We’ve seen augmented reality and WebAR experiences in beverage sales before. That doesn’t mean that it’s too late to bring something new to the table.
So far, the beverage-based AR experiences that we’ve seen have involved labels on the packaging. That’s well and good if you purchased the product – or don’t mind standing in the isle at the grocery store.
However, California-based Pinot Noir specialist, Siduri, is taking a different approach with their educational WebAR experience made with Rock Paper Reality and Microsoft Mixed Reality Capture Studios technology and hosted by 8th Wall.
A Look at the WebAR Experiences
Once you get beyond reds and whites, the wine world can be intimidating. Throwing around terms like “Pinot Noir” can be a lot. And, if you’re a wine expert like Siduri founder Adam Lee, you know that not even all Pinots are created equal.
The new AR experience by Siduri and Rock Paper Reality puts Lee on your table – or other flat surface.
In one experience, Lee is accompanied by three giant wine bottles. In an approachable, “Dating Game” style experience, Lee “introduces” the wines in terms of their flavor profiles.
In another, you participate in a “quick draw” competition to open a virtual bottle of wine with a virtual waiters’ knife. Meanwhile, Lee explains the benefit of using corks.
The third shows comparisons between the numbers of critical rewards won by Siduri compared to other Pinot Noirs.
“Siduri is about my passion for Pinot but also a reflection of my personality – fun, laidback, probably too loud,” Lee said in a release shared with ARPost. “When we were offered the chance to bring that personality to life in a whole new way, we jumped at the opportunity. It seemed like the perfect thing to do with a wine like Siduri.”
How It All Came Together
There are QR codes to launch the experience, but they are also all available from anywhere with a reliable connection by visiting https://www.siduri.com/ar on a mobile device. No packaging or physical targets of any kind are needed, and neither is a dedicated app.
Not needing an app is important for a number of reasons, perhaps the greatest of which being that 8th Wall WebAR experiences are supported on more mobile devices than AR apps.
Volumetric video for the experience was captured using Microsoft Mixed Reality Capture Studios technology. The video was spun into an immersive, interactive experience by augmented reality agency Rock Paper Reality. The final experience is available via web browser through the 8th Wall platform.
“This is a powerful collaboration between industry leaders that demonstrates how volumetric video, WebAR, and the Azure cloud platform are reinventing how we engage with brands and tell stories around products,” Steve Sullivan, General Manager, Microsoft Mixed Reality Capture Studios said in the release.
Why We Care
We’re always on the lookout for quality WebAR experiences. This isn’t just an exciting use case, it’s an exciting collaboration of some of the best names in the industry.
