Oxford Artisan Distillery launches The Dissertation

The Oxford Artisan Distillery has announced the release of its 12^th batch of rye whisky, The Dissertation.

The release features a high rye content in the mash bill and has been created using two distinct casks with differing mash bills. One is a ramandolo cask and the other is a traditional American oak cask. Master distiller Chico Rosa combined the liquids from both casks, resulting in a flavour profile described as spicy, sweet and floral.

As with all of the distillery’s products, responsible farming is the first stage in the whisy-making process. It produces spirit using biodiverse populations of heritage grain, using a technique known as Restorative Continuous Grain Cropping (R-CGC). This means the distillery’s farmers don’t use chemicals and grow the grain with just an understory of clover. This approach has a multitude of benefits: sequestering carbon; improving soil and river health; creating life-rafts for biodiversity and restoring eco-systems within arable fields.

Commenting on the release, Rosa said: “The flavor profile is different from our other Rye whiskies due to the high rye content in the Ramandolo cask. Equally delicious just lighter and more fragrant. We haven’t previously used a 100% rye mash bill in a whisky. We have used two casks, one of which, the Ramandolo, is originally from a sweet Italian wine. The wine is pale to deep yellow, full-bodied, not too sweet, fragrant, and slightly tannic. With its 100% Rye Mash Bill, this cask gives The Dissertation a distinct flavour. This is a whisky for all seasons, delicious in the summer and winter.“

The Dissertation is bottled at 47.3% and has the highest percentage of rye in the recipe of any Oxford Rye.

12 October 2023 - Bradley Weir