Dallas Wine Chick

WinePoynt mobile app puts the power of wine selection in the palm of your hand

Dallas Wine Chick

WinePoynt mobile app puts the power of wine selection in the palm of your hand

The WinePoynt app is designed to help people choose wines that suit their tastes, whether in restaurants or retail shops.Photo courtesy of WinePoynt
WinePoynt helps takes the guesswork out of choosing a wine.Photo courtesy of WinePoynt

The story starts like a punch line to a joke. Two Texas engineers walk into a local Dallas wine bar and order four different wine flights that aren’t to their personal tastes. Because these guys owned a data analysis and consulting company, they knew that having the right data would help them make a decision about a wine that would satisfy both of them.

With the data problem solved, they needed to convince their sommelier friend, Chris Taylor, to apply his personal expertise to put together WinePoynt, a location- and assortment-oriented mobile app designed to help wine drinkers find wines they enjoy.

The company launched in 2009; the app for Android and iPhone were launched in 2011. The app comes in free and premium versions available on iTunes, Google Play and Amazon for $.99 a month or $4.99 a year.

When I navigated the Recommend tab, there were some interesting “off the beaten path” user reviews for Alma Andina 2011, Chateau Pibran 2004 and Meeker Cabernet Franc 2004.

“Our initial plan was very ambitious, and we’ve learned a ton in the process,” says Taylor, who is now the president of WinePoynt. “We learned to prioritize locations and features. But, at the end of the day, the problem remains the same for people who buy wine.

“Just because I like a certain wine doesn’t mean that you will like it as well. And wine is often overwhelming because of the number of choices. If I know your preferences, this application takes out the complexity of wine and gives you something that works specifically for you.”

He says they initially planned to focus on wine bars and restaurants, but retailers — especially the grocery stores — were early adopters. I downloaded the app, logged in, entered a few key questions and then clicked on “Drink. Rate. Repeat.” The grocery store ratings were very robust, and I even found a few sales. But I couldn’t find some key wine bars around town like Veritas.

In terms of restaurants, the chains were easier to navigate. However, the app is always in improvement mode and depends on the robustness of its community. You can request new locations and add wines that aren’t in the database by putting in the name or scanning the barcode.

When I navigated the Recommend tab, there were some interesting “off the beaten path” user reviews for Alma Andina 2011, Chateau Pibran 2004, Antonio Sasa 2006, Buehler Vineyards 2009 and Meeker Cabernet Franc 2004 in addition to the grocery store labels like Cupcake, Kendall-Jackson and Ravenswood. I quickly found some WinePoynt users that I’d follow more closely than others.

Near my house, there appeared to be a mix of chain restaurants along with the really great pizza places like Fireside Pies and Coal Vines, which both have good lists.

WinePoynt helps you navigate your wine preferences, provides recommendations, offers food pairing suggestions, shares wine activities and gives consumers a wide option of wines they might enjoy. There are currently 30,000 wines in the database, and the company’s goal is to add 15 new locations every two weeks. You can even create your own list — like “champagnes to drink before you die.” Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin are the focus markets for now.

According to Taylor, the biggest challenge the company is facing is competing for people’s time and exposure. Once the usual suspect wine bars are added, I see this becoming a robust wine app for everything from finding a good Pinot Noir to pair with salmon to discovering a new varietal to finding out about a 40 percent sale at Tom Thumb for wines over $20.

unspecified

Featured Event

Jul 28, 2025 | 10:00 am

The Smurf Experience

VIEW ALL EVENTS >

Chef Crime

Dallas chef Kent Rathbun issues reward for his trusty stolen smoker

Chef Kent Rathbun's missing smoker Kent Rathbun

A revered smoker trailer belonging to Dallas chef Kent Rathbun was stolen, and Rathbun is determined to get it back.

Rathbun is the Beard Award-nominated chef and restaurateur whose resume includes The Mansion on Turtle Creek, Abacus, Jasper's, and his current company Kent Rathbun Catering.

The stolen smoker was kept inside a gated parking lot at Rathbun's catering kitchen, located near Irving Boulevard and Mockingbird Lane, in an industrial area west of I-35.

Rathbun says it was stolen somewhere between July 17 and July 21. The police have been notified and there's an effort underway to locate security footage.

"I was out of town — we didn't have a lot of catering at the time," Rathbun says. "One of our chefs found the gate open — it looked like it had been damaged. But it wasn't until I went to pick up the trailer on Monday July 21 that we realized it was gone."

The smoker has a colorful backstory: Rathbun got it as a gift from Baxter Brinkmann, CEO and president of The Brinkmann Corporation, manufacturer of outdoor living products including gas and charcoal grills, smokers, and solar/low-voltage landscape lighting.

"He gave me this rig as a bithday present on the day of my first Taste of NFL at Abacus," Rathbun says. "The first year that we did the Taste of NFL [the annual tailgate party to support the North Texas Food Bank], I asked Brinker if he would supply smokers and grills for all the celebrity chefs coming in from around the country. I just needed a little grill but he offered the use of this 18-foot-long outfitted smoker."

"He came to the party, and we were standing by it, appreciating how well it worked when somebody walked up and said 'happy birthday, chef'," Rathbun says. "Baxter said, 'It's your birthday? I want you to have the smoker. And as long as you keep my name on it, I will repair it, fix it, my team will take care of it.' He was like the team captain."

That was in 2001 and over the years, the rig has received more than its share of custom upgrades, including metal laser-cut ID tags with "Chef Kent Rathbun" affixed to every door.

"It is so personalized that I can walk up to that trailer and will be able to recognize it, no matter what modifications may be made," Rathbun says.

That's also why he feels certain the theft is not an inside job, as some have suggested. "Anyone on our team knows what a distinctive smoker it is," he says.

While not a secret, the location of his catering company is not open to the public and not generally well known. Someone driving by the location could have spotted the trailer in the parking lot, but it's on an industrial side street that does not draw a lot of random motorists. The trailer would have also required a truck to pull it.

"The thing is 18 feet long, it's giant," he says. "It's not a toy, it's a tool, and we need it to stay in business."

Rathbun posted a plea on social media offering a $1,000 reward — "and probably a good amount of barbecue," he says — to anyone who can provide information as to its whereabouts and was met with a wave of support, including offers to chip in $500 and even $1000 to the reward pool which is now at $8,500. (You can call Rathbun at 214-704-0907 with tips.)

"Whether I get the trailer back or not, I've been overwhelmed by how many people have stepped up and offered their support," he says.

barbecue chefs