Overview
BORICHA (BORICHA.BEER) was a beginner-friendly beer guidebook for people who freeze in front of the import beer shelf. With a database of 2,000+ beers, it helped users quickly check essentials like ABV, origin, brewery, and ratings—and make a confident choice in minutes.
The app combined global signals (BeerAdvocate and RateBeer scores) with local community context (reviews and stories). It also surfaced practical decision shortcuts: trending lists, newly imported beers, and convenience-store promotion deals.
In short, it positioned itself as a “Korean Untappd”—less intimidating, more practical, and tuned for what’s actually available in Korea.
To close the loop from “I found it” to “where do I buy it?”, BORICHA included nearby bottle shop and mart discovery, plus shareable collections via short links. The product originally started from a personal moment in 2019—trying a great beer and wishing discovery didn’t feel like homework.
보리차(BORICHA.BEER)는 수입맥주 앞에서 망설이는 “맥린이”를 위한 맥주 가이드북입니다. 전 세계 2,000개+ 맥주 DB를 바탕으로 도수/원산지/제조사/평점 같은 핵심 정보를 빠르게 확인하고, 몇 분 안에 “오늘 마실 맥주”를 고를 수 있게 돕는 데 집중했습니다. BeerAdvocate·RateBeer 같은 해외 평점과 국내 사용자 리뷰/이야기를 함께 보여주고, 요즘 잘 나가는 맥주/신상 수입 맥주/편의점 할인 행사 같은 “결정 바로가기”도 제공했습니다. 한마디로 “한국판 Untappd”를 표방하며, 어렵지 않고 실용적인 방식으로 한국에서 실제로 구할 수 있는 맥주 중심의 탐색/기록 경험을 만들고자 했습니다. 또 내 주변 바틀샵·마트를 찾아 “찾았는데 어디서 사지?”까지 이어지지 않게 했고, 컬렉션/공유로 취향을 기록하고 나눌 수 있게 만들었습니다.
Origin Story
The founder's beer journey started with Wa-Bar (와바), a popular import beer pub chain that introduced many Koreans to beers beyond the domestic big brands. From Heineken and Budweiser to Hoegaarden and Leffe Blonde at the "맥주창고" (beer warehouse) bars of college days, each step expanded the palate.
The pivotal moment came with a bottle of Ballast Point Big Eye IPA — a beer so good it inspired a mission to try every beer in the world. But navigating the craft beer landscape was surprisingly difficult. Standing for an hour at the Emart liquor section or Wine & More, searching BeerAdvocate on a phone for every unfamiliar label, was hardly an efficient workflow.
The name "보리차" came naturally. If a bad beer is dismissed as barley tea, then this app would be the guide to finding something far better. The iconic app logo — a Delmonte juice bottle filled with beer — was a nostalgic nod to childhood memories of drinking homemade barley tea from those exact bottles. A Korean cultural touchstone turned into a brand identity.
Building BORICHA.BEER — sometimes the best code happens poolside.
Features
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2,000+ Beer Database
(맥주 데이터베이스)
Search beers and quickly check ABV, country of origin, brewery, and community ratings—so beginners can make confident choices without “studying” beer first. -
Ratings at a Glance
(평점 한눈에)
View BeerAdvocate and RateBeer ratings together with local community reviews and stories. Use detailed notes (aroma, carbonation, finish) as buying hints. -
Trending & Hot Lists
(요즘 잘 나가는 맥주)
See what’s trending—both globally and locally—so you can pick a safe “first try” when you’re overwhelmed by choices. -
New Imports (Updated Daily)
(이번 주 새로 들어온 수입맥주)
Discover newly imported beers in Korea with frequent updates, so you can catch fresh arrivals instead of drinking the same familiar cans. -
Convenience Store Promotions
(편의점 할인 행사)
Track monthly convenience store promotions (e.g., 4 cans for 10,000 KRW) and use deals as a guided tasting journey. -
BORICHA Lens
(보리차 렌즈)
Take a photo to identify an unfamiliar beer. The “lens” analyzed the image and attempted to match it to a beer in the database—improving over time with real-world usage feedback. -
Community Reviews
(리뷰 및 평점)
Rate and review beers with a simple, intuitive interface. Unlike complex scoring systems that require beer expertise, BORICHA.BEER focused on straightforward feedback — does it taste good to you or not? -
Stories, Comments & Likes
(이야기/댓글/좋아요)
Have lightweight conversations around beers and stores—leave comments, tap like, and get notified when someone reacts to what you wrote. -
Personal Beer Journal
(맥주 다이어리)
Keep track of every beer you've tried with personal notes and ratings. Build your own taste profile over time and get better recommendations based on your history. -
Nearby Bottle Shops & Marts
(내 주변 바틀샵/마트)
Search bottle shops and large/discount marts around you. Turn “found it” into “let’s go buy it” without leaving the app. -
Collections & Deep-Link Sharing
(컬렉션/공유)
Save beers for later, organize them into collections, and share them via short links so friends can jump straight into the same beer or store page. -
Korean Market Focus
(국내 시장 특화)
Focused on beers actually available in Korean retail channels — Emart, Wine & More, local craft beer pubs, and convenience stores. No frustration from discovering amazing beers you can't actually buy.
Tech Stack
BORICHA.BEER was the first product at HANDMADE SOFTWARE built with Flutter, Google's cross-platform mobile framework. Despite the initial learning curve of Dart and Flutter’s widget-first approach, it enabled a solo developer to ship iOS and Android in parallel while iterating quickly on UI and product experiments like the camera-powered lens.
가이드북 경험의 핵심은 “검색/랭킹/신상/행사” 같은 정보를 빠르게 보여주는 것이었기 때문에, 백엔드는 서버리스로 구성했습니다. 핵심 API는 Node.js + Serverless Framework로 AWS Lambda/API Gateway에 배포했고, 데이터는 MySQL, 이미지는 S3에 저장했습니다. 크롤러/배치 작업은 스케줄로 돌려 랭킹·신상·인덱스를 주기적으로 갱신했고, 검색은 Algolia로 응답 속도를 확보했습니다. (실험적으로) 렌즈 기능은 Firebase Cloud Functions + TensorFlow.js(tfjs-node)로 운영했습니다.
Lessons Learned
BORICHA.BEER was the founder's first venture as a solo entrepreneur after leaving the corporate world. The most common feedback from early users was a simple but devastating question: "Why would I use this?" Building something for your own satisfaction doesn't automatically translate to solving someone else's problem.
The project taught invaluable lessons about product-market fit, user acquisition, and the reality that being a startup founder is, at its core, running a small business — closer to a local shop owner than a Silicon Valley visionary. These hard-earned insights shaped every subsequent product at HANDMADE SOFTWARE.
오픈하면 대박날 줄 알았지만, 현실은 달랐습니다. "이거 왜 써요?"라는 지인들의 질문이 가장 큰 교훈이었습니다. 나 좋자고 만든 서비스가 누군가의 고생을 덜어주지도, 보람을 주지도 못했던 거죠. 개발자로서의 역량과 사업가로서의 역량은 전혀 다른 영역이라는 것을 온몸으로 배운 첫 번째 창업 경험이었습니다.