"Divino" concept: a passionate wine experience through an innovative, interactive refrigerator

Over the centuries, wine has always enticed consumers, researchers, and connoisseurs alike. Ever since its origin, wine has become a symbol of human socialization, cultural heritage, and of man’s connection with nature. Wine’s sensorial experience can be best appreciated by learning more about its origin, how it is made and how it is stored. Cellars have been traditional locations for wine storage as they take on the environmental characteristics necessary, including adequately low temperatures and sustained humidity levels, to contribute to the proper maturity of wine before it is consumed. However, not all locations are suitable for wine storage and, therefore, the need to create storage methods which replicate this environment, even if artificially, cannot be underestimated, particularly when wine is on display and for sale at retail. Today, consumers’ interest in learning about enology is growing. The importance of wine in a healthy diet and how it should be stored will be of fundamental importance in expanding the appreciation of wine worldwide. Thanks to the increased appreciation of enology and the wine industry, there has been a noticeable expansion in the sale of wine particularly at retail. In today’s fast-paced world, however, potential consumers who may want to learn about wine before purchase may not always have the time to deepen their knowledge of the subject. They require immediate, state-of-the-art, innovative solutions to help them decide which wine to buy at retail with informative detail about each bottle of wine on sale. As a result, an innovative “wine” project concept has been developed by the Design School of the Polytechnic Institute of Milano (Italy) with the participation of a leading Italian manufacturer of plug-in commercial refrigerators, IARP: a solution targeted to all types of consumers, regardless of their knowledge of the wine industry. The solution is designed not only to respond to the wine storage needs of the retailer at the point of sale but also to the needs of the retail customer for greater information about wines, their origin, location, and their particular characteristics. DIVINO affords consumers and end-users a much more interactive role in the purchasing process, as they are readily informed through the use of an interactive touch screen which is implemented within the wine cabinet itself. Consumers are guided as to the salient eno-gastronomical characteristics of each wine in the cooler, allowing for a more informative and emotional customer purchasing experience. Besides serving as a virtual sommelier at the point of sale, the DIVINO solution offers three distinguishing features. First, it is a refrigerator cabinet with three different temperature storage cycles according to wine (red, white, sparkling). Secondly, when searching for wine according to specific criteria, such as food and wine pairings, a luminous visual response appears underneath the exact location of where the wine is displayed. At the same time, an audio-visual description of the selected wine is available from the main screen if requested. Consequentially, its third distinguishing feature is its ability to serve as an instrument for data collection. This can be beneficial not just for supplier companies, including wine producers, refrigerator suppliers, and retailers, but also for the retail customer, who can benefit from learning more about the wine industry through an interactive touch screen.