The social networking movement has been gaining momentum for sometime now. First there was Friendster, MySpace and Facebook with their millions of members, but now we're seeing smaller more specialized social networks popping up for every interest, including drinks—ranging from sites dedicated to enthusiasts to ones set up for industry folks.
We profiled collaborative wine review site Corkd.com in our Sep/Oct 2006 issue, and others have emerged since, including OpenBottles, Adegga, Cruvee and VinoShipperSocial, which connects winemakers to enthusiasts.
For beer, there's the Aleuminati (check out Imbibe staffer Siobhan's hops picture up in the header this month), BrewSocial (part of the livingsocial.com network) and even a network for keg fans at Kegerator. Coffee has an active social network in Barista Exchange, open to pros and enthusiasts alike. On almost all of these sites there are sub-groups dedicated to special styles of beer, wine and coffee, depending on your preferences.
If you're already on Facebook or MySpace, you can seek and find groups dedicated to just about every type of drink from absinthe to tea. And while you're there, check out our pages and, of course, become our friend.
So what's your take on social networking? Have any favorites?
Never heard of any of these! Personally I already find it hard enough just to keep up with the various tv shows, magazines and web sites I check out regularly.
ReplyDelete"But that's not all!". A couple of others of note include Wine 2.0 (www.winetwo.com), and the Open Wine Consortium (www.openwineconsortium.org) which is holding a wine blogger fest in Sonoma CA Oct. 24.
ReplyDeleteObviously my opinion is biased (I founded OpenBottles), but I honestly believe that these social networks are valuable resources for people trying to learn more about wine, and for wineries that are trying to get more exposure for their brands. These networks are great learning vehicles. They represent what the Internet is all about - making it easy for people to interact, learn and share information.
ReplyDeleteI just think it's hilarious that there is a social network for people who love kegs. Has anyone seen anything for absinthe?
ReplyDeleteKen, I haven't seen a specific network just for absinthe, but Facebook and MySpace have groups with forums, and of course, there's the informative Wormwood Society which has forums as well.
ReplyDeletecool site worth checking out between Twitter and a wine retailer that's also a social network - i joined in August - www.twittertastelive.com - they host a tsting each month as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the mention of The Aleuminati. We are, after all, the (not so) secret society of better beer drinkers ... and we're growing fast! This is, of course, because of the great networking opportunities amongst "imbibers" of all types in cyberspace. Though we focus on beer, we are friendly to all the wines and spirits of the world.
ReplyDeleteNow if your own Siobhan would send me those hops of hers, I'll get to work on a batch right away! ;)
Thanks for mentioning us at http://www.VinoShipperSocial.com We are relatively new but have a steadily growing base and a great set of education videos we did with Nick Goldschmidt. We have been able grow the site successful due to our connection with VinoShipper.com where you can buy many of the boutique wines. We do support the small winery and are trying to get them a much wider audience.
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