31/10/2019

Whether you are new to the world of wine or you are a long-time oenophile, it’s possible to find a wine app that matches your needs, preferences, and tastes. The best wine apps provide extensive tasting notes and reviews – all you typically need to do is provide an image of the label, and the app does the rest for you. In addition, there are apps that can suggest the perfect food-wine pairings, or tell you exactly where you can find a bottle of your favorite wine at a brick-and-mortar location.

 

The following popular apps are readily available on both iOS and Android and are free to download (although some of them do offer the option of in-app purchases).

 

Vivino (FREE; iOS/Android)

If there’s just one app to download to your smartphone, it’s Vivino. This is arguably the world’s most popular wine app, used by wine lovers around the world to check out reviews, ratings or critical commentary on just about any bottle of wine. The secret to Vivino’s success is a powerful photo label recognition tool – with just a single image, you can pull up reviews, ratings and producer information. Moreover, if Vivino cannot identify the bottle based on the image, there’s always the option of getting the Vivino team to identify it for you manually. It’s really all the data that’s available at your fingertips that makes Vivino so popular. Whether you are shopping for wine in your favorite retail store or simply checking out the extensive database of wine reviews, Vivino helps you become smarter about wine. Plus, it’s also possible to find out where to buy a bottle of wine, and even to order wine from within the app.

Download Vivino App: iOS | Android

 

Delectable (FREE; iOS/Android)

Similar to Vivino, Delectable offers up ratings, reviews and tasting notes based on wine label recognition technology. All you need is a photograph of the label. Delectable has won over so many fans with its personal wine journal features, in which you can keep elaborate tasting notes on your favorite wines. Moreover, Delectable gives you the option to follow a newsfeed of content from top sommeliers, winemakers, and wine industry professionals.

Download Delectable App: iOS | Android

 

Wine-Searcher (FREE; iOS/Android)

You can still use Wine-Searcher on your laptop or desktop, but many Wine-Searcher fans now use the free app. The key to Wine-Searcher’s success is a very robust search engine for wine – type in any wine region, any varietal or any producer, and you’ll generate content and information about that wine, as well as a comprehensive listing of pricing and local availability. A neat feature is a GPS-based store finder, which enables you to customize store locations based on your personalized location – this saves you the trouble of scrolling through pages of listings in other states or countries. Wine-Searcher also comes with wine label recognition technology, similar to Delectable or Vivino.

Download Wine-Searcher App: iOS | Android

 

Decanter Know Your Wine (FREE; iOS)

If you’re studying to be an advanced sommelier, or if you simply want to become a wine expert, then download Know Your Wine immediately. Think of this as a learning tool for becoming an expert on just about any aspect of the wine industry. The key to this Decanter app is the use of short informational modules on a variety of topics. There are 10 free modules at the outset, and you can “graduate” to higher levels through the purchase of more sophisticated and advanced modules within the app itself. The best way to use Know Your Wine is via short bursts of concentrated activity over a long period of time – although there are plenty of wine lovers who say they have used the app to cram for upcoming wine exams.

Download Decanter Know Your Wine App: iOS 

 

Drizly (FREE; iOS/Android)

Drizly is perhaps the best known of the Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) wine apps that enable you to order wine, beer, and spirits with same-day delivery in 70 U.S. cities. If you don’t happen to live in one of these major markets, there is still the option for pre-paid store pickups of your purchase, or 2-3 day shipping. A special zip code tool ensures that you optimize delivery for your specific geographic region. And, if you are using Drizly on an Android device, you can use “OK Google” voice commands to speed up the order process.

Download Drizly App: iOS | Android

 

Living Wine Labels (FREE; iOS)

The wine brand 19 Crimes revolutionized the idea of using augmented reality wine labels, and the way that you access the unique augmented reality (AR) content for each label is via the Living Wine Labels app. In addition to 19 Crimes, you can also access AR content from brands such as Beringer Brothers; The Walking Dead Wine; Chateau St. Jean; and Mantua New Zealand. The tagline for Living Wine Labels is “Bring Your Bottles To Life,” and that’s exactly what the app enables. Turn any wine-drinking experience into a dramatic, entertaining experience at the same time.

Download Living Wine Labels App: iOS | Android

 

Winery Passport (FREE; iOS)

Visiting wineries of some of the rarest of wines in the world is a journey that wine lovers love to take! Marking various wineries that a wine lover has visited in remembrance, whilst storing your photos and videos taken in the particular winery whilst rating the wineries while writing tasting notes and also maintaining a personal journal is a near quixotic experience that Winery Passport offers!

Download Winery Passport App: iOS 

 

Wine Events (FREE; iOS/Android)

Wine Events is a simple app that finds upcoming wine events in your vicinity and gives you a detailed synopsis of the same. Below are some of the best features observed by the author of this blog:

Google-Maps Sync: The app syncs with your Google-maps app and directs you to the exact location of the chosen event that you wish to attend.
Cost: If any costs are involved with attending the event, either a booking link in order to reserve your seat or the word “Free” is mentioned to clarify the cost of the event.

Calendar Sync: The app can get synced with your calendar in order to pro-actively remind you so that you do not miss the event in any case.
Notifying the host of the event: The app allows you to provide your details on the app, succeeding in which the host of the event shall be notified of your interest in the event and provide you further details regarding the event.

Download Wine Events App: iOS | Android

 

Wine Picker (FREE; iOS/Android)

Trying to find the perfect bottle of wine to order at a restaurant? Wine Picker can do the heavy lifting for you. Select a restaurant, type in a food pairing dish, and Wine Picker will go to work for you, offering up a selection of 5 wines from the restaurant wine list that would be suitable. Or, if you prefer, you can use Wine Picker in reverse: choose a wine from the wine list, and Wine Picker will suggest a food-pairing dish.

Download Wine Picker App: iOS | Android

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All of these wine apps can help to enrich your overall wine experience. Download them today and become a smarter, more informed wine drinker. Everything you need to know about the world of wine is now at your very fingertips.