Club dVIN, the world’s premier global non-fungible token (NFT) wine club, will officially launch to the public on Saturday, May 14 with an initial offering of 4,000 functional NFT memberships. Club dVIN’s exclusive network provides access to curated wine and fine-dining experiences across the globe, physical and virtual tastings with the world’s best winemakers and experts, and access to rare collections and exclusive drops by top winemakers. In addition, Club dVIN is introducing new proprietary Digital Cork™ NFT technology, which provides a certificate of authenticity, chain of custody and proof of provenance. This new technology is set to revolutionize the industry by utilizing blockchain technology that provides confidence to buyers and valuable data to producers.
“Club dVIN is made possible through proprietary technology that uses the blockchain to bring together a global wine community in a way that has never before been possible,” said David Garrett, who is co-founder of Club dVIN along with Behdad Shahsavari and Brian Feuer. “We have built a foundation for Club dVIN through a community of the ultimate wine insiders; a group of 100 founding members who are the top names in wine’s new guard, from Masters of Wine to top winemakers.”
Exclusive to Club dVIN are Tasting Token™ NFTs, which are functional NFTs that are connected to a Digital Cork™. As soon as the bottle is tagged by the producer, it is linked to a Digital Cork™ NFT on the blockchain. Tasting Token™ NFTs are minted when a bottle connected to a Digital Cork™ is opened. In addition to the visual storytelling element of the NFT and detailed information about the wine, the holder of the Tasting Token™ can add their own tasting notes, as well as photos or videos to commemorate the event. As Tasting Tokens™ are collected, holders gain access to Club dVIN’s curated experiences, as well as special benefits and rewards from winemakers. Over time, these NFTs will become an immersive virtual tasting journal. Winemakers and other collaborators can use Tasting Token™ NFT data to communicate with wine lovers at the moment of consumption, and to provide benefits and incentives to their biggest fans.
Club dVIN’s Digital Cork™ tracks each bottle of wine “from grape to glass,” starting with the winemaker and through sale to the consumer and subsequent resale. Wine collectors will be able to access every detail of the chain of custody, from the dates of shipment and where the bottle was stored, to climate control data and other care and handling details. With this transparency, a Digital Cork™ NFT will act to increasingly disincentivize fraud.
“Genesis” Club dVIN members will gain access to a global community of like-minded wine and web3 enthusiasts and experts, including the 100 founding members who represent some of the most revered names in wine, crypto and media. They include sommelier-turned-winemaker and author, Rajat “Raj” Parr; leading sommeliers Valentina Litman and Michael Madrigale, who is co-founder of Grande Cuvée; Rich Antoniello, founder of Complex Media; tastemaker Jana Kreilein; Bordeaux expert Jane Anson; Philip Harden, Richard Hemming and David Forer, all Masters of Wine; and accomplished winemaker and vintner Sashi Moorman; as well as several members of the Bored Ape Yacht Club. The diverse membership spans more than a dozen nations including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Venezuela, Spain, Hong Kong, France, Canada, Singapore and Argentina.
The entry price for the first 4,000 NFTs is 1.5 ETH, currently valued at approximately $3,750/USD, with the proceeds of the sale of 100 of those earmarked for charitable contributions. A comprehensive outline of privileges of membership can be found on the website and includes: access to Club dVIN’s extensive network of winemakers, wineries, wine experts, collectors and more; rare wine tastings and experiences around the globe; exclusive offers, including highly coveted library wines and first releases straight from the producer; and exclusive content and education, such as stories about specific winemakers and expertise shared directly from Club dVIN’s community.
Upcoming private, members-only wine tastings and experiences will be held during Paris Blockchain Week; Devconnect in Amsterdam; En Primeur in Bordeaux, France; and London Wine Week. Additionally, Club dVIN will be announcing a surprise once-in-a-lifetime harvest experience for late summer that is, by any standard, historic.
Club dVIN was created by Garrett, whose expertise spans more than 25 years in the technology and wine industries, globally; Feuer, whose 30-year career in finance and venture capital includes 20 years of venture structuring with global leader, McKinsey & Company; and Shahsavari, who brings decades of experience in wine, venture capital, start-ups and management consulting to the first-of-its-kind NFT club. Together, they are working alongside a collective of some of the best minds and companies in wine and technology, including Rarible Protocol, Protokol and Logos, each industry leaders in web3, NFTs and cryptocurrency.
Rarible Protocol is the leading open-source and cross-chain NFT protocol. It is composed of a decentralized exchange, NFT minting smart contracts and an open source NFT indexer currently deployed on Ethereum, Tezos, Flow and Polygon. Club dVIN is building its NFT marketplace within the Rarible Protocol ecosystem and will collaborate with Rarible Protocol on several events and activations in the near future.
Full-scale blockchain solutions provider, Protokol, is working with Club dVIN to build the revolutionary new application. Built with the customer experience in mind, the application simplifies the onboarding of users who may not be experienced in NFTs, allowing them to benefit from a familiar Web2 experience in a Web3 world. Protokol delivered Club dVIN’s vision integrating and utilizing multiple technologies including the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains, along with a number of other innovative components. All of which combine to produce an engaging and simplified application that provides an exclusive experience to Club dVIN members.
Image by Lucas Santos on Unsplash
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