Privacy Policy
Effective date: October 6, 2026 Contact: hello@shadowandpalm.com
Shadow & Palm (shadowandpalm.com) is a cocktail recipe library. This page says what we collect, why, who touches it, and how to get rid of it. Short version: we collect what the product needs to work, we don't sell it, and we run no ad trackers.
What we collect, and why
If you only browse. We count page views so we know which recipes get read. Each view stores the page path, the referring site (without query strings), your country and device type (mobile, tablet, desktop), and any campaign tags (utm_ labels) on the link you followed. We do not store your IP address or browser string. Instead we store a one-way hash of them, mixed with a secret value and the current date, so the same visitor gets a different hash each day. We use it only to count daily visitors, not to identify you. Requests from known bots are ignored. If you are signed in, the view is linked to your account.
If you create an account. Accounts currently require an invite code.
- Account details: your email address and the display name you choose. Your account role and membership tier are stored with them.
- Credentials: your password is stored by Amazon Cognito, our sign-in provider. Password inputs pass through our server to Cognito; we do not store them.
- Your bar: the bottles you add, with whatever detail you give — brand, expression, distillery, proof, size, age, batch, barrel number, price, quantity, your own tags — plus tasting notes and ratings, and a wishlist.
- Bottle photos: up to three photos per bottle, if you upload them.
- Your recipes and favorites: recipes you save or submit, and recipes you favorite.
- Taste and feedback data: when you use Tonight suggestions, we record that a request was made, the preferences we read from your request (not the text itself), which recommendations were shown or picked, and your reactions (loved, too sweet, too strong, and so on) plus any note you add. These records are used to improve suggestions.
If you use AI features. The AI drink Lab, shelf and recipe photo scans, and Concierge/Tonight suggestions send your request to an AI model hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS Bedrock): the text you typed, or the photo you submitted. For the Lab, the request also includes the ingredients you select. Photos submitted for a shelf or recipe scan are read and turned into candidates; they are not saved unless you separately upload them as a bottle photo. We also keep AI usage records: which feature, which model, success or failure, token counts and estimated cost. The record does not contain your prompt, your photo, or the response. Every drink the Lab creates is saved automatically as a private recipe in your account; you can delete it.
Recipes you share. If you make a recipe visible to the community, anyone can see it, including people who aren't signed in. It is credited to your display name, or to “A Shadow & Palm member” if you have not chosen one.
If you request access. The "request access" form stores the email, optional name and optional note you enter, so we can follow up by hand. These leads are deleted 90 days after the request-access form is retired; until then kept only to respond to your request.
Email. We send transactional email only: verification codes, password resets and similar account messages. We send no marketing email, so there is no list to unsubscribe from; to stop all email, delete your account. Account messages are sent by Amazon Cognito, our sign-in provider, using AWS email delivery. We email only the address you registered with, and only because of something you did (signing up, resetting a password) or to tell you about your account or a change to our Terms or this policy.
What we don't do
- No third-party analytics, advertising trackers or tracking pixels.
- We do not sell your data and we do not share it for advertising.
- We do not use your bar, photos or prompts to train AI models. Under Amazon Bedrock's published terms, AWS does not share them with the model's maker, and neither AWS nor the model maker uses them to train models.
- We don't track you across other sites, so we handle visits the same whether or not your browser sends Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control.
Who processes data for us
We use Amazon Web Services for hosting, the database, photo storage (Amazon S3, encrypted at rest, not publicly accessible), AI processing (Bedrock), email delivery, and sign-in (Cognito). They process data on our behalf. Email you send to hello@shadowandpalm.com, and our replies, are handled by Google Workspace, our mailbox provider. We do not give your data to anyone else except where the law requires it. Data is stored in AWS's US East (N. Virginia) region, and AI requests may be processed in other AWS regions in the United States. If you are outside the United States, your data is transferred there.
How long we keep things
| Data | Kept |
|---|---|
| Account, bar, photos, recipes, favorites, feedback | Until you delete your account (or you delete the individual item) |
| Unfinished sign-ups (email held by Cognito, and the invite-code redemption) | Until you finish signing up, or until you ask us to delete them at hello@shadowandpalm.com. |
| Page views | 365 days; older rows are deleted by daily cleanup. |
| Raw Tonight journey events | 180 days; older rows are deleted by daily cleanup. |
| Photos | Until you delete the photo, the bottle, or your account. They never expire on a timer. |
| Server logs (errors and diagnostics, which may include technical request details) | 30 days |
| AI usage records (counts, model, cost — never content) | Kept without your identity after account deletion, to enforce monthly spend limits. |
| "Request access" leads | Deleted 90 days after the request-access form is retired; until then kept only to respond to your request. |
| Backups | Database backups are retained for up to 7 days in production, so deleted data can persist in backups for that long. |
Deleting your account
You can delete your account from the account page. Deletion removes, in this order: your uploaded photos from storage, your sign-in record at Cognito, and then your database record along with your bar, tastings, wishlist, favorites, feedback and journey data, the recipes you created, and invites you generated. Records of invite codes you redeemed are deleted with your account. Usage records for AI features (counts, model and cost, never your content) are kept without your identity after you delete your account, so we can enforce monthly spend limits. Page views that were linked to your account remain, without your account link, until their 365 days are up.
A recipe we have adopted into the main library is no longer tied to your account and stays after you delete it, with its original credit.
If deletion fails partway, try again (your photos may already be gone). If you can no longer sign in, email hello@shadowandpalm.com and we will finish it.
Your choices and rights
You can view and edit your name, bar and recipes in the product, and delete them individually or all at once with account deletion. For access, correction, export or deletion requests that you can't do yourself, email hello@shadowandpalm.com; we will answer within 30 days. Depending on where you live (for example the EU, UK or California) you may have additional rights, including to object to processing or to complain to a regulator.
Age
Shadow & Palm is about alcohol. It is for people of legal drinking age where they live. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under that age. If you believe someone underage has an account, tell us and we will remove it.
Cookies and browser storage
We set cookies only to keep you signed in (an access cookie and a refresh cookie). We use no advertising or analytics cookies. We also use your browser's session storage to remember bar filters and an unfinished photo scan in the open tab; it clears when you close the tab.
Security
Data is encrypted in transit and photo storage is encrypted at rest and closed to the public. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot promise otherwise.
Changes
If we change this policy in a way that matters, we will update the date above and, for account holders, tell you by email. Past versions are available on request.