For many of us, the idea of a homemade cocktail amounts to nothing more than pouring some vodka and Coke into the same glass. Many mobile apps have popped up in the past few years to help wannabe mixologists become a bit more adventurous, but none that we’ve seen have been quite as comprehensive or nicely presented as Minibar.
Minibar launches today on iOS from Danish app developer Shape (they of the coffee-making app we shared a video of recently, no less). The app allows you to browse through details of more than 100 cocktails, including their ingredients, preparation instructions, the stories behind them and related drink recipes that you may want to try.
If you prefer to start the other way around, you can select from a broad range of ingredients and then see what cocktails you can create. If you’re a beginner, you’ll find the Guides section useful; it covers everything from decorating drinks with garnishes to professional cocktail-making tools that may come in handy when you’re entertaining friends and really want to put on a show.
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The package is all rounded off by the gorgeous photos that made me want to start mixing up something special right away (even if I did write this at 11 o’clock on a Monday morning).
According to Shape, the story behind Minibar begins at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) 2011, where they met an Apple employee by the name of Daniel Eggert. Shape and Eggert had an empassioned conversation about the need for a really good cocktail app. Fast forward a couple of months and Eggert had left Apple and was working with Shape to build “the best cocktail app that the App Store had ever seen.” Switzerland-based cocktail aficionado Simon Jespersen completed the team to research the content of the app, mixing and blending cocktails – not bad work if you can get it.
If you’re planning a cocktail party, or just want to try something a bit more sophisticated than mixing a spirit with a soft drink and pouring it into a wine glass, Minibar is well worth a look. It’s available now for the launch price of $2.99.
➤ Minibar
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Image credit: Thinkstock
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