Frey Ranch Distillery announced the latest release in its Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest, a one-of-a-kind, ultra-premium whiskey that highlights the sustainable and slow grown grains cultivated and harvested exclusively on the Frey Ranch farm in Northern Nevada. 

For the third iteration of this critically acclaimed series, Frey Ranch partnered once again with Master Blender Nancy Fraley to select barrels from the brand’s aging inventory at their peak performance of flavor, including for the first time the addition of triticale. 

Featuring a blend bill of 36.14% corn, 27.92% rye, 26.66% triticale, 4.80% malted barley, and 4.48% wheat (SRP: $299.99), Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest is a natural progression for a whiskey brand born from five generations of farming acumen. A winter grain that’s planted annually by Whiskey Farmer Colby Frey at the same time as his annual wheat, rye, and barley crops, triticale is a hybrid crop that is created by crossbreeding wheat (Triticum) and rye (Secale). Grown primarily as livestock feed, other applications for triticale include for foraging purposes, as a cover crop to protect soil from erosion, and in bioengineering as a biomass crop for ethanol or renewable energy production.

Plant breeders originally developed triticale in the 1800s to combine the high yield and grain quality of wheat with the hardiness, disease resistance, and drought tolerance of rye. Although triticale is not a practical substitute for wheat in bread-making because of its weaker gluten network, triticale is an interesting grain choice for whiskey because it contributes spicy, peppery notes associated with rye while imparting the soft, sweet, bready characteristics inherent in wheat. 

“Our Harvester Series was born out of a desire to offer unique whiskey blends that put our grains front and center,” Colby Frey said in a news release. “First Harvest centered on rye whiskey, Second Harvest turned the spotlight on wheat whiskey, and this year we are introducing triticale to the blend for the first time ever in Frey Ranch’s history. We sent our blending partner Nancy (Fraley) hundreds of samples, including the triticale, and she really gravitated towards the complexity it added to the final blend.” 

At 61.70% ABV, Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest features barrels aged between five-to-eight years. Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest will initially be released in November exclusively to the inaugural members of the brand’s recently announced Tractor Tailgate Club, a limited-membership, farm-to-bottle whiskey club. 

With only 500 memberships available at $999 for an annual one-year membership, the “Tractor Tailgate Club” is designed for Frey Ranch super fans and whiskey enthusiasts who consistently seek out the brand’s one-of-a-kind offerings. The cost of Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest – along with other hotly-anticipated Frey Ranch releases – is included in the annual membership fee. Interested consumers can join the Tractor Tailgate Club at Tractor Tailgate Club – Frey Ranch. 

A very limited number of bottles of Frey Ranch Harvester Series: Third Harvest will be available via an online lottery – managed by EQL — that will kick off on Monday, November 16 at 10am PT date and run through Monday, November 23, at midnight. Interested consumers may click on the landing page to be notified when the lottery is live. Winners will be announced the week of November 23. For local Fallon, Nevada, fans, additional bottles will be available in the Frey Ranch Tasting Room starting Saturday, November 7from 12noon–4pm PST. 

The Frey family values a common-sense approach to sustainable farming, with Colby’s inspiration to build a distillery born from a desire to create a distinctive, long-lasting product from the quality grains his family has been growing and perfecting for generations. The family has long abided by the motto, “Be good to the land and the land will be good to you,” which is embossed on the bottom of each bottle of Frey Ranch Whiskey.

Read more: Frey Ranch Announces Hotaling as National Sales, Marketing Partner

About Frey Ranch Distillery 

Frey Ranch Distillery was founded in 2006 by Colby and Ashley Frey on the Frey family’s 2,000-acre farm in Fallon, Nevada. The family has a deep history of farming in Northern Nevada that dates back 170 years and continues today with Frey Ranch Distillery, one of the only distilleries in the country to grow 100% of its whiskey grains on-site. Today, Frey Ranch is one of the top-selling ultra-premium bourbons in the US and one of the largest whiskey producers on the West Coast. To learn more, visit freyranch.com.