There’s nothing quite like a cold pint. Beer enthusiasts are a special breed – and we’ve got more than a few of them around the Clear-Coat office. There’s a growing movement of a more mature appreciation for beers and the brewing processes behind them, akin to the cultures that have grown to surround wine and coffee.
For the beer enthusiast, it’s all about the hunt; the shared experience of discovery and the chance to find a favorite brew behind an unlikely label. Now normally, you want to keep a safe distance between your beer and your phone – but what if tech could actually improve your tasting experience?
Whether you’re a discerning craft beer enthusiast or just enjoy a casual glass, these beer apps can help make going out for a beer an even more social experience.
1. The Beer Buddy Barcode Scanner—$3.99 / iOS
The #1 beer app in the App Store sits on top for a reason, and it wouldn’t be right for us not to give it the same nod. With over 300,000+ beers in its database and integrated RateBeer.com taste, aroma, and palate reviews, you can easily navigate the wide world of craft beer with just a click of your camera. Just snap a photo of the barcode of your current brew, and you can quickly pull up the history, alcohol content, and more.
The Beer Buddy App allows you to review breweries and share your new discoveries, as well as use GPS to find which bars and restaurants around you serve your favorites and old-standbys.
And, for the adventurous, the app makes for a great sidekick when trying to decide which new beer to try. It’s perfect for those moments you’re standing in the freezing cold cooler at the store, trying to decide between an unknown lager and a new edition of your favorite IPA.
2. Beer Battery—$0.99 / iOS
Our lives have become largely dictated in terms of cell phone battery life. Between charges, it’s always helpful to have an easy way to monitor battery levels – but hardly ever fun. Why not bring your love of beer into your cell phone’s charge time too? With the Beer Battery, you can now check your phone’s total power through a liquid lens.
The app displays your battery’s life span in a “glass half-full” way, showing your remaining battery life as a bubbly glass of brew. But it’s not just novel – it’s useful as well. Just tap the screen and you can view your phone’s remaining energy in terms of 3G use, Wifi, talk time, video playback, and even audio playback. What’s not to love?
3. BeerCloud—Free / iOS / Android
We all know the adage, “You get what you pay for” – but for those lovable cheapskates out there who would rather not drop a lofty $3.99 on a beer app and spend it on trying a new pint instead, BeerCloud is a free app that can do a lot of what other apps can, without hitting you in the wallet.
While it doesn’t have some of the more comprehensive features of pay apps, it still capitalizes on the best features of cloud computing, GPS, and barcode scanning to make an app that lets you search and determine where beers are available near you. You can also scan barcodes to access data about beers – and, if you’re feeling hungry, get suggestions for ideal food pairings. Linked to the site GreatBrewers.com, this app is definitely worth your time, even if you’re only an occasional beer drinker. If you find it lacking, there’s always iBeers Pro.
4. Untappd—Free / iOS / Android / Blkbrry / Windows
“It’s like Foursquare and Instagram… but for BEER!” – No, that’s not the pitch of a silicon-valley whiz kid, it’s the premise behind Untappd, arguably the most fun app on this list.
You can find local breweries, rate them, check in at them just like Foursquare – and it’s free. You can add your friends on Untappd, create a wish list and get suggestions from the app’s push notifications.
What sets this app apart is its hyper-social focus on awards and “badges” for the (healthy) drinking patterns you develop over time, like “Luck of the Irish” or “I Believe in IPA!”. The app encourages you to try new things and sample new flavours, connecting you with others who are excited about doing the same.
You can take pictures of your brews and share them with other enthusiasts through the app – which for most people will be preferable to subjecting the rest of your friends to your hobby on Facebook or Twitter.
5. Today’s Beer—$0.99 / iOS / Android
This app is very simple, as is reflected in its $0.99 price tag, but gives a lot of “bang” for your buck. If you love trying new things, want to impress your friends with your endless beer knowledge or just keep up with the beer snobs, this app is for you.
Open it up, and it gives you a different beer every day to learn about. Think of it as your inspirational quote for the day, but for beer lovers. The app also displays basic facts like ABV and brewery information.
But the color reproduction of beer is this apps’ claim to fame, allowing you to see a beer’s 360 degree “pint view” and examine its true color outside of the bottle. It’s as close to a beer as you can get without getting your lips wet.
6. BeerGram—Free / iOS
Beers are best when shared – so what if you could buy a friend in a completely different city a beer to celebrate their success, let them know you care, or congratulate them on a job well done? With BeerGram, that’s all possible.
At participating restaurants, you can purchase a beer on behalf of a friend. If they use the app, you can even see a list of their favorite beers and the locations they most often frequent. It’s free too, so there’s nothing stopping you from going the extra mile for friends across the country (or the planet) and creating real, meaningful connections through technology.
Unfortunately, this app is currently only available in the United States,
As the company credo states: “Real beer for real friends.” You can also deliver BeerGrams through email, so your Android friends won’t be left staring into an empty glass.
Have a favorite app we missed? Let us know in the comments!
