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BoozeButler Documentation

Complete guide to using BoozeButler for your bar operations

Getting Started

Creating an Account

To use BoozeButler, you'll need to create an account:

  1. Click Get started or Register from the landing page
  2. Enter your email address and create a password (minimum 8 characters)
  3. Check your email for a welcome message
  4. Log in to access the app
Beta Access: If you're joining during the beta period, you may need to request access first. Once approved, you'll receive login credentials via email.

First Time Setup

When you first log in, you'll see a welcome modal with three simple steps:

  1. Add your inventory - Scan or manually add your bottles and bar items
  2. Add your guests - Save preferences, allergies, and favorite spirits
  3. Build tonight's round - Let BoozeButler create a perfect 3-drink flight

Installing the App (PWA)

BoozeButler is a Progressive Web App (PWA), which means you can install it on your device:

  • Desktop (Chrome/Edge): Look for the install icon in the address bar, or click the "Install app" button in the header
  • iOS Safari: Tap Share → "Add to Home Screen"
  • Android Chrome: Tap menu → "Install app" or "Add to Home Screen"

Once installed, the app works offline and provides a native app-like experience.

Managing Inventory

Adding Items Manually

To add bottles and bar items manually:

  1. Go to the Inventory tab
  2. Fill in the form with:
    • Name: The spirit or item name (e.g., "Bourbon")
    • Type: Select from spirit, liqueur, syrup, juice, bitters, mixer, garnish, etc.
    • Brand: Optional brand name (e.g., "Woodford Reserve")
    • Tags: Comma-separated tags (e.g., "whiskey, bourbon, aged")
  3. Click Add/Update

Scanning Bottles

On supported devices, you can scan your bar shelves:

  1. Click Scan bottles (camera) in the Inventory tab
  2. Take 2-3 photos per shelf in good lighting
  3. Review the detected bottles
  4. Select the items you want to add and click Add Selected

Note: Photo scanning is currently available on localhost/development. Production scanning coming soon.

Marking Items Out of Stock

To mark an item as out of stock, add the tag out or out-of-stock to the item. This helps BoozeButler:

  • Exclude unavailable items from recommendations
  • Include them in shopping list suggestions

Cannabis Inventory (Optional)

If you've enabled cannabis pairings in Settings, you can add cannabis edibles to a separate inventory:

  1. Enable Cannabis Pairings in Settings
  2. The Cannabis & Edibles tab will appear in Inventory
  3. Add items with details like THC/CBD content, vibe tags, and category

Managing Guests

Guest profiles help BoozeButler tailor recommendations to individual preferences.

Adding a Guest

  1. Go to the Guests tab
  2. Fill in the guest form:
    • Name: Guest's name
    • Likes: Flavors, spirits, or styles they enjoy (e.g., "bourbon, fruity, low-sweet")
    • Dislikes: Items to avoid (e.g., "gin, dairy")
    • Sweetness preference: Dry, Balanced, or Sweet
    • Strength preference: Low ABV, Balanced, or Bold/Spirit-forward
    • Allergies: Press Enter after each allergy (e.g., "dairy", "tree nuts")
    • Preferred spirits: Spirits they love
    • Spirits to avoid: Spirits to exclude
  3. Click Save Guest

Getting Suggestions for Guests

To get quick cocktail ideas for a guest:

  1. Select one or more guests from the Guest List
  2. Click Get 3 Ideas in the "Suggest for Selected Guests" section
  3. BoozeButler will generate personalized recommendations

Guest Feedback

When you make a drink for a guest, you can record feedback:

  • Mark whether they liked it
  • Add notes about their reaction
  • This feedback improves future recommendations for that guest

Make Tonight

The Make Tonight tab is where you build cocktail recommendations from your on‑hand inventory. It has two modes that share the same context (mood, occasion, presets, edible pairing, etc.):

  • Tonight's Round: Generates a 3‑drink flight for the selected guests and vibe
  • Single Serve: Generates a single cocktail idea for the moment

Building Tonight's Round

  1. Select guests from "Guests to delight" (at least one is recommended; required if you want guest‑specific tailoring)
  2. Choose a style preset (optional) — Quick‑start templates that configure mood and flavor
  3. Set the vibe (you can mix and match or leave defaults):
    • Mood (e.g., relaxed, energetic, sophisticated)
    • Flavor profile (e.g., citrus, spiced, tropical)
    • Occasion (after‑dinner, brunch, party, etc.)
  4. Edible pairing (optional) — If Cannabis Pairings is enabled in Settings, you can select an edible and toggle “NA only” to bias toward low/no‑ABV ideas for that slot
  5. Click Build tonight's round

If no guests are selected or your inventory is empty, the button is disabled and shows a helper message. Local “House Staples” are used as a fallback if AI is unavailable.

Single Serve Mode

For a one‑off drink idea using what you have on hand:

  1. Switch to the Single Serve tab
  2. Configure preferences (mood, flavor, creativity, occasion, optional edible pairing “NA only”)
  3. Select base spirits (optional) — Multi‑select from your inventory to steer ideas
  4. Highlight a bottle (optional) — Feature a specific bottle you want to use
  5. Click Get a drink idea

Tip: Use Base Spirits to steer broadly, or Highlight Bottle to direct the idea to one specific bottle. When both are set, Highlight takes priority.

Troubleshooting

  • No local matches: Your library may be empty. Load a Seasonal Pack or Save AI ideas; then try Refresh Local again.
  • Empty inventory: Add at least one bottle in Inventory to enable “Get a drink idea”.
  • Slow results: You’ll see a spinner on the button; the page remains usable while suggestions load.

Local vs. AI Recommendations

  • Refresh Local: Shows on‑hand matches from your inventory (works offline)
  • Ask AI for ideas: AI‑powered suggestions that consider inventory, selected guests, vibe, and edible context (requires internet)
Offline Support: If AI is unavailable, BoozeButler automatically serves the “House Staples” trio so you never lose momentum.

Saving and Favoriting

From any recipe card, you can:

  • Mark as favorite - Save to your favorites list
  • Make recipe - Record who it was for and feedback
  • Save to library - Add to your recipe collection

Planner

The Planner tab helps you manage shopping lists and discover new recipes.

Shopping List

Build and manage your shopping list:

  • Build from gaps: Automatically creates a list from out-of-stock items and missing ingredients from your top recipes
  • Add manually: Type items in the form and press Enter
  • Copy: Copies the list to your clipboard
  • Share: Shares the list via your device's share sheet
  • Clear: Removes all items from the list

Items are automatically categorized (Base Spirit, Liqueur & Amaro, Syrups & Sweeteners, Fresh & Produce, etc.)

Seasonal Packs

Load themed recipe packs:

  • Load Fall Pack: Adds fall-themed cocktail recipes to your library
  • Load Summer Pack: Adds summer-themed cocktail recipes to your library

Each pack shows a preview before loading. Recipes are added to your library and work offline.

Pair with Dinner

Get cocktail pairing suggestions for food:

  1. Enter a food description (e.g., "steak", "tacos", "spicy", "brunch")
  2. Click Suggest
  3. BoozeButler will recommend 3 cocktails that pair well

Note: Pairing suggestions require an internet connection.

Settings

User Account

  • Email: Your account email address
  • Logout: Sign out and return to the login page

Change Password

  1. Enter your current password
  2. Enter your new password (minimum 8 characters)
  3. Confirm your new password
  4. Click Change Password

Cannabis Pairings

Enable or disable cannabis pairing features:

  • When enabled, you can add cannabis inventory and get edible pairing suggestions
  • When disabled, cannabis-related tabs and options are hidden

Theme & Lighting

Customize the app appearance:

  • Theme: Switch between BoozeButler theme (copper) and Halytic theme (blue)
  • Lights: Toggle between light and dark mode

Your preferences are saved and persist across sessions.

OpenAI API Key (Advanced)

If you have your own OpenAI API key, you can configure it in Settings. Otherwise, BoozeButler uses the default proxy.

Tips & Tricks

Data Sync

Your inventory, guests, and settings automatically sync across all your devices. Add items on your phone, use them on your tablet!

Offline Usage

BoozeButler works offline for:

  • Viewing your inventory and guests
  • Local recipe matches
  • House Staples fallback recipes
  • Seasonal packs

AI features require an internet connection.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Use keyboard shortcuts for faster navigation (if supported by your browser).

Refreshing the App

If you notice stale data or outdated assets, click the refresh button (↻) in the header to force an update.

Getting Help

If you encounter issues:

  • Check that you're logged in
  • Try refreshing the app
  • Clear your browser cache if needed
  • Contact support if problems persist