Crypto and NFTs have come for bourbon, and whiskey pundit Fred Minnick today becomes the groundbreaking pioneer in the field.
Minnick plans to sell off his tasting notes as NFTs later this month, in conjunction with the launch of a new whiskey-centric crypto currency blockchain venture.
Minnick is the first whiskey authority to enter the NFT (or non-fungible token) space. But more importantly, he is also the first to launch a crypto currency—something the whiskey space has needed for quite some time, according to Minnick.
“People are just dying to dump money into whiskey,” explains Minnick. “They don’t even care about drinking it. So why not spend your money on digital whiskey?”
It’s a sentiment argued by another whiskey insider, who spoke to us under the agreement of anonymity. “There are so many shelf turds and taters out there, and people are scooping them up. Why not take their money?”
Minnick has spent the last several years pushing his personal brand in the whiskey space, and to date has launched a magazine, an ice machine, a Youtube channel, joined a popular podcast, and made his presence known on TikTok, Clubhouse, and at least four other social media platforms you haven’t even heard of yet. He’s also launched his own spirits awards program, forthcoming.
And over the last decade, he has become a recognizable presence in the whiskey world in particular for his eccentric choice of neckwear, which has also become a major part of his brand.
Minnick’s entry into the NFT space is, for now, little more than a dangled toe. He’s selling the first ten tasting notes he wrote, in digital form, for asking prices of $10,000 each. An auction next month could push those values higher.
But Minnick’s interest in the space has less to do with the funds raised by the auction (as is usually the case, he’ll be working with veterans’ charities to put those funds to good use). Instead, he’s focused on the launch of his crypto currency: Bold Smooth Coin.
BS Coin is a whiskey token that functions as an automated liquid provider. Tokens are exchanged through liquidity pools, which don’t run the risk of being shut down by Facebook. Its value will be standardized to the market price of Minnick’s current “every day” bourbon choice, which at the moment is Van Winkle 15.
If crypto in the whiskey space seems ridiculous, Minnick doesn’t necessarily disagree with you. But he’s hoping that BS Coin will become a standard part of whiskey transactions.
At present, BS Coin will launch on Coinbase this afternoon, APril 1, 2021, with an open valuation of $1,100. Minnick says he’d really like to see his tasting notes fetch between 8 and 12 bottles of Van Winkle 15 each in auction value.
With the launch just hours away, Minnick is optimistic about the future of whiskey and crypto. Asked why he didn’t opt to call it Ascott Coin however, Minnick soured slightly. “What do you think this is, some kind of April Fools joke?”
