a future purchase.
And certainly not to bemoan the abandonment of researching a wine topic by purchasing a wine book.
No, I espouse wine technology as a modern marvel that has enhanced our knowledge and therefore our appreciation of wine and in the process has borne a society that is more wine conversant and savvy than any generation before us. And improving each day.
Wine technology has evolved in three distinct phases: the pre-iPhone era, the revolution wrought by the introduction of the iPhone in 2007 and the brilliant marketing by Apple to open the App Store in 2008.
In the old days – seven years ago – there were few wine applications available and there were cumbersome software programs supporting them. The advanced technologies resided with the Blackberry phone and the Palm Pilot, permitting users to keep notes electronically. Those were the days of removing wine labels from bottles and memorializing the name of a wine with a scribble on a restaurant matchbook.
Then, in June 2007, the world changed, almost overnight. Apple crammed the capabilities of a desktop computer, and more, into a hand-held device. Wine apps began to rise, but in fits and starts; most were merely websites that required Wi-Fi connections. The most popular was CellarTracker, a community-based repository of wine opinions and tasting notes culled from wine consumers. Its popularity persists today.
When Apple realized the universal appeal of its iPhone and the hidden profits in developing applications for it, it took a historic turn. Rather than develop its own applications to run on its proprietary software, it invited the world to write those apps — and offered to pay developers 70 percent of any revenue generated from a downloaded app. The smartphone world was overwhelmed with apps on any subject one could imagine.
Currently, the App Store offers 1.4 million applications, which have been downloaded over 75 billion times. Amazingly, even though so many applications are free, developers earned $10 billion in fees in 2014. The Android version of the app store is likewise wildly successful.
Today, there are dozens of wine apps available, providing access to every aspect of the world of wine, from broad and deep wine information, to purchase recommendations, to pairing advice and even one that “learns” your preferences over time and offers suggestions for wines that it thinks you will enjoy.
These apps influence our decision-making process by evaluating, searching and finding wines in a proverbial nano-second and with a high degree of reliability. Here are several of my favorites, all of which are free and include varying levels of interactivity: Drync, Vivino, Delectable, Hello Vino, Wine-Searcher and WineQuest.
Each app presents a unique approach to enjoying wine. Have you downloaded one (or more) on your Apple or Android smartphone? Which do you prefer? Which do you dislike? E-mail your comments to nantonaccio@theexaminernews.com.
Next week I’ll review each one and offer my personal thoughts to assist you in selecting a favorite.
Nick Antonaccio is a 35-year Pleasantville resident. For over 15 years he has conducted wine tastings and lectures. He also offers personalized wine tastings and wine travel services. Nick’s credo: continuous experimenting results in instinctive behavior. You can reach him at nantonaccio@theexaminernews.com or on Twitter @sharingwine.
