Scotch whisky with a digital provenance … a pioneering new blend of technology and old school craftsmanship. And it’s being done by Scottish firm The Whisky Barrel as they look to revolutionize the whisky authentication process through blockchain technology.
Brothers Alastair and Chris Brown have made this new process public, and as they explain it, The Whiskey Barrel’s digital provenance certificates (otherwise known as NFTs) securely transmit product information on a public ledger, which in turn fights against counterfeit whisky.
“Using blockchain technology offers our customers a continuously updated, secure record of ownership for each individual bottle, adding a layer of provenance that’s unrivaled in the Scotch whisky industry,” Alastair said in a prepared statement.
The new technology was developed with partners CD Corp. of Aberdeen, and both companies tout the fact that this is the world’s first Scotch whisky collection to use digital certification to verify provenance.
Each digital provenance certificate is minted on the Solana blockchain platform, which they chose for what’s described as being carbon neutral and having low-energy consumption.
“Alastair and Chris trusted us to execute our vision of immutable digital provenance certificates correlating with each bottle in a collection,” said Ryan Aitken, managing director of CD Corp. “They’re 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.”
This month saw the first bottling with this new technology, a 30-year-old whisky distilled at the Glen Moray distillery in Elgin.
Every one of the 152 numbered bottles feature a unique QR code that links to its corresponding digital provenance certificate, which provides digital proof of ownership and the provenance of each bottle.
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Owners of The Whisky Barrel’s 30-year-old Glen Moray, with a digital certificate of authenticity, receive a VIP membership to The Whisky Barrel Scotch Club, hosted by Solsea. The first 30 NFTs feature a unique graphic representation of the bottle, enhancing their collectability.
“Blockchain technology is not just for the big companies, it’s for small companies like ours. It’s the future,” Alastair said. “Applying a certified digital history to a physical bottle of premium Scotch whisky is the ultimate provenance for our barley-to-bottle approach.”
So how does a digital provenance certificate work? Well, each certificate is unique to each individually-numbered bottle.
The bottle’s information, the distillery, cask type and bottle number, is accessed with a QR code on the label which can be verified on virtual platforms, such as online auctions.
This acts as a digital proof of ownership, transferred to the buyer upon purchase, and its provenance can be verified using a smartphone in seconds.
Certificate owners can trade digitally, or trade the bottle and transfer the digital ownership to a new owner.
The first release of The Whisky Barrel’s 15th Anniversary Portfolio Digital Provenance Certificate series was distilled at the Glen Moray Distillery in 1991, and clocks in at 54.9% ABV. From a single cask, 1st fill Palo Cortado Hogshead, it was bottled at cask strength.
The distiller’s notes show that on the nose, it has aromas of fruit salad, burnt orange peel, toffee, green apples and fudge. The taste offers notes of peach and pink grapefruit compote, butter fudge, vanilla and spices. The finish is long, with an oily mouthfeel, figs, mint and ripe grapes.
For more information on how to buy whisky with a digital provenance certificate or to join The Whisky Barrel Scotch Club, check out www.thewhiskybarrel.com.
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