The LCBO, for me, is a candy store. But for some it can be an intimidating place. Thousands of labels to choose from and not enough staff to go around to answer your questions. And then there’s the restaurant wine list (when we get back to doing that sort of thing). If there’s not a certified sommelier at the establishment, the concept of pairing your vino with your food can be daunting.

But there is some new help out there for those in need.

One of those options is a brand new smartphone app: somm. Available for free download on Android and iOS, somm offers expert guidance to choosing your wine, as well as a new way of purchasing your vino.

“Even individuals who feel like they are everyday wine experts can be left staring blankly at menus or aimlessly meandering through wine shops,” says Jennifer Tkachuk-Tremblay, founder and CEO of somm. “We did the research—most people are just guessing. We call it the ‘pick and pray method,’ and it doesn’t matter if you’re 25 or 55. Some wine lists are so obscure, even trained sommeliers are left wondering. So somm works with you to eliminate that guesswork.”

EXPERT ADVICE

The team at somm, by the way, includes actual sommeliers, including one of Canada’s only Master Sommeliers, Élyse Lambert.

The app is integrated with a growing number of restaurant wine lists and bottle shop inventories (even the LCBO’s core inventory), and also has a general guidance function, allowing the consumer to pick what’s best for them, no matter where they are: out at a restaurant, shopping at a store, or even at home.

By asking the user a series of simple questions, such as “What’s the occasion? What food are you eating? What kind of wine are you in the mood for?”, somm provides suggestions tailored to the user’s responses.

Its Marketplace section, meanwhile, allows you to buy directly from somm’s partners. “It’s everything you can’t get at the LCBO,” explains Tkachuk-Tremblay. “We’ve partnered with ecommerce platforms, bottle shops, wineries, wine agencies and hotels to give our users a whole new world of wine to shop from. By buying through somm’s Marketplace, our users can now easily explore a world that was previously reserved for private and commercial clients.”

WORKING OUT THE KINKS

Things I don’t like about the app? It’s not particularly easy to get back to the main menu once you go down a certain path (turns out you have to tap your profile icon at the top right of the app). Further, the design is rather basic, and when it suggests a particular wine, there is no image of the actual bottle.

But I expect they will continue to refine things as we move along. You can have a look at the app and more info at bethesomm.com.

VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS

Wines agencies are increasingly offering virtual assistance themselves, including Nicholas Pearce Wines, which also works with somm. “We have an online webchat that offers a sort of virtual sommelier experience,” notes Taryn Zaharchuk, sommelier and marketing manager at the Toronto agency. “We also offer sommelier recommendations by email.”

But if you’d prefer to talk to an actual person to guide you out of your wine maze, Noble Estates has just introduced a Video Call option on its website, connecting you with that Markham-based wine and spirits agency’s in-house experts.

And after one call, I’m already a fan.

While they’re not likely to suggest a competing agency’s wines, the folks at Noble Estates, which works with the somm app as well, are happy to suggest a myriad of options from their vast inventory, including labels available at the LCBO.

“With the first call, I forgot this was actually a video chat,” laughs Carolyn Balogh, Key Account Manager and Advanced Sommelier at Noble Estates.

As a sommelier herself, Balogh understands the value of conversing live with a customer. “It eliminates a barrier to be able to actually talk to someone,” she notes. “Wine is a decision-making exercise where people are often fraught with insecurity over buying the right thing. I like to start the conversation by asking what they usually like to drink, since people don’t always have the right words to describe exactly what they want. Then I’ll ask them how much they want to spend. From there, it becomes easy to move them into the direction of something they might enjoy.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: A recent update to the somm app has addressed some of the issues, with a more user-friendly layout and easy access to the home screen, although there are still some kinks to be worked out.