A Fife-based Scotch whisky retailer and bottling company has released one of the world’s first single-cask Scotch whiskies with a digital provenance certificate.
The Whisky Barrel decided to use Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) to digitally certify its whisky, in recognition of the growth of virtual collections.
Alistair Brown and his brother Chris claim to be leading the whisky authentication process using blockchain technology.
The Whisky Barrel’s NFTs securely transmit essential product information on a public ledger, helping collectors and connoisseurs alleviate the risk of investing in counterfeit whisky.
Developed in conjunction with Aberdeen-based tech start-up CD Corp, this is one of the world’s first Scotch whisky collections to use digital certification to verify its provenance.
Each NFT is minted on the Solana blockchain platform, which was chosen for its carbon-neutral and low-energy consumption qualities.
Owners of the first bottles are being given VIP membership to The Whisky Barrel Scotch Club, hosted by Solsea.
The first 30 NFTs also feature a unique graphic representation of the bottle, enhancing their collectability.
The Glen Moray is the first release from The Whisky Barrel’s 15th anniversary portfolio series, which will culminate in the bottling of a 50-year-old cask whisky at the end of the year.
Each of the 152 individually-numbered bottles feature a unique QR code that links to its corresponding digital certificate. This token provides digital proof of ownership, as well as the provenance of each bottle.
Alastair Brown said: “Blockchain technology is not just for the big companies, it's for small companies like ours.
"Using blockchain technology offers our customers a continuously updated, secure record of ownership for each individual bottle, adding a layer of provenance that’s unrivalled in the Scotch whisky industry."
Ryan Aitken, managing director at CD Corp, added: “Alastair and Chris trusted us to execute our vision of immutable digital provenance certificates correlating with each bottle in a collection.
“They are at the forefront of this new process of authentication for rare Scotch whisky, and I believe their openness to a more inclusive integration of blockchain technology will reap rewards for their business long term.”
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