Fielden Harvest 2020 Rye Whisky

Fielden Harvest 2020 Rye Whisky is the second release in Fielden’s annual Harvest series. Each vintage captures grain from a particular growing season, exploring how variations in weather, soil and growing conditions influence the resulting whisky. In 2020, a wet early spring was followed by a hot, dry summer, producing fully developed and ripe grain that became the foundation of this release.

The whisky was made with 73% rye, 18% wheat and 9% malted barley sourced from Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Gloucestershire and Norfolk. Some of the rye and wheat were grown together as maslin. Two grain recipes were used, comprising Fielden’s classic 70% rye, 20% wheat and 10% malted barley recipe and a second 100% rye recipe containing 75% raw rye and 25% malted rye. The spirit was fermented for four to five days and double distilled through pot and column stills.

Maturation took place for a minimum of 47 months across seven casks, comprising 42% new American oak, 42% old American oak and 16% ex-wine STR cask. Following maturation, the whisky was married for 77 days and slowly reduced to 50% ABV. The release consists of 2,004 bottles.

Tasting Notes by Fielden:
Nose: Soft layers of apple strudel, banoffee and roasted lemon. Hints of raspberry and thyme.
Palate: Creamy and flaky pastry, biscoff and malted cereals. Caramelised nuts and toasted grain.
Finish: Warming ginger and cinnamon with a gentle trace of cardamom and cumin.