Cellar App!

[Chuck]

Hi guys,

My first app was Barista, which has been a great success (it helps you make cafe-quality coffee on your home espresso machine).

Now for the sequel: Cellar! This new app is a portable wine cellar, which helps you keep track of what you've got already, as well as the wines you've consumed and would like to remember to buy again. It's under review with Apple at the moment, but it should be ready for release any day now (if you'd like to be notified when it's available fill in the form here).

Meantime, check out the Cellar website, or follow Cellar on Twitter. Oh and it's just had a mention over at TUAW.

Hope you enjoy! Let me know if via reply or PM if you have any questions.
Chuck.

Here are some screensnaps:

 

[Drumjim85]

whats the price going to be?

 

[Chuck]

whats the price going to be?

The launch price will be 99c!

Following the launch special, we'll be raising it to $2.99.

 

[rKunda]

That looks like a very polished and handy app. Our 'cellar' is usually 1 or 2 bottles, so I don't know how much use I'd get, but it looks really great.

 

[diesel]

Your app looks great. As a wine aficionado myself, I have bought several wine "tracking"/cellar type apps already and i've settle on Cork'z. They have a great companion website with a huge community and their iphone app is tied into it. Unless you come up with a way to at the very least backup the info on the iphone, then i would not want to spend the time inputting data. Also, your app should not be limited to just what wines you own, but also tasting notes for wines that you have tried but not necessarily own. Finally i question the usefulness of capturing data such as bottle shape, bottle top color, bottle color, etc. A waste of time inputting data like that. I don't know any wine lovers who gives a crap about details like that. What I want to capture deals with the wine itself, color, taste, aroma, etc. not the bottle!!!

But as mentioned, your app sure does look pretty.

 

[Drumjim85]

Your app looks great. As a wine aficionado myself, I have bought several wine "tracking"/cellar type apps already and i've settle on Cork'z. They have a great companion website with a huge community and their iphone app is tied into it. Unless you come up with a way to at the very least backup the info on the iphone, then i would not want to spend the time inputting data. Also, your app should not be limited to just what wines you own, but also tasting notes for wines that you have tried but not necessarily own. Finally i question the usefulness of capturing data such as bottle shape, bottle top color, bottle color, etc. A waste of time inputting data like that. I don't know any wine lovers who gives a crap about details like that. What I want to capture deals with the wine itself, color, taste, aroma, etc. not the bottle!!!

But as mentioned, your app sure does look pretty.

I looked into cork'z, but my issue with it (and this could be incorrect) is that you have to have a data connection to be able to use it. I don't want to be limited to where i can use the app.

 

[diesel]

I looked into cork'z, but my issue with it (and this could be incorrect) is that you have to have a data connection to be able to use it. I don't want to be limited to where i can use the app.

you are correct about that. however, I remember them saying that a future update would allow you to keep a "local" copy on your iphone. come to think about it, i think that was months and months ago

prior to cork'z i tried a couple of others (names will go unsaid) where i spent hours putting in tasting notes, only to have it wiped out in an upgrade or for whatever other reason. needless to say, i won't ever deal with that kind of bs again.

 

[Chuck]

That looks like a very polished and handy app. Our 'cellar' is usually 1 or 2 bottles, so I don't know how much use I'd get, but it looks really great.

Thanks rKunda. Actually one of the best features of Cellar is the Garage, which is like your store-room of what you've already consumed and would like to keep as a reference for when you're back in the liquor store, so in that sense it doesn't matter if you only ever have a bottle or two in your 'cellar' - it's still really handy for keeping tabs on what you're going to buy next.

Your app looks great. As a wine aficionado myself, I have bought several wine "tracking"/cellar type apps already and i've settle on Cork'z. They have a great companion website with a huge community and their iphone app is tied into it. Unless you come up with a way to at the very least backup the info on the iphone, then i would not want to spend the time inputting data. Also, your app should not be limited to just what wines you own, but also tasting notes for wines that you have tried but not necessarily own. Finally i question the usefulness of capturing data such as bottle shape, bottle top color, bottle color, etc. A waste of time inputting data like that. I don't know any wine lovers who gives a crap about details like that. What I want to capture deals with the wine itself, color, taste, aroma, etc. not the bottle!!!

But as mentioned, your app sure does look pretty.

Thanks for the feedback. Remember that we're only at version 1.0 though, won't you.

Your point about the bottle color and shape being useless - well as you say, there are other apps out there which are just lists with labels, however what we've created is a wine library app that is actually fun to use. If seeing actual bottles and swiping through them is not your thing, that's cool, but we're hoping it will be attractive to others. Each to his own hey, but thank you for taking the time to give me your feedback. We are committed to this app and to making it even better, so feedback is always appreciated.

 

[Chuck]

iPhone friendly Cellar website

*sigh* Still waiting for Apple to approve Cellar.

Meanwhile......
I've just done an iPhone friendly version of the Cellar website, so if you have an iPhone, take a look: http://www.cellar-app.com (it automatically redirects you)

Also, the desktop version of the Cellar website is featured in Creattica here so if you like my design, give it a vote!

 

[Chuck]

Cellar is available on the App Store!

Woohoo!

Apple have approved Cellar!

Here are the links:
Cellar on the App Store
Cellar on Twitter
Cellar on the web

Hope you enjoy it.

 

[Marky]

Woohoo!

Apple have approved Cellar!

Here are the links:
Cellar on the App Store
Cellar on Twitter
Cellar on the web

Hope you enjoy it.

Hi Chuck

Missed out on your Barista sale yesterday, so I'm very pleased not to have missed the launch sale of Cellar.

Downloaded it about 5mins ago and so far it's definately living up to it's promise.

Just been loading in some bottles to my 'Cellar', the 'move n scale' tool works really well - i'm impressed.

Well done

 

[Marky]

Just posted a 5star review on the UK app store for you.
I like this app

 

[Chuck]

Hi Chuck

Missed out on your Barista sale yesterday, so I'm very pleased not to have missed the launch sale of Cellar.

Downloaded it about 5mins ago and so far it's definately living up to it's promise.

Just been loading in some bottles to my 'Cellar', the 'move n scale' tool works really well - i'm impressed.

Well done

Just posted a 5star review on the UK app store for you.
I like this app

Thanks guys for your comments! Wow, today has been very hectic. I'm so glad people's first impressions have been positive. We've had some great feedback as well so I'm sure the next few weeks are going to be busy for us, collating all the feedback into some order.

Thanks again!

 

[Marky]

Thanks guys for your comments! Wow, today has been very hectic. I'm so glad people's first impressions have been positive. We've had some great feedback as well so I'm sure the next few weeks are going to be busy for us, collating all the feedback into some order.

Thanks again!

Chuck just one request could you add at some point two additional bottle colour choices:

A dark Rose option to compliment the light option already in the app.

A very very dark (near black) bottle - I have a number of Reds which whilst they aren't in 'black' bottles, to look at in normal light they would 'appear' to be.

Have just finished adding my complete cellar and the app is an absolute delight to use.

 

[Chuck]

Thanks Marky,

Your feedback has been added to our support system and we'll be going through each request and sorting it all into a release roadmap shortly.

Glad you're enjoying it so far.

 

[Chuck]

Quick post to let you all know that the launch sale for Cellar is ending on Friday night (Cupertino time PDT).

That gives you a couple of days to buy it at 99c. Hopefully this is enough warning for anyone here who has been thinking about getting it during the sale.

Once again, here are the links:
Cellar on the App Store
Cellar on Twitter
Cellar on the web

Cheers,
Chuck.

 

[angle]

I recently purchased this app, however I have to agree with some of the comments on the US iTunes store. Primarily:

1. Search! This is highly important as someone who has a ton of wine may want to use this when going out to see what they should / should not buy or if they have a bottle of that particular wine already.
2. "drank one" button. If I grab a bottle from my collection, I want to quickly and easily say that I've removed one, I don't want a hassle to go through.
3. Backup. This is a must. Why spend all the time entering the data if it's going to be lost in an accident?

Aside from the usual "more colors", "more bottles", etc...I think this app is quite well made. Believe me, I understand it's a 1.0 release and you need to get something out the door (I'm currently working on software testing for a major insurance company, and we just went to beta with our own software) so I'm not griping, I'm just sharing!

On a more positive note, I bought this app for three reasons. The first, because I love wine and I think it will help me to know what I have! The second, I enjoy a well designed and good looking piece of software. You have a talent at that. The third, you, the developer, spent the time to come here and talk with your client base. This is now the 2nd app I've purchased because the developer came here and was willing to listen to his customers. I appreciate that.

I look forward to seeing what improvements you can bring to Cellar, and wish you the best of luck!

 

[rKunda]

Grabbed it. Looks good and you seem like a guy worth supporting (if I can discern that from a few short sentences). Will have to test it out soon. =)

 

[designgeek]

The GUI is awesome! I love seeing a well thought out app. This one is a must have for winos everywhere!

 

[Chuck]

I recently purchased this app, however I have to agree with some of the comments on the US iTunes store. Primarily:

1. Search! This is highly important as someone who has a ton of wine may want to use this when going out to see what they should / should not buy or if they have a bottle of that particular wine already.
2. "drank one" button. If I grab a bottle from my collection, I want to quickly and easily say that I've removed one, I don't want a hassle to go through.
3. Backup. This is a must. Why spend all the time entering the data if it's going to be lost in an accident?

Aside from the usual "more colors", "more bottles", etc...I think this app is quite well made. Believe me, I understand it's a 1.0 release and you need to get something out the door (I'm currently working on software testing for a major insurance company, and we just went to beta with our own software) so I'm not griping, I'm just sharing!

On a more positive note, I bought this app for three reasons. The first, because I love wine and I think it will help me to know what I have! The second, I enjoy a well designed and good looking piece of software. You have a talent at that. The third, you, the developer, spent the time to come here and talk with your client base. This is now the 2nd app I've purchased because the developer came here and was willing to listen to his customers. I appreciate that.

I look forward to seeing what improvements you can bring to Cellar, and wish you the best of luck!

Hey angle, thanks for your thoughts. I know, it's probably quite a disappointment that searching or sorting through a fairly large inventory of wine isn't easy in this first release. Trust me we are taking these comments very seriously and there is a meeting on today about what the roadmap will look like for the next few updates. Filtering of bottles and sound on/off are high on the priorities but there'll be other improvements too.

I'll put your feedback into three separate tickets. Thanks for sharing here, but if you have any other thoughts, make sure you send them via the Feedback button in the app because then they'll automatically go into our bug tracking software with their own ticket and we won't forget about them.

And thanks for your kind words rKunda and designgeek. It's really great to hear of happy customers.

Chuck.

 

[Chuck]

Quick reminder: Cellar's launch sale is ending in 3.5 hours from now. (Midnight Cupertino time).

 

[Chuck]

Sale's over but $2.99 is hopefully not going to break anyone's bank and will still be well worth it.

I can't believe how great our launch was. There are a few stats on the website, but in a nutshell Cellar got to #15 in the US Lifestyle section and #1 in the AUST Lifestyle section after only 24-48hours on the store. And all that without any free marketing help from Apple (which Barista has had a lot of).

 

[Chuck]

First update to Cellar

Cellar 1.0.5 was submitted to Apple on Friday, which includes:

• Choice of camera or gallery for labels (for iPhone users)
• Sound on/off setting
• Cork-only option for bottle tops
• Easy way to drink one bottle at a time if you have more than one
• Performance improvements

Bigger improvements coming in 1.1, so stay tuned.

 

[Chuck]

On Sale For A Limited Time!

Hey guys, if you had been thinking about getting Cellar, now the time. It's on sale for a limited time only for 99c (US).

Check it out on the web, App Store, or Twitter.

 

[Chuck]

Cellar 2.0

Hey, I just thought I'd quickly make note that version 2.0 of Cellar was approved last month and it has a ton of new features.

Here's some of what's new in Cellar 2.0:

✔ Search for bottles, based on any of their data
✔ Sort by Type, Region, Vintage, Price or Rating
✔ Portrait list and bottle profile view
✔ New locations: Wishlist and Trash
✔ Backup, Restore and Merge your Cellar
✔ Direct device-to-device Cellar merge
✔ Cellar statistics view
✔ Email a bottle to other Cellar users
✔ Use x-cellar wine links on the web
✔ Dessert wine shape
✔ Two new bottle colors, three new bottle tops
✔ More efficient data entry
✔ Support for wine blends, name and wine type
✔ New 'Drink by' and 'Pairings' fields
✔ 'Quicknote' and 'Quickpair' time-saving menus
✔ New 100 point rating field from any reviewer
✔ Tweaked application icon
✔ Stability improvements on older devices

My favorite new features are the 'rotate-to-portrait', backup/restore/merge, and emailing bottles (which also allows for tweeting bottles with a bit more effort). At the touch of a button you can now import a bottle from someone else's Cellar, which includes the label, bottle shape & color, wine notes and everything.

We're not stopping there though - we're working on more improvements and new features for the next update right now.

I've uploaded some new screenshots of Cellar 2.0.