Counterfeit wine poses a serious threat to the wine industry, costing the global market $3.18 billion in direct sales annually. Not only does this damage the brand identity of producers but it can lead to unsuspecting consumers being duped. The most infamous case of counterfeit wine is that of Rudy Kurniawan, a wine dealer who was convicted in 2013 of selling millions of dollars’ worth of counterfeit wine to unsuspecting buyers, permeating the highest levels of the wine world. Collectors, consumers and investors alike are at risk. One solution that has been proposed to combat counterfeit wine is the use of blockchain technology. Blockchain technology is a digital ledger that can be used to create a unique reference to track the origin and authenticity of wine bottles. Using this technology, wine producers can create a digital record of their bottles, including information such as the vineyard where the grapes were grown and the date of bottling. This information can then be used to verify the authenticity and to track it through the supply chain. To combat this rising tide producers are taking action. French winery, Château Le Pin, have implemented blockchain technology to trace every bottle of their wine from the vineyard to the customer, ensuring that all bottles are authentic. This allows customers to verify the authenticity of the wine they are buying and gives the winery an added layer of protection against counterfeiters. Another solution for wine investors is to invest in wine through a bespoke digital wine investment solution such as Vintage Cellar. Vintage Cellar sources wine directly from the chateau, thereby avoiding any validity concerns. This ensures that the authenticity of the wine can be verified, and investors can be confident that they are investing in genuine bottles of wine. Counterfeit wine remains a significant challenge for the industry, and is unlikely to abate as wine gains traction as an investment asset. For wine investors and collectors, one safeguard against this is to invest in wine through a bespoke digital wine platform such as Vintage Cellar, which sources wine directly from the chateau to give buyers peace of mind and guarantee provenance and security of investment. To learn more about sourcing prestigious fine wine brands with guaranteed provenance, book a demo today