TIME Coolest Inventions 2004: Temperature-Sensitive Wine Label

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VISIBLE INK
Temperature-Sensitive Wine Label

Inventor: William Grant & Sons
Importers: The Mar de Frades winery
Availability: Now, about $16 a bottle
To Learn More: grantusa.com
The label on the Mar de Frades 2003 Albariño, a crisp white wine produced on the northwest coast of Spain (it's great paired with seafood), uses thermosensitive ink to let you know when the contents of the bottle are suitably chilled. When the wine registers 52ºF (its optimal serving temperature) or colder, a little blue ship appears on top of the aqua waves.

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BY ANITA HAMILTON, MARYANNE MURRAY BUECHNER, LEV GROSSMAN, SIMON CRITTLE AND SORA SONG / WITH REPORTING BY HANNA KITE AND YUKI ODA/TOKYO