Maintain a defined grain variety and source as a separate lot from certified seed through planting, harvesting, conveyance, storage, and delivery so its provenance remains traceable for whiskey production.
Process definition
Identity-preserved grain handling keeps a named grain variety and its geographic source traceable as a distinct lot from seed selection through delivery to the distillery.
Inputs
- Certified or otherwise documented seed of the named variety
- Defined field or growing area
- Clean planting, harvesting, conveyance, and storage equipment
- Lot records that preserve variety, grower, field, harvest, and storage identity
Sequence
- Establish the seed variety and provenance record.
- Plant the defined lot without mixing varieties.
- Clean planters, combines, augers, elevators, trucks, and bins before the lot passes through them.
- Harvest, transport, and store the grain as a segregated lot.
- Transfer the identity record with the grain when it reaches the distillery.
Output
A traceable grain lot whose variety and geographic provenance remain identifiable for production and later sensory comparison.
Critical controls
- Prevent commingling at every transfer point.
- Record exceptions, cleaning failures, or undocumented transfers.
- Treat provenance as unpreserved when the custody chain is incomplete.
Evidence
Arnold describes certified seed and the cleaning and segregation of planters, combines, augers, elevators, and storage bins in The Terroir of Whiskey, printed page 88. This is a source-based process model, not a claim that every distillery uses the practice.
Review gate
Active for research use. Corroborate with an additional producer or agricultural source before presenting it as common industry practice.
