Why we're starting with whisky
Whisky is widely counterfeited, heavily branded, and already well studied by scientists. That makes it the right first test for our pen.
StrategyWhisky
Counterfeit alcohol detection · Kenya
Know what's in your glass.
We're building a pocket-sized pen that reads your drink's chemical fingerprint and an app that checks it against the genuine product. Starting with whisky.
In development. Not yet for sale. See how it works.
The problem
Fake alcohol is a health risk and a trust problem
Estimates vary with who's counting, but every source agrees the problem is large. Drinkers today can only judge the label, the seal and the price.
21%
of Kenya's alcohol market by value is estimated to be fake
Source: Anti-Counterfeit Authority, via MovendiMore context in Counterfeit alcohol in Kenya: what we know.
How it works
Dip. Compare. Know.
- Step 1
Dip the pen
A few drops touch the electrodes in the pen tip. The pen runs a tiny voltage sweep and records how the drink responds.
- Step 2
Your phone compares
The pen sends the reading to the drinkYangu app over Bluetooth. You tell the app which bottle you're checking.
- Step 3
Get a clear answer
The reading is matched against genuine signatures in our database: match, no match, or can't tell.
Starting point
Why whisky first
We're proving the approach on one category before expanding.
Heavily counterfeited
Premium branded spirits are what counterfeiters refill and relabel.
Proven by research
Scientists have already told whiskies apart with electrodes and with optics.
Rich fingerprint
Grain, distillation and casks give whisky a complex chemistry that's hard to fake cheaply.
Feasibility study
Authenticating whisky with electrochemistry
Our plan, the research behind it, the targets we'll measure against, and the questions we still need to answer.
Read the case studyFrom the blog
Latest notes
How electrochemistry can fingerprint a drink
A plain-language guide to voltammetry: how a tiny voltage sweep can turn the chemistry of a drink into a pattern a phone can compare.
ScienceTechnology
Counterfeit alcohol in Kenya: what we know
Estimates of Kenya's illicit alcohol market vary widely. Here's what the published numbers say, who produced them, and why it matters for drinkers.
KenyaContext
The team
Who's building this
An honest answer: right now, one engineer.
Gibson Kemboi
Founder & Systems Engineer
I'm studying for a BSc in Electrical Engineering at Kenyatta University and work as a senior software engineer, building startups and technology products for teams around the world.
I started drinkYangu because fake alcohol is a problem Kenyans live with every day. A cheap, personal check in every drinker's pocket could complement the work that regulators like KEBS already do.
drinkYangu is currently a one-person effort. I'm looking for an electrochemist to join me, and for lab and industry partners.
Get involved
Help us make every bottle in Kenya checkable.
Want to test the pen when it's ready?
Join the waitlistBrand owner, regulator, lab or investor?
Partner with us