NETHERLANDS – Dutch multinational brewing giant Heineken has landed in virtual reality world of Metaverse with launch of its first virtual beer Heineken Silver.
According to the brewer, Heineken Silver has exclusively been brewed in its virtual brewery within the immersive digital platform, Decentraland.
Unlike its peer in the physical world which is made with 100% natural ingredients, Heineken says that its metaverse version is all about the finest, 100% computer-generated ingredients.
Described as being “filtered with superfast megabytes and through the best firewalls”,the new beer is also said to score zero in calories and has no flavor.
Bram Westenbrink, global head of Heineken brand, pointed out that although the metaverse brings people together, “it is not the best place to taste a new beer”
“For now, you can’t taste pixels and bytes. So, we want to make a joke about that and remind everyone that nothing beats the taste of a refreshing beer, including our new virtual Heineken Silver, in the real world.”
The virtual beer was unveiled at a product launch event in Heineken’s virtual brewery, where guests were able to learn about how the beer is made in seconds, while enjoying pixelated lobster and caviar.
The virtual space includes brewing tanks, DJ booth, dance floor and a bar. Self-taught street artist J.Demsky helped design parts of the virtual home of Heineken.
Heineken becomes the first major beer brand to enter the metaverse and the second in the food industry after McDonalds.
McDonald’s move did not involve the launch of its iconic burgers but the registering of 10 trademarks in the virtual space, doubling down on its strategy to venture into the metaverse.
According to the application filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office, McDonald’s will be providing downloadable multimedia files for its artwork audio, video files, and NFTs.
The company’s plans to venture into the metaverse were first made known on 9 February, after trademark lawyer, Josh Gerben tweeted images of McDonald’s trademark applications.
The McDonald’s filing on 4 February indicated it plans to “operate a virtual restaurant featuring actual and virtual goods”. It also included plans of “operating a virtual restaurant online, featuring home delivery”.
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