We are utilising a new platform that makes use of blockchain technology (most usually associated with crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin) to provide a secure and immutable model of the full supply chain that describes the manufacture of our whisky.

We track each and every finished bottle of whisky and see each bottle as a unique asset and, through the use of QR barcodes and other smartphone scannable technology, deliver individual data to our customers that interacts with our bottles. This allows the story of your bottle of whisky to be told directly to you, because we can prove every step along the manufacturing process (thanks to the blockchain!), allowing you to discover the provenance of your bottle of whisky right back to its origin, building trust in our process and strengthening your knowledge of your whisky.

How do we do this?

Our blockchain providers break down the whole production process into events. Each event contains all the data that we need to describe a given step. That data is sent up to our platform and stored securely on the blockchain. One of the properties in the “Distributed Ledger Technology” that underpins the blockchain (and allows cryptocurrencies to work) is that once data has been accepted and recorded on the blockchain it is entirely immutable and creates an unchanging record. Zerf leverages this property as a “trust layer” creating an unbreakable link with the physical product and the digital data that describes its creation.

We are delighted to have adopted this technology for use in a relatively traditional industry. It not only allows us to prove authenticity and provenance, but also to operate a fully transparent, and all-encompassing manufacture and stock system from field to bottle.