Celebrate Women’s Equality Day with Women Making a Difference in the Bourbon World
- Pegasus
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
From special clubs, groups, festivals, and bourbon-based businesses, women are strong in the bourbon world.
Women's Equality Day is celebrated in the United States on August 26 to commemorate the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex.
Women have played a significant role throughout the history of the bourbon industry, both as owners and operators of bourbon-related enterprises and as master distillers.
Below is a quick list of women-based, bourbon-based festivals, distilleries, and groups to help celebrate this special day!
Women in the Bourbon Business
Several Kentucky distilleries have women in key leadership and production roles. Notably, Marianne Eaves was the first female master distiller of bourbon in Kentucky since Prohibition, according to TODAY.com. She helped resurrect Castle & Key Distillery before becoming a consultant and partnering in the Forbidden bourbon brand. Jeptha Creed Distillery also features Joyce Nethery as Master Distiller, alongside her family. Additionally, New Riff Distilling is led by a female-dominated team, including President Mollie Lewis and CEO Hannah Lowen.
Specific distilleries with women in key roles:
Jeptha Creed Distillery: Joyce Nethery is the Master Distiller, and the distillery is family-owned.
New Riff Distilling: Features a leadership team with Mollie Lewis as President and Hannah Lowen as CEO.
Castle & Key Distillery: Marianne Eaves, Kentucky's first female master distiller since Prohibition, worked here.
Forbidden: Marianne Eaves is a partner in this bourbon brand, which she helped develop.
Old Dominick Distillery: Alex Castle is the master distiller at this Memphis distillery.
Woodford Reserve: Elizabeth McCall is the master distiller.
Blue Run Spirits: Shaylyn Gammon is the whiskey director.
Women-Based Bourbon Festivals
Bourbon SIPosium
Held August 15-18, 2025, the Bourbon SIPosium is the only consumer-based, female-focused whiskey conference in the US. Part industry conference, part girls’ weekend, and part family reunion, SIPosium demonstrates the magic of 400+ bourbon-loving women in the room together.
You’ll experience specialty VIP tours, dinners hosted by bourbon experts, workshops delivered by the top minds in the industry and celebrate the presence of women both sipping and making America’s Native Spirit. And meet so many incredible women along the way.
Kentucky Bourbon Festival
Held in September, this festival offers a unique “Women in Whiskey” event within the main festival. While the Kentucky Bourbon Festival is a larger, more general event, it includes a dedicated panel and networking event celebrating women in the bourbon industry, offering a chance to meet female distillers, master tasters, and leaders.
The Bourbon Mixer
On August 23, 2025, the Bourbon Mixer is hosted by the Whisky Chicks and Bourbon Brotherhood. This annual must-attend event for both Bourbon novices and connoisseurs will be held at The Olmsted and feature 20+ Bourbon distilleries from across Kentucky, dancing, and an online auction.
Women-Based Bourbon Communities
The Whisky Chicks®
The Whisky Chicks® started out of the need to find a community outside of family and work. What started as a passion project has turned in a revolution. They have taken the stuffy, cigars smoking in a dark oak room out of whisky and made it accessible to everyone of drinking age.
“We don’t care if you drink your whisk(e)y neat, on the rocks, or with Dr. Pepper- we just want to enjoy it together.”
They offer memberships with special benefits, meetups, special events, and more.
Learn more here.
Bourbon Women
Bourbon Women states that they are leaders creating empowering and spirited environments for fearless whiskey women through exceptional adventures and experiences; blending spirits education, personal development, community and entertainment in our whiskey world.
You can learn more and join here.
Women in Whiskey (wWw)
Women Who Whiskey is an experimental whiskey club. Both for amateurs and connoisseurs, wWw is a global organization dedicated to creating a space where our members can cultivate their passions for whiskey, learning, and community. With a focus on inclusion, wWw aims to foster an inviting and educational environment for all those who have historically been left out of the traditionally male-dominated world of whiskey.
Membership is open to all and provides the opportunity to learn about spirits and cocktail culture and to join a worldwide network of like-minded people with a taste for curiosity and delicious drams. In 2024, Women Who Whiskey celebrated 13 years of uniting whiskey lovers around the globe.
Click here to join a local chapter or to learn more!
Looking to go on a bourbon adventure with the girls? Pegasus Tours offers both private and group tours!
Note: This blog is for informational purposes only and does not represent any endorsement by Pegasus.
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