BLOCKBAR.COM BRINGS JAPANESE WHISKY TO THE NFT MARKETPLACE, AUCTIONING THE WORLD’S RAREST WHISKY – KARUIZAWA’S ‘THE LAST MASTERPIECE 1970’ – AS THE BRAND’S FIRST EVER NFT
BlockBar, the world’s first DTC NFT marketplace for luxury wines and spirits, is offering unprecedented access to the world’s rarest whisky, Karuizawa, giving collectors the chance to purchase a bottle from its last 50-Year-Old cask. ‘The Last Masterpiece 1970’ signifies the end of one the most fabled stories in whisky history and marks the Japanese distiller’s final farewell.
“We are delighted to launch our first ever Japanese whisky on BlockBar.com with the world’s rarest whisky offering” comments Dov Falic, BlockBar co-founder and CEO. “Quite literally we have one of the last drops of Karuizawa, never to be recreated again, so this is a global auction not to be missed!”
The drop
For the first time BlockBar is bringing Japanese whisky to its marketplace, offering collectors the chance to own a piece of history with Karuizawa’s ‘The Last Masterpiece 1970’. Just 211 bottles in total remain from Karuizawa’s 1970 cask and one is being made available exclusively via BlockBar.com as the brand’s
first ever NFT. This bottle is a special edition for BlockBar decorated with a bespoke label artwork designed by Souun Takeda, one of Japan’s most esteemed calligraphers, and will never be made again.
The distillery
Since its closure in 2011, the remaining precious liquid from the Karuizawa distillery has become amongst the most sought after by whisky collectors worldwide. The man behind this release is none other than seasoned industry expert Eric Huang who made Karuizawa what it is today. Now, he is offering collectors the final 50-Year-Old bottling of this Scottish malt style Japanese whisky, bringing the perfect ending to a legacy that will continue to live on in whisky legend.
The history of Karuizawa 50 YO
‘The Last Masterpiece 1970’ signifies ‘The End’ to Karuizawa‘s story.
It was first distilled in 1970 in the shadow of the active volcano, Mount Asama, Japan, matured in a sherry cask before being unearthed in 2020 and bottled into an extremely limited run. This exceptional whisky pays homage to the classic Scottish malt style whilst paying respect to the beauty and uniqueness of Japanese culture.
Karuizawa‘s whiskies are perhaps the closest to Scottish malt style in Japan, whilst still retaining its own individual characteristics. The water has been filtered through lava and with both the distillery and warehouse experiencing cool summers and snowy winters, the result is a maturation profile that is wholly unique to the liquid.
Exclusive to BlockBar bottle label artwork by Souun Takeda
This extraordinary liquid is celebrated through beautiful bottle artwork designed exclusively for BlockBar by Souun Takeda, one of Japan’s most esteemed calligraphers. Written in traditional Kanji style, this
stunning lettering on the bottle combines modern innovation with traditional methods to perfectly express the beauty of Japanese language and spirit, a perfect ode to this remarkable whisky and its incredible story.
“Every bottle of Karuizawa whisky is really precious because the Karuizawa Distillery is closed. Once a bottle has been purchased, the brand gets a step closer to its final conclusion and therefore we must be very careful about who we partner with.” comments Eric Huang, CEO of Hua Yang International Exhibition Ltd., Taiwan. “The Karuizawa brand is incredibly unique and we see huge potential for dropping an NFT which includes guaranteeing authenticity for the bottle owner. The major consideration for our partnership with BlockBar is their expertise in luxury spirits and its strict control of ensuring bottle authenticity and quality by partnering directly with a brand owner. We are looking forward to recreating the legend of Karuizawa with BlockBar’s expertise.
How to purchase
The Karuizawa ‘The Last Masterpiece 1970’ will be auctioned off with a starting bid of USD $75,000. Bids can be placed via BlockBar.com and payment may be submitted via ETH, credit card or wire transfer. The auction opens at 12AM EST on Tuesday 12th July and will conclude at 5PM EST on Monday 18th July 2022. To make a bid using ETH you must have the funds in your wallet and connected to BlockBar. At 5PM EST, all winning bidders have two hours to submit the full balance; payment will be accepted through ETH, credit card or wire transfer. Full terms & conditions may be found on BlockBar.com. Bidders planning on using Wire Transfer must pre-approve the funds by going to BlockBar.com, selecting your payment method under the profile icon on the top right of the screen and clicking payment methods, and select “verify funds” for pre-approval.
About BlockBar:
blockbar.com
Founded in October 2021, BlockBar.com is the world’s first DTC NFT marketplace that connects consumers and collectors with the owners of luxury wine and spirits brands by providing the opportunity to exchange NFTs for unique products. Having been in the spirits industry for many years, co-founders Dov and Sam Falic noticed the
issues consumers and brands were facing in the world of wine and spirits, and launched BlockBar.com to provide transparency, authenticity, quality assurance and storage. BlockBar’s proprietary platform allows consumers to purchase asset backed NFTs directly from BlockBar. BlockBar’s proprietary smart contracts verify authenticity, and its partnership with top cyber- and crypto-security firms ensures that transactions are fully protected and transparent. Consumers can transact directly with BlockBar and no longer have to worry about authenticity or storage. The physical bottles are stored in a secure facility in Singapore with 24/7 security, motion sensors, and temperature control. Buyers can pay for products via fiat or ETH and have the option to either burn the NFT to redeem the physical product, resell the product through the BlockBar.com marketplace or gift through the platform.
About Karuizawa:
Karuizawa Distillery was originally a vineyard in 1955 when the owner Daikoku-budoshu decided to enter the Japanese whisky industry in its infancy. He built a distillery in the shadow of active volcano, Mount Asama. The distillery was mothballed in 2001, with their stocks of slowly trickling out to market, where the bottles have become quite the collector’s item for whisky enthusiasts.
Traditional, small-scales, high-quality production are the objectives of Karuizawa Distillery. To meet that goal, Karuizawa used 100% Golden Promise barley, wooden washbacks, small stills and sherry casks sourced from Spain. Karuizawa’s whiskies are perhaps the closest you’ll find to the Scottish malt style in Japan but they still had their own unique characteristic. The water was filtered through lava and the distillery also experienced cool summers and snowy winters, which resulted in a different maturation profile.