Featured image for Johnnie Walker Gets A Paper-Based Spirits Bottle

Johnnie Walker Gets A Paper-Based Spirits Bottle

by Bill McCool on 07/13/2020 | 2 Minute Read

You can only bottle whiskey and vodka in glass and—gasp—plastic, right?

Well, you can add one more vessel to the list. Today, Diageo, the makers of Johnnie Walker and Smirnoff, introduced what they’re calling the world’s first 100% plastic-free spirits bottle. The paper-based bottle will make its splashy debut in early 2021 with Johnnie Walker.

Editorial photograph

The bottle comes courtesy of Pulpex Limited, and gets made from sustainably-sourced wood. Better still, the pulp utilized in the bottle meets food-safe standards and is recyclable in modern waste streams.

Pulpex’s (a part of a venture management company called Pilot Lite) collaboration isn’t just limited to bottles of Johnnie Walker, as the sustainable packaging technology company will work with Unilever and PepsiCo on non-competing future projects. 

Editorial photograph

"We're proud to have created this world first,” said Diageo sustainability officer Ewan Andrew in a press release. “We are constantly striving to push the boundaries within sustainable packaging and this bottle has the potential to be truly ground-breaking. It feels fitting that we should launch it with Johnnie Walker, a brand that has often led the way in innovation throughout its 200 years existence."

So, does this mean we get Pepsi in a paper bottle in the coming months? Seeing that they filed a patent for a paper bottle back in 2012, we’ll just have to wait and see.