"For nearly 300 years, excellence has been at the core of Rémy Martin, and through this partnership we've reached an incredible milestone, where we see brilliance breakthrough at the intersection of art, fine cognac, and technology," said Amaury Vinclet, Global Executive Director of Rémy Martin. "As a brand that has been a long-time collaborator with Usher and shares the same values, we are proud to have him launch the first limited-edition bottle design for Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal. This bottle is a first for the spirits industry in how the technology was used and gives spirits aficionados and Usher fans alike a rare collectible they'll treasure forever."

"Usher x 1738 A.I. Powered" Limited-Edition Bottle and NFT

When creating the "Usher x 1738 A.I. Powered" limited-edition, Usher used his own musical vocabulary to describe his olfactory experience with the renowned Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal, a smooth Cognac characterized by notes of toasted bread, vanilla and brioche. Fed through A.I. technology, known as Generative Adversarial Neural Networks and Contrastive Language-Image Pre-Training, the avant-garde depiction of tasting notes transformed Usher's words into artwork that makes the invisible, visible. Reimagined in black and featuring a special seal that celebrates Usher's 25th anniversary of My Way, the emblematic 1738 Accord Royal bottle brings Usher's "Taste of Passion" to life with a design that now aptly embodies the harmony of music, technology and art.

"I'm an artist at my core, so transforming an abstract sensory experience like taste into something visual really spoke to my creative process," says Usher. "I leaned into the exemplary Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal that flowed through me and am so impressed by the visuals that came out of the A.I. process – they truly represent the medley of tasting notes captured in the flavor. It's rewarding to see those words translate to real-world artwork that my fans can engage with while bringing taste front-and-center."

A total of 50 limited-edition bottles were created as part of this latest collaboration. 25 Usher x 1738: A.I. Powered limited-edition bottles will be available to purchase exclusively on BlockBar.com, the world's first direct-to-consumer NFT marketplace for luxury wines and spirits. The drop goes live at 10AM EST on Friday, July 29 on a first come, first served basis. Priced at $500*, each NFT is available to purchase with ETH or credit card. At 10AM, the first users to reserve the bottle will then have 10 minutes to checkout. Users who successfully check out will receive an NFT proving ownership of the physical bottle, which is stored with BlockBar until the bottle owner is ready to redeem. The remaining 25 bottles will be gifted to Usher and his team to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of My Way.

Each NFT is uniquely marked, and each purchase comes with the option of keeping the NFT, reselling it on BlockBar.com's marketplace, gifting it, or redeeming it for the physical bottle beginning in October 2022.

"We're very excited to be part of such a big moment for Rémy Martin as they enter the world of NFTs and launch a new limited-edition bottle which will be our first ever music collaboration to drop on BlockBar.com," says Dov Falic, Co-Founder and CEO of BlockBar. "As a globally recognized brand known for craftsmanship and excellence, we are honored to have the opportunity to offer a rare collectable item that has been created by one of the world's most celebrated artists, Usher."

A Taste of Passion Experience

The Usher x Rémy Martin 1738: A Taste of Passion partnership will go beyond the bottle to showcase a world of opportunity and excitement at the intersection of music, technology, art and cognac, which will vividly come to life through the launch of "A Taste of Passion Experience" in Las Vegas. By harnessing A.I. technology to visually articulate the taste of the Usher x 1738 Accord Royal A.I. Powered offering, "A Taste of Passion Experience," will usher in spirits and music lovers alike, where the brand will host a multi-sensory experience while nodding to Usher's illustrious career. To build on the splendor of the evening, attendees will savor an array of Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal cocktails specially curated by Rémy Martin and Usher, including The Rémy Roller, brimming with an effervescent blend of Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal, aromatic notes of ginger ale and angostura bitters, and finished with a lemon wedge garnish.

Teaming Up for Excellence

The longstanding partnership between Rémy Martin and Usher, who both share a quest for excellence and innovation, first began over a decade ago when Rémy Martin became an official partner of the OMG World Tour. This latest collaboration not only celebrates excellence in music, technology, and art, but also the 25^th anniversary of My Way, Usher's breakthrough album that catapulted him into stardom. The celebration of excellence goes back centuries for Rémy Martin and Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal, which is a unique blend of eaux-de-vie that commemorates the reward of excellence bestowed on Rémy Martin by King Louis XV of France in 1738. Rémy Martin Cellar Master Baptiste Loiseau has inherited the savoir–faire of the House from previous generations of cellar masters, and through this transmission of knowledge, Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal continues to encompass the spirit of celebrating depth of character and the excitement of indulging in moments of collective success.

On July 29, the Usher x 1738: A.I. Powered limited-edition bottle will be sold exclusively on BlockBar.com. The immersive 'A Taste of Passion Experience' is running on select nights from July 15 through October 29, in tandem with Usher's My Way Las Vegas Residency, with tickets available for purchase HERE.