The short version: your collection lives on your device, we don't track you, and we never sell your data.
Who we are
The Bourbon Standard ("we", "us") is an iPhone app for whiskey collectors and enthusiasts. Questions about this policy? Email hello@thebourbonstandard.com.
Your data stays on your device
The app works without an account. Your collection, tasting notes, ratings, photos, distillery visits, and profile are stored locally on your device only. We do not run a cloud database of your collection, and we cannot see it. If you delete the app, that data is removed with it — so use the in-app backup export if you want to keep a copy.
No tracking, no ads
We do not use third-party analytics, advertising networks, or tracking technologies. We do not build a profile of you for marketing, and we do not sell or rent your personal information to anyone.
When information leaves your device
Some optional features connect to the internet. When they do, only the information needed for that feature is sent:
- AI features (label scan, Tasting Coach, Sommelier, palate profile, recommendations, occasion match): the input you provide — a photo of a bottle label, or text about a bottle or your preferences — is sent to our server and forwarded to our AI provider (OpenAI) to generate your result. It is used only to produce that result and, under our provider's API terms, is not used to train their models. We do not attach your name or identity.
- Content feeds & bottle lookups: news, buying-guide, and monthly-pick content is fetched from our server, and bottle names may be sent to a third-party whiskey information service to fetch details. These are standard network requests (which involve your device's IP address) and do not include a personal profile.
- Community price data (optional): if you choose to contribute, anonymised price information may be shared to improve community pricing. This is optional and off unless you opt in.
- Affiliate / partner links: tapping a "buy" or partner link opens a third-party website (a retailer, marketplace, or tour operator). Those sites have their own privacy policies, and we may earn a commission on purchases. We do not share your personal data with them.
Photos & camera
Camera and photo-library access is used only to attach photos to your bottles and distillery visits, and to scan labels. Your photos stay on your device, except a label image you choose to scan, which is sent for identification as described above.
Purchases
Optional subscriptions (TBS Smart) are processed by Apple through the App Store. Apple handles the payment, and we never receive or store your card details. To unlock the right features and keep your subscription in sync across your devices, we use RevenueCat as our subscription-management provider. RevenueCat receives a randomly generated app user ID (not your name or email) together with the purchase and device information Apple provides. It does not receive your payment card details. See RevenueCat's privacy policy for more.
Who helps us run the app
A small number of trusted providers help deliver specific features, and each receives only what that feature needs. We do not sell your data to any of them, and none receives your name or contact details from us.
- Apple, App Store purchases and subscription receipts.
- RevenueCat, subscription management (an anonymous app user ID and purchase data).
- OpenAI, the AI that reads labels and generates your tasting and recommendation results.
- Cloudflare, hosts the server that these optional features connect to.
- A third-party whiskey information service, used to fetch bottle details from a bottle name.
- Affiliate networks and partner sites (retailers, marketplaces, and tour operators), which handle any purchase you choose to make after tapping a link, under their own privacy policies.
How long we keep your data
Because your collection lives on your device, we do not hold it on a server. For the optional online features, the input you send (a label photo or a bit of text) is used only to generate your result and is not stored on our server afterwards. Our AI provider may retain API inputs briefly for abuse monitoring under its API terms, after which they are deleted, and does not use them to train its models. Ordinary network logs, such as IP addresses held by our infrastructure providers, are kept only for a short time for security and reliability.
International data transfers
We are based in the United States, and some of the providers listed above process data on servers in the United States. If you use the app from the United Kingdom, the European Economic Area, or elsewhere, the limited information involved in the optional online features may be transferred to the United States. Where required, these transfers rely on the standard contractual protections offered by those providers.
How we protect your data
Information sent for the optional online features travels over encrypted connections (HTTPS). Because we do not keep a central copy of your collection, there is no server-side database of your notes, ratings, or photos for anyone to breach. No method of transmission is ever completely secure, but we use measures appropriate to the limited data involved.
Your privacy rights
Because most of your information never leaves your device, you can exercise many of your rights directly in the app: edit or delete entries at any time, export a backup, or remove the app to erase everything.
If you are in the United Kingdom or European Economic Area, you also have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to our processing of your personal data, to data portability, and to withdraw any consent you have given. Our legal bases are your consent (for the optional online features), our legitimate interest in running and improving the app, and performance of a contract (for purchases). You have the right to complain to your local data protection authority, such as the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk).
If you are a California resident, you have the right to know what personal information we hold, to request its deletion, and to correct it. We do not sell or share your personal information as those terms are defined under California law, and we will not discriminate against you for exercising your rights.
To make any request or ask a question, email us at hello@thebourbonstandard.com and we will respond within the time your local law requires.
Cookies
Neither the app nor this website uses advertising or tracking cookies. Tapping an affiliate or partner link opens a third-party website that may set its own cookies under its own policy.
Age
The Bourbon Standard is intended for adults of legal drinking age (at least 21 in the United States, and the legal drinking age where you live). It is not directed to children, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. Please enjoy responsibly.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. Material changes will be reflected here with a new "last updated" date.