With the intent of safeguarding millions of pounds lost by the industry every year, a research group from Scotland has come up with a novel portable method which can effectively identify counterfeit whiskey.

In this regard, a long research was carried out by scientists from the St Andrew's University and finally, they revealed that by using their invented method they can actually figure out the age, brand and even which cask was employed for making the scotch. For the purpose of detecting the said attributes, the researchers used laser beams comparable to the size of a human hair.

Fortunately for the developers, the test needs a sample which is no larger than a teardrop to conclude whether the whiskey is authentic or otherwise. For testing, the whiskey is kept on a transparent chip of plastic identical to a credit card and then, by using minute optical fibers the sample of whiskey is illuminated with the help of light which impinges from one fiber and is collected by another.

By examining the accumulation of light which gets scattered from the liquid, the scientists claimed that they can easily understand the characteristics and various elementary attributes of the sample of whiskey.

The laser is quite effective in detecting the quantity of alcohol present in the sample, with authentic whiskey holding a minimum of 40%. The research, which was conducted by physicists Kishan Dholakia, Praveen Ashok and Bavishna Praveen, has already bagged a patent.

Ms. Praveen claimed that counterfeiting is widespread in the drinks diligence and therefore, experts are persistently searching for innovative, effective and low-cost measures for liquor analysis. She added, "Using the power of light, we have adapted our technology to address a problem related to an industry which is a crucial part of Scottish culture and economy".