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Bitcoin fever has died down a bit since it lost around two-thirds of its record high value of around $20,000 back in December, which was around the time blockchain mania resulted in an iced tea company getting into the game and a football league turning to Ethereum for funding. The jury is still out on whether or not cryptocurrencies have any inherent value, but if you’re still bullish, there’s a new whiskey-based coin that might be of interest.
CaskCoin is a new blockchain-based currency backed by something that’s actually tangible: a warehouse filled with casks of rare scotch. According to Forbes, the company behind the CaskCoin has a collection of barrels ranging between 20 and 50 years old, which are filled with spirits from distilleries like Macallan and Glenlivet. Investors will essentially be buying a share in the collection and will be able to vote on whether or not a barrel should be bottled and sold.
CaskCoin differs from other cryptocurrencies in the sense that it’s backed by goods with actual value. While you could theoretically do the work yourself by going from liquor store to liquor store tracking down as many bottles of Pappy Van Winkle as you can and trying to sell them on Craigslist, but this seems like an easier (and less labor-intensive) way to go if you’re interested in investing in whiskey.
If you’re not a blockchain person, you might want to look into the Single Malt Fund, which also lets investors buy into an expansive collection in a more traditional way. While there’s no guarantee you’ll make money in either of these, at least you don’t have to deal with the temptation of opening a bottle you bought instead of reselling it.