Inside BlockStart programme – a look back from AlBicchiere

AlBicchiere is Nespresso for wine. Thanks to the company’s patented technology on fluid dispensing, they have built a smart platform for wine that revolutions the way people discover, buy, and enjoy wine.

As part of their journey on BlockStart’s Acceleration Programme, as an SME adopter, they were looking for new opportunities for collaboration with technology providers of DLT/blockchain solutions that could improve their business. This is the testimonial of their experience in our programme.

In one paragraph, what is AlBicchiere?

AlBicchiere is Nespresso for wine. Our mission is to transform the way people discover, buy, and enjoy wine in order to make sure their experience is the best possible. We built a smart wine platform based on our patented technology on fluid dispensing. Our solution includes a smart wine dispenser, which brings the wine to the perfect serving temperature and serve it by the glass, smart wine bags that protect the wine for up to 6 months after the first opening, and a companion app that helps the user to keep track of their cellar and reorder wine when needed.

What is AlBicchiere passionate about achieving?

We want to make sure all wine lovers can get their perfect wine of glass, whenever they want. We want to eliminate wine wastage, as every year billions of unfinished bottles get drained. We want to drastically reduce cost and carbon footprint of the wine logistic chain. In short, we want to make sure drinking wine is as enjoyable and sustainable as possible.

Can you tell us why you have decided to apply to BlockStart’s Call for end-user SMEs?

We were considering since a while the adoption of DLT in our business to track the wine logistic chain, in order to provide all actors – from the producer to the consumer – with a transparent view of what happened during transportation and pinpoint potential events that could affect wine quality. When we saw the BlockStart call, it was a no brainer to apply. It was the perfect chance to test a DLT-based system and start to engage with companies that have a deep expertise in this area. We are a small company, and we believe we can achieve much greater results partnering with companies that have expertise beyond our core business and competences.

What major challenges have you faced during the implementation/testing of BlockStart’s blockchain-based solution?

To be brutal, we didn’t really find challenges. Thanks to Datarella team great support, the whole process, from onboarding to execution of the Proof of Concepts was as smooth as possible! We got some first-hand experience of how a DLT could be integrated in the logistic chain, and what different actions every player in the chain should do.

What kind of impact do you think the blockchain-based solution you have implemented in the scope of BlockStart may bring to your company?

We believe the adoption of DLT could help us to get a much sounder proposition towards consumers, which could be able to control all the logistic chain from the producer to their home and make sure the wine they are consuming did not suffer any event that may affect its quality. The same point is appealing to producers, which would be able to monitor what happen to the wine after it left the cellar. All in all, we see this as a value-added point that would help us grow wine sales on our platform.

Where do you see your company in 5 years?

In our best dreams, in 5 years AlBicchiere smart wine dispensers would be as common as coffee machines, and the wine logistic chain would be completely overhauled by our system based on smart wine bags. With DLT providing a complete traceability for all the wine logistic chain. It’s a long way to go, but we believe it can be a reality!

Want to know more about the blockchain-based solution adopted by AlBicchiere?

Visit Datarella‘s webpage or watch the video below to learn more about the “Track&Trust” solution implemented by AlBicchiere in the scope of BlokStart’s 1st Acceleration Programme.

Applications for SME adopters are now open until 11 March 2021

The 2nd cut-off of the 2nd Open Call for SME adopters is now open until 11 March at 5pm CET (Brussels Time). If you are an SME operating in the fields of fintech, ICT and retail and willing to implement DLT/blockchain pilot solutions together with DLT/blockchain startups, that have gone through the BlockStart Acceleration Programme, you can still apply for this 2nd cut-off.

Don’t miss this change and benefit from up to €3,000 equity-free grants for participating in the Pilot stage of our 2nd Acceleration Programme.

Read the Guidelines for Application and our FAQ to ensure you know everything there is to know about BlockStart before applying!