The eSommelier wine management system is an all-in-one hardware and software package that tells users how much wine they have, where it is in the cellar and when best to drink it.

Australians love to drink. It could even be argued that alcohol is part of our national identity.

In fact, the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation says we are a perennial member of the top 20 list of wine consumers per capita.

As such, custom installers can now meet the requirements of wine lovers across the nation with the introduction of an automated wine management system that can be integrated into any AMX or Crestron control system.

Although not yet available in Australia, eSommelier is the first all-in-one hardware and software system that allows wine lovers to easily manage their collection.

Clearly, the system is aimed at high-end wine collectors and oenophiles, rather than aficionados of ‘two-buck chuck’.

Designed as a simple plug-and-play solution, the eSommelier wine management system gives collectors access to their entire wine library at the touch of a button.

“There is no other product on the market like eSommelier,” the company says. “Most wine collectors use online databases or written logs to keep track of their wine collections, whereas this system allows you to sort through your collection to see exactly what you have in inventory, sort by variety to match a dinner entree, scan a bottle in and out to manage inventory, and add tasting notes.

“For luxury homes where wine cellars have become more common in recent years, the eSommelier wine management system provides a simple and easy way to better manage and organise the cellar.”

It is also simple to use – even for those who are not computer inclined.

The eSommelier system consists of a 15-inch (38cm) touch screen computer interface with an internal hard drive that stores a database of wines from around the world.

When cataloguing a bottle of wine, the user simply selects the country, region, variety, winery and vintage from a prompted list, instead of typing in all this information.

It typically takes two minutes to catalogue a bottle of wine with eSommelier, as opposed to an average of 10 minutes per bottle with a spreadsheet-type program.

With eSommelier’s wine browser, subscribers to eRobertParker.com – an online wine companion – can automatically import Robert Parker’s tasting notes, ratings and drink date recommendations into their system.

Users can also download wine labels and soon will have the ability to browse their collection via the wine label artwork, just as CD artwork stored on a music server is browsed.

Via its integrated Ethernet port, the eSommelier system can be accessed from any networked device in the home, as well as from anywhere around the world. This is particularly useful for collectors with a second home or off-site storage of their wine.

Searching for a particular bottle for dinner is also a simple task. Users can search by any parameter they wish, whether it be country or varietal, to find the perfect wine to pair with a meal.

The eSommelier system can also recall the exact location of a bottle in a wine cellar – no more disappearing for an hour trying to find that ‘special’ bottle for dinner.

Taking wine management to the next level, eSommelier offers a barcode scanner and printer. After the wine’s information is entered, a unique barcode for each bottle is created and printed immediately to be placed on the bottle.

Collectors can simply scan the barcode of the bottle to be consumed and that bottle will be automatically removed from the collection.

Tracking individual bottles rather than bins or cases is much more efficient, allowing for collectors to differentiate between the locations of individual bottles in a cellar.

The basic unit, which sells for $12,500 in Australian currency, can be accessed over a home network using a VNC viewer. The eSommelier Deluxe at $17,250 is compatible with AMX and Crestron home automation systems.

An optional temperature and humidity sensor is available for about $1,500.

“The only limit to the system is the CPU capacity,” the company says. “But no one would ever have a wine collection large enough to exceed it.”