September 19, 2008

Techie Wine Bottles Using Digital Thermometers

If there is one thing that still stresses me out about buying wine, it is that great unknown: Has my bottle been cooked en route? Finally, the winemakers are covering their tushies and finding new ways to let you know if your wine experienced sub-optimal temps during its long journey to you. Check out this bit, courtesy of Gizmodo:

You may have paid $100 for that fancy Cab, but little did you know, its tannins have been seared crispy like hashbrowns in a semi left to sit in the sun. So just for you, dear learned consumer, wine makers are fighting back with a new digital thermometer that can tell buyers whether or not the bottle fell outside its ideal temperature after shipping from the vineyard.

The size of a sugar packet and sitting on the bottle's neck, if everything was OK, an embedded light (LED, we're sure) blinks green. If things went wrong, it'll blink yellow. The system even records the temperature for downloading to a computer spreadsheet by suppliers.

The catch is that these thermometers run about $1.60 apiece. Obviously intended for better wines, it's still tough to swallow that all that many vineyards will adopt the technology in an era when traditional corks are dying to cheaper screw tops and rubber stoppers. But hey, who are we to question progress? [AP] By Mark Wilson

Via Gizmodo

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