Breaking Barriers: Women Leading the Bourbon Industry in Bardstown
In 1818, Catherine Spears Carpenter Frye made bourbon history as the first person to write down the recipe for sour mash. A century later, Margie Samuels made her own historic contribution when, in the 1950s, she created the most iconic whiskey packaging in the industry with Maker’s Mark’s hand-dipped red wax seal. In 2016, Joyce and Autumn Netherly made headlines as Kentucky’s only mother/daughter bourbon distillery owners.
As far back as the early 1800s, Kentucky women have been leaving their mark on the bourbon landscape.
“The bourbon industry isn’t just for the boys,” said Stacy Prichard, vice president of distillery relations at the Kentucky Bourbon Festival, held every September on the grounds of Spalding Hall in Bardstown. “There are a lot of women in bourbon—many with chemical and engineering degrees. There are lots of women in leadership roles. Pretty much anything women want to do, they’re doing it.”
As part of the two-person staff that annually plans and executes the world’s premier bourbon festival, Pritchard navigates not only lots of moving parts—from permits and licensing to legalities and volunteers—but also works with dozens of people and personalities to shepherd everything and everybody to the same goaled endpoint.
“I have a lot of binders and spreadsheets everywhere,” she said.
A self-professed bourbon enthusiast from “back before it was cool,” who loves the science and history behind bourbon, Prichard is also a board member of Bourbon Women, founded in 2011, the first female consumer group in the bourbon industry.
“Along with female consumers, Bourbon Women was a big catalyst in the industry in recognizing women’s voices and roles not only as consumers, but profiling and showcasing the success of women in the industry,” said organization founder and Master Bourbon Taster Peggy Noe Stevens.
The organization’s stated vision is to create “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.”
Its mission? Creating “an empowering spirits environment by masterfully blending knowledge, community, fellowship, and fun.” Bourbon Women also raises money to fund scholarships for women who want to break into the bourbon industry.
Women new to bourbon can not only look to leaders like Prichard and Noe Stevens to see the future possibilities in the industry, but back to past industry innovators like Margie Samuels, a chemist by training and the creative force behind branding at Loretto’s Maker’s Mark Distillery, who made a lasting impact.
“We’re seeing more women owning and leading distilleries as CEOs, more women as master tasters and in elevated marketing roles,” said Noe Stevens.
Women are working in bourbon all over Kentucky, including bourbon’s epicenter in Bardstown, the Bourbon Capital of the World.
One of these women is Marci Palatella, an industry pioneer and the owner and proprietor of Preservation Distillery. The nearly 10-year-old Bardstown distillery, which pot distills in micro 1–3 barrel batches, won “Best Bourbon in the World” in 2024 for its Pure Antique bourbon 20 Year.
Another is Britt Kulsveen, a fifth-generation Willett family member, who is president and chief whiskey officer of Willett Distillery, one of Kentucky’s original family-owned distilleries.
“Britt has worked many jobs in the industry to get where she is today,” noted Noe Stevens.
This year, Potter Jane Distillery Company is expected to open in Bardstown. The distillery is co-owned by Jane Bowie, a former Master of Maturation at Maker’s Mark.
And like the values espoused by Bourbon Women, including honoring and supporting women’s contributions and infusing every joyful moment with laughter and fun, women in bourbon are not about all work and no play.
“Women are hardcore enthusiasts and collectors—they’re not just DDs,” said Prichard. “Women are into bourbon and cigars. They’re into the lifestyle that goes with having a good bourbon.
“It’s a ladies’ game,” she added.
Women have long shaped bourbon’s story, and Bardstown is where that story comes to life. Whether you're a seasoned sipper or just starting out, come raise a glass in the Bourbon Capital of the World and be part of the legacy women continue to build — one pour at a time.
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