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Tackling counterfeiting of Portuguese wine
Ever wondered if the bottle of wine in your hand is truly what it claims to be?
Let’s follow its journey from vineyard to glass
Imagine buying a bottle of Portuguese wine, excited to taste its unique flavors… only to discover it is not what it promises!
Sadly, this is becoming all too common. Counterfeit wines, made with low-quality ingredients, mislabeled origins, or tampered packaging, are spreading across Europe, costing the industry €1.3 billion every year and shaking consumer trust.
But there is a new way to fight back
Watson is helping Portuguese wineries take control of their story, using smart technology to make every bottle traceable and authentic. From the vineyard where the grapes grow, to the cellar where the wine matures, all the way to the store shelf, Watson ensures that nothing is lost (or faked) along the journey.
Watson solution
Watson’s pilot activities focus on making wine production and distribution transparent, traceable and reliable, using the latest tools and data.
Real-life scenarios where Watson works its magic
Spotting unusual patterns in grape and wine production
The Early Warning System (EWS) helps producers spot potential tampering by checking if the amount of wine produced matches the expected grape harvest from its true origin. This ensures that nothing suspicious slips through and keeps the production process transparent.
Verifying the origin of grapes
Wineries can confirm that incoming grape batches truly come from the declared vineyard(s). By using geolocation and transport data exposed in the Digital Food Product Passport (DFPP), producers can track the grapes’ journey from vineyard to cellar and guarantee authenticity.
Checking wine quality at every stage
Growers and wineries can perform quick, low-cost, non-invasive checks on grape and wine quality using a portable hyperspectral device. This provides coarse, real-time readings and builds a dataset linking what is in the grapes to the characteristics of the final wine, ensuring consistent quality from start to finish.
Guiding visually impaired wine lovers
Watson makes wine information accessible through an easy mobile app that “listens” to the bottle via the camera and speaks key label information aloud. Visually impaired consumers can instantly identify the wine type (red, white or rosé) and hear essential details, helping them enjoy wine with confidence.
The story behind the data
Watson uses a rich mix of information: environmental and farm data, weather patterns, historical grape production, geolocation, transportation routes and even images captured by smartphones. Advanced tools like the EWS, DFPP, hyperspectral scanning and label processing work behind the scenes to make every bottle verifiable.
Who wins when Watson is in action
The result?
Confidence in every pour
Thanks to the Watson project, Portuguese wines can reclaim their authenticity, protect their reputation and ensure that every glass tells the true story of the vineyard, the grapes and the care that went into its making.
Supported by stakeholders including Sogrape Vinhos and Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto, this solution ensures a multi-actor approach to tackling wine fraud in Portugal.
LEAD PARTNER: INESC TEC
More information
For further details, check out our Pilot Booklet:
