Barossa winery uncorks ‘Australian first’ embedded microchip to fight counterfeits

Barossa wine estate, Seppeltsfield, is installing new anti-counterfeit technology in a bid to boost authenticity, trigger customer engagement and help curb the counterfeit problem plaguing the luxury wine industry.

“Whilst we’re expanding our luxury wine collection globally, it’s very important we’re at the forefront of innovation, so we’re taking a proactive approach and investing in technology to ensure wine authenticity,” said Seppeltsfield Barossa executive chairman, Warren Randall.

The technology – dubbed NFC Vintail – has an embedded microchip on the neck of the bottle that can tell the purchaser if the product is authentic, Seppeltsfield said.

Developed by Sydney-based brand protection and retail engagement specialist, YPB Group – the microchip aims to fight counterfeit goods in international markets.

Powered by YPB’s Connect platform, the individually-coded Vintails are interactive via smartphone ‘tap and go’.

Using the latest Apple iPhone and Google Android releases, or with an equivalent NFC reader application, the technology is launched by physically tapping the smartphone to the NFC Vintail.

Essentially, the purchaser uses their mobile phone before the purchase to ‘tap and go’ on the bottle, confirming it hasn’t been opened and is authentic product. The technology can be adapted to any product being exported internationally.

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YPB Group Australian CEO John Houston said Vintail technology was an “Australian first” for the wine industry.

“The collaboration between the two companies to further develop Vintail and the Connect platform will have a major impact on consumers who will now be able to confirm wine authenticity.

“Vintail can be adapted to any product and will greatly assist in countering the lucrative billion-dollar, luxury global counterfeit industry. YPB Group looks forward to further developing our authenticity and consumer engagement technologies for other international exporters.”

According to analysts, the luxury counterfeit product trade is a world-wide multi-billion industry. Recently published figures suggest 20 per cent of all the wine currently circulating the globe is fake.

YPB’s NFC Vintail technology applied to Seppeltsfield’s releases can determine if the product has been opened, to identify possible prior tampering, the winery said.

It also provides users with an immersive 360-degree experience including detailed wine provenance information, as well as a tour of the Seppeltsfield Barossa Village and surrounding vineyards, it added.