Every winemaker knows the moment. A guest takes a sip, pauses, and says "oh, that's lovely." They are ready to buy. Then the next pour arrives, the conversation moves on, and they head home promising to order online later.
Most of them never do.
Tastings are where hospitality businesses do their best selling, but they are also where sales quietly slip away. The room is busy, staff are pouring, and taking orders by hand is slow. A guest who has to find your website, search for the wine, pick a quantity and check out on their own time is a guest who has already cooled off.
Scan to order table cards are a simple fix. One scan puts the exact bottle, case or mixed dozen a guest just tasted straight into their Shopify cart, so they can check out right there at the table. They aren't signage. They're a sales tool, built to turn interest into orders at the moment it peaks.
What is a scan to order table card?
A scan to order card is a small, branded standing card that sits beside each product on your tasting table. Each one carries a QR code linked to your Shopify store.
The difference from a standard QR code is where it lands. Most QR codes open a homepage or a menu, leaving the guest to hunt for the product. A scan to order code uses a Shopify cart link, so the product is already in the cart when the page opens. No searching, no menus, no product page.
For the guest, it takes three steps:
Scan. They point their phone at the card beside the bottle.
Order. The wine, case or mixed dozen is already in their cart.
Check out. They pay on the spot, or keep tasting and add more.
Each card loads one thing: a single bottle, a case of 6, a case of 12, or a curated mixed case. If you want guests to buy a wine by the bottle and by the case, that is two cards side by side.
Why it's a useful innovation for hospitality businesses
QR codes became familiar in hospitality during the pandemic, mostly as a way to read a menu or order a coffee. Scan to order cards put that same habit to work at the point where buying intent is highest: the tasting itself. This is sales optimisation, not printing. The card is simply the front end of a checkout shortcut that removes every step between tasting and buying.
It captures the sale at peak interest. The best time to sell a wine is the moment someone loves it. Ordering at the table removes the gap between "I'd like that" and "I bought that."
No queues, no missed orders. Guests don't need to flag down staff or wait for someone to write down an order. Your team can keep pouring and talking about the wine, which is what guests came for.
Bigger orders with less effort. Preloading a case of 6 or 12 makes ordering a dozen as easy as ordering one bottle. A mixed case card lets you curate a selection from the day's lineup.
Delivered to their door. Nobody has to carry a heavy case to the car or onto a train. The order goes through your normal Shopify fulfilment and arrives at home.
Proof it worked. With optional tracking, you can see exactly what each tasting or event sold. That makes it much easier to judge which events are worth repeating.
Built-in event offers. A tasting-day discount can be built into the link, rewarding guests for buying on the day without staff applying codes by hand.
Who scan to order cards are for
Any business where people try before they buy, and sell through Shopify, can use them.
Wineries and cellar doors: a card beside each bottle so guests can order the one they just loved.
Trade and sales tastings: venue buyers and sommeliers can place an order mid-tasting instead of following up by email a week later.
Restaurants and long lunches: guests enjoying a producer's wine with their meal can order a case to take home, without leaving the table.
Breweries and taprooms: let drinkers order a carton or mixed pack of the beer in their glass.
Gin distilleries: turn a tasting flight into bottle sales on the spot.
Coffee roasters: a cupping session becomes an order for the beans people just tasted, by the bag or in bulk.
Farmers market stalls: sell beyond what you can physically carry to the market, with delivery handled online.
Why a table card works better than a sign
A big A4 poster with a QR code tends to be ignored. It reads as advertising, and guests have no idea what it will do when they scan it.
A small, beautifully designed card beside each bottle works differently. It feels like part of the tasting, much like a place card at a wedding. It tells the guest exactly what they will get, sits quietly on the table, and takes the order when they are ready.
Design matters here. Each card is made in your brand, using your colours, type and tone, so it adds to the experience rather than cluttering it. For producers whose labels and presentation are part of the product, that matters as much as the technology.
But the printed card is only the visible part. What you're really investing in is the setup behind it: a cart link built and tested for every product and quantity, so each scan lands a guest one tap from checkout.
Getting set up
Most of the work in each package is the sales setup, not the print. It's all done for you, so there's nothing technical to learn. Each package includes:
Shopify cart links set up and tested for each product, quantity or mixed case
QR codes checked on both iPhone and Android
A standing table card designed in your brand
Print-ready files, or print production managed for you (quoted separately)
Optional extras: a tasting-day discount built into the link, or tracking for each event
A package is $110 and covers up to five cards. Need more? Increase the quantity at checkout: two packages cover up to 10 cards, three cover up to 15, and so on. Not sure how many you need? Order one package, list everything in your brief, and I'll let you know before I start if it comes to more than five.
I'm Lucy Randall, a Sydney-based digital producer who has spent 15 years building websites, including Shopify stores and trade brochures for wine producers. Scan to order cards bring those two worlds together: good design on the table, and a smooth checkout behind it.
Your customers decide at the tasting. Let them order there too. Order your Scan-to-order tasting table display before your next cellar door weekend, trade tasting or event.
Frequently asked questions
How does QR code ordering work at a wine tasting? Each wine has its own branded card with a QR code. When a guest scans it, your Shopify store opens with that wine (or case) already in their cart, so they can check out in a few taps.
Do I need a Shopify store? Yes. The cards use Shopify cart links, which add products straight to the cart. If you're on another platform, get in touch to talk through options.
Can one QR code add a full case or mixed dozen? Yes. A single card can load a case of 6, a case of 12, or a curated mixed case in one scan.
Will the QR codes work on all phones? Every code is tested on both iPhone and Android before the files are delivered.
Can I see how much each tasting sold? With optional tracking, you can see exactly what was ordered from each event.
Do you print the cards? You'll receive print-ready files to use with your own printer, or I can manage print production for you, quoted once I know how many copies you need.