| A man who was fond of wine was offered some | | | | round of funding to help them expand further. |
| grapes at dessert after dinner. "Much obliged," said | | | | Wine comparison sites similar to Snooth include |
| he, pushing the plate aside, "I am not accustomed | | | | and |
| to take my wine in pills." ~Jean Anthelme | | | | Allen Ingram saw the writing on the wino wall and |
| Brillat-Savarin | | | | will soon launch is a service for wine lovers of all |
| Wine, the alcoholic beverage made from the | | | | levels of experience from beginner to enthusiast! |
| fermentation of grape juice, can be so much | | | | Essentially, surfers are requested to complete a |
| more than a good time and subsequent headache. | | | | simple questionnaire (backed by complex backend |
| Whether you are a wine afficionado or just | | | | database software) to help determine what wines |
| looking for a change of pace, Chardonnay and | | | | that user might enjoy drinking. Once the |
| Pinot Grigio may prove to be more than just | | | | questionnaire is complete, the user gets their own |
| items of a wine list. | | | | UTP or Unique Tasting Profile, which then matches |
| Gone are the days of the wine profession being | | | | against two databases; one giving them wines |
| limited to occupations such as oenologists, vinters, | | | | that match their profile, and the second to locate |
| and sommeliers. Nowadays, the Internet provides | | | | stores in their area that sell those wines. The |
| a host of ways to capitalize on this age old | | | | purpose of the site is to empower consumers to |
| beverage. The opportunities online are endless, | | | | find wines based on their own profile and not |
| ranging from multi million dollar ventures to | | | | some stranger who tastes wines for a living and |
| beginning a simple blog or administering a forum. | | | | has no idea what we enjoy drinking! |
| You must decide how much time and money you | | | | Also in the site are food and wine pairing |
| are planning to invest in this venture. | | | | suggestions (also matching user profiles) and a |
| Opportunities online where you can put wine to | | | | mobile version for picking wines when you're on |
| work for you include a Wine News and | | | | the road, in a restaurant or wine shop. The site |
| Information Portal, Auction Site, Accessories, Price | | | | will be starting late Fall, early Winter 2008. |
| Comparison, Service Offering, and Blog. There are | | | | If you are looking to launch a somewhat more |
| undoubtedly more options than those just listed, | | | | humble site than the previous two endeavors, |
| so put on your thinking cap and get to work! | | | | you can easily set up a blog and talk about |
| Snooth, launched in the United States last year, is | | | | anything and everything related to wine, such as |
| a social wine recommendation and price | | | | great years, what wine goes best with what |
| comparison site which aims to be the world's | | | | food, etc. And, it's very possible that you can |
| largest wine site. In the same way that music | | | | make some extra spending money by affiliating |
| sites like Last.fm help you discover new music, | | | | with wine stores. |
| Snooth recommends wine to users based on the | | | | However, sometimes a hobby can morph into a |
| bottles that users with similar tastes enjoy. | | | | full time job. Vinography ( is a wine blog that |
| Snooth has a visually appealing and intuitive | | | | began on January 15th, 2004 as a personal |
| interface. Users can start their search for a wine | | | | project for founder and editor Alder Yarrow. |
| via a simple search box, entering wine make, type | | | | Now, the site is a respected source for |
| of grape, and so on. | | | | non-mainstream wine writing, and one of the |
| The site currently has around 300,000 unique | | | | most influential wine blogs on the Internet. |
| users per month, built up from around 100,000 at | | | | Featuring wine and sake reviews, restaurant |
| the beginning of the year. Their monthly growth | | | | reviews, editorials, book reviews, wine news, and |
| rate is about 25% and they hope to reach | | | | wine event coverage, Vinography publishes new |
| 600,000 users by the end of 2008, and 1.25 million | | | | content daily to a global readership. The site's |
| by 2009. | | | | contributors work hard to create an alternative to |
| Snooth makes money through their affiliate deals | | | | the traditional sources and styles of wine |
| with many of the merchants and wineries that | | | | journalism, partially through its emphasis on the |
| display their stock on the site. So far, the site has | | | | stories, the people, and the passion behind wine, all |
| had two rounds of funding. They raised one million | | | | told from a decidedly down-to-earth perspective. |
| in angel funding last year and had an earlier round | | | | So, sit back, have a glass of wine and get to |
| of $300,000, and are currently seeking a Series A | | | | work! |