If you’re ever bored at a festival or your local pub, but aren’t quite ready to stumble home, you’ll soon be able to block out the entire world with the new Virtual Reality Brewery Tour Experience.
Created by Greenwich-based craft brewer Meantime, it’s essentially a 360 degree digital tour of the company’s brewing facilities.
Meantime says you’ll have to wear a virtual-reality (VR) headset, such as the Samsung Gear VR, for the full experience, though you can always simply watch the video on its website.
“We believe it’s time for beer to change,” says Jethro Holman, the beer sommelier who is the tour guide.
On-screen graphics provide an extra layer of information.
“As we continue to expand we remain passionately committed to pushing the boundaries and innovating our craft-beer offering – whether that’s the physical creation of quality brews or experimenting and evolving our digital offering across the board,” said Rich Myers, Meantime’s marketing director, who describes the (VR) experience as a “game-changer”.
However, while it’s different, we’re not convinced that too many pub-goers would fancy sacrificing prime-drinking-and-socialising time to learn about an admittedly lovely beverage.
VR is also known to cause “simulator sickness”, which probably wouldn’t combine well with a gutful of alcohol.
Still, we’re sure the tech community around Old Street, East London, will embrace it with open arms (possibly while repeatedly slurring the words “I love you”).
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The technology was developed by virtual-reality videography firm Visualise, and will hit both Wilderness and On Blackheath festivals, plus a number of pubs and bars this summer.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
