Ailsa Bay unveils blockchain whisky bottle

William Grant & Sons has launched a new bottle for its Ailsa Bay Scotch brand that features blockchain technology, allowing shoppers to digitally track the whisky’s production journey.

Ailsa Bay uses blockchain technology to trace the full distilling and manufacturing process

To create the new travel retail-exclusive whisky, Ailsa Bay partnered with specialist blockchain technology company Arc-Net.

Blockchain is a list of registers, or blocks, that contain information about the previous block and transaction data between the two blocks. It acts as an open ledger to track authenticity.

The brand’s use of blockchain captures the full distilling and manufacturing process, allowing customers to track their whisky from source to store. Blockchain data has been acquired from William Grant & Sons data sources, including cask types, filling dates and bottling dates.

Consumers can trace the origins of their whisky via a web experience, which is individually tailored to each bottle. By scanning a QR code, users are presented with a visual history of their whisky.

Dominic Parfitt, head of E-commerce at William Grant & Sons, said: “Innovation is a key part of our business. We’re constantly looking to evolve our offering and learn new things in order to push the boundaries within the drinks industry.

“We’re doing something now that we hope will set the bar for the future experience of spirits, and we look forward to seeing how other brands follow suit as innovation within the industry continues to develop in the next few years.”

Ailsa Bay’s blockchain whisky carries an RRP of £50 (US$66) per 700ml bottling and is available now in global travel retail outlets.

In 2017, Highland distillery Ardnamurchan partnered with Arc-Net to pilot blockchain technology on its 2017AD bottling.