Do you think that we make wine the same way today as our grandparents did? And how about a thousand or two thousand years ago? Well, yes…and no.
Taking into account that evidence exists showing that man was already drinking wine a mere 7 millennia ago; you may imagine that everything relating to the production and consumption of wine has already been invented.
Well, nothing could be further from the truth: the wine industry, like many others, is not beyond the scope of technological changes. In fact, the innovations that have taken place in recent years and that are still to come in the coming years promise to completely revolutionise the way we interact with wine. Can you imagine?
The proof is in the pudding. Or rather, several puddings: we have compiled a list of some of the most significant innovations to appear in the sector over recent times.
Production innovations
As we already mentioned, the foundations of traditional winemaking continue to be the same today as thousands of years ago. That is to say, that grape juice is transformed into wine through the process of fermentation. But it is certain that thanks to technology the production processes have evolved, a lot, in both complexity and efficiency. Do you want to know how?
The technological revolution can be noted from the very start of cultivation. Advances allow the vines to be monitored completely (the soil, the plants themselves, the grapes) and for their condition to be known, via sensors, with a very high level of precision at each moment: temperature, humidity, ripeness, disease…
As well as providing all this valuable information, technology is also an ally of the environment and sustainability, allowing organic production and a significant reduction in the emission of harmful gases into the atmosphere. If this were not enough, the appearance of drones has also led to great advances in the control of large tracts of land.
And technology continues to play an important role right up to the end of the process: fermentation is more controlled than ever (fermentation at cold temperatures has also been successfully carried out), and as you may have guessed, the storage conditions in the winery are as supervised as those of the vineyards where the grapes ripen. As you can see, although essentially everything is the same, everything is changing.
Software for drinking wine: added value consumption
Today, everyone has a handful of applications in their phone that make their lives easier in many ways. As you would expect, app developers have not turned their back on the wine industry either, and there are more than a few IT tools that the consumer can use to optimize their experience.
For example, any wine lover with a smartphone in his or her pocket can make an intelligent purchasing decision, even if he or she doesn’t know much about wine. Vivino and Delectable are just some of the many apps that can be of value: by simply scanning the bottle that is in front of us, the app will give us a score, and opinions and reviews from other users. A posteriori, your opinion will also help other users. Interesting, non?
It may be that having bought a bottle, another doubt arises. It is the right moment to uncork this bottle or would it be better to wait? Sublivin is the artificial intelligence that will help you to evaluate the potential of each wine and make the most of it.
And… Listen up, singletons! If you are single but dream of toasting your soul mate with a great wine, Vinealove could be what you are looking for. It is a contact network for wine lovers and its strapline is «There’s no love without wine.» Can you imagine?
New marketing techniques
Lastly, let’s stop to take a look at the advances and latest trends that are used to reach new consumers or to establish wine in new markets.
If you are observant, you may have noticed big changes in the labelling and even in the naming of many wines, as the bottle speaks ever more of the personality of the wine, there are traditional ones, young, classic, irreverent, evocative… And this is when the wine comes in a bottle, as it can also be bought in, for example, in a can or packaged in the glass of wine in which it will be drunk.
As I’m sure you know, enjoying wine is not limited to the mere act of drinking it in a glass but goes much further than that: sensory experiences, tastings and training, winery visits (the best way of finding out about all the advances we’ve mentioned first hand.) Today we can’t even imagine everything else that is to come.
