A Further Investment to Crypto Art by Mey|Diageo

A Further Investment to Crypto Art by Mey|Diageo Historical Ankara Whiskey has been included in the NFT archive of Mey Diageo

Having made investment in crypto art by purchasing world's first raki NFT, Mey| Diageo has added the NFT of Ankara Whiskey, the first and the last whiskey ever produced in Türkiye, to its digital art collection. The NFT, which has been added to the archive of Mey Diageo for TL 11.960, implying the date of production of Ankara Whiskey, was designed by the designer Erhan Ozden.

Having made a further innovative contribution to culture and arts by purchasing the world's first raki NFT last May, Mey|Diageo has added the NFT of Ankara Whiskey, the first and the last whiskey brand in Türkiye, to its digital art collection. Created by Erhan Ozden, the NFT was inspired by the newspaper ad that was published when Ankara Whiskey was released in 1963, and the wolf symbol on the label of the bottle of the second edition.

The market share of Ankara Whiskey, the production of which was initiated by TEKEL in the brewery in Ankara in 1963, in line with its policy of reducing dependence on foreign products and supporting domestic production, decreased upon the deregulation of import of alcohol in the 1980s, and the product was withdrawn from the market upon the privatization in 2004. For 41 years until now, Ankara Whiskey has remained the first and only whiskey ever produced in Türkiye. Ankara Whiskey, the production of which was initiated by making use of barley and rice and then improved by including different grains, was distilled through the Scotch method. The duration of maturation of the product was 5 years.  Following its withdrawal from the market, the handmade copper stills, which were made in Antep and utilized in production, were sold to Virginia Distillerie Co., a whiskey producer in the USA. 

Meltem Azbazdar, the Director, Legal and Corporate Communication, Mey I Diageo, highlighted the fact that culture and arts are naturally a part of Mey|Diageo's business. She added that they, as a company, are always innovative, forward-looking and open to changes, and that as a large company, their interest in digital assets, such as NFT, which is very new to the world, is a consequence of this mindset. Azbazdar said, “Despite being a well-established company, we can keep up with the times and always remain new. Our archive holds numerous items, including original recipes, menus, first raki ads, 'fudur' used by Tekel in production, and old glasses. “After purchasing this NFT, we have also included crypto art in our archive.”. 

Last May, Mey Diageo purchased the world's first raki NFT, which was auctioned in the Apero bulletin of the newspaper Aposto, the new generation media platform. The NFT, created by the young artist Cenk Gungor, depicts Elon Musk drinking raki on Mars.

What is NFT?

NFTs (non-fungible token), which got mainstream attention all over the world after the first tweet of Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter, on the platform was sold for 2.9 million dollars, are regarded as the new cultural extensions of the crypto world, which is usually known only for its financial aspect. Today, many artists introduce their original works to collectors on NFT platforms. Christie's, one of the well-established auction houses in the world, has recently set a record by purchasing the NFT of the digital artist Mike Winkelmann, known as Beeple, who had ever sold a print for $ 100, for $ 69 million.

About Mey|Diageo: 

Mey|Diageo, the representative of a tradition that started in 1862 at the General Directorate of Monopolies, and continued with Tekel, has been operating under the umbrella of Diageo, the world's largest and leading producer of spirits, since 2011, with business operations in approximately 180 countries and regional offices in 80 countries. Mey I Diageo, Türkiye's fifth largest FMCG company with 9 plants and more than 1,000 employees in Türkiye,  has been providing contributions to livelihoods of hundred of thousands of people, through direct and indirect relationships it has established with the farmers, tradesmen, distribution channels, sub-industries, and tourism and service industries since its establishment. Playing a critical role in the agro-industry, the company, holding the title of being the first ISO 9001-certified raki producer and the first ISO 22000-certified wine producer in Türkiye, has a portfolio that includes a wide range of distilled spirit and wine brands. Standing out as the first and only company in the distilled spirits industry to have its environmental management system certified in accordance with the ISO 14001 standard, Mey | Diageo makes efforts not only for achieving the goal of fulfilling its corporate social responsibility, but also for being a "responsible social organization".

For information: 

Zarakol İletişim  0212 217 2999