Maker's Mark's NFT Bottle Collab: Everything You Need To Know
One of the world's oldest bourbon brands is dipping its toe into a futuristic digital technology. In a press release, Maker's Mark announced that it would be the official bourbon partner of Party Horses, a new collection of NFTs that will drop on the blockchain later this month.
As part of the partnership, which marks the 70-year-old Kentucky bourbon company's first foray into the new-age technology, Maker's Mark will be producing limited-edition Party Horses commemorative bottle labels for 1,000 early adopters of the new NFT collection.
NFTs, aka non-fungible tokens, are digital assets represented by digital files that often act as placeholders for real-world items like music, videos, art pieces, and even whiskey casks (via Forbes). As this once-niche online industry has become more mainstream, ballooning into a $41 billion industry in 2021, food and beverage companies ranging from fast food chains to beer brands have begun releasing their own branded NFTs online (via Business Insider).
The official rollout of the new Party Horses NFT project, which was founded by a group of Louisville, Kentucky-based entrepreneurs, software engineers, and designers, will involve virtual and IRL events. The company hosted a pre-drop virtual party earlier this week, offering NFT enthusiasts the opportunity to mint a free drink, which could be redeemed for one bottle of the limited-edition Party Horses x Maker's Mark bourbon (via Party Horses).
The NFT brand will host their first IRL event during Kentucky Derby weekend
In the spirit of the most famous horse racing event of the year, the NFT company will also be hosting a bourbon-fueled Kentucky Derby party for NFT holders in Louisville on May 6, featuring "major artists including a Grammy winning DJ." In order to gain entry to the party, guests must own a Party Horses NFT — which will be available to mint beginning on March 15.
Following the success of other enormously profitable illustrative, animal-themed NFT collections — like the Bored Ape Yacht Club and CyberKongz — the Party Horses collection will feature colorful illustrations of horses donning various hats, sunglasses, and accessories (via Small Biz Trends).
"We want our mission to be simple to understand," said Justin Delaney, Party Horses co-founder, in a press release. "Use Web3 for good, have fun, create beauty ... and collaborate with others to build amazing things."
While it's unclear if Maker's Mark will continue their foray into the NFT market by creating their own NFTs or joining Metacask, the world's first NFT whiskey cask marketplace, the venerable bourbon distiller's move into the digital realm could result in other longstanding liquor brands getting involved in this new blockchain-backed technology.