Name: Stephen Beam
Company: Limestone Branch Distillery
Job: President and Distiller
Website: limestonebranch.com

How long have you been working in the whisky industry?
My family has been in the distilling business for generations. Personally, I began my career in distilling as a seventh-generation distiller in 2010, when I started working at Limestone Branch Distillery.

What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
Without question, the day Limestone Branch became part of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour. It was a special day that my brother and I were able to share with our father, who lived to see our family re-established in the distilling business. He was very proud!

Can you remember your first dram, and indeed what it was?
I remember my first taste of bourbon. I was about four years old and had been coughing all night. My mother sat me on the kitchen counter and mixed a little sugar into some Jim Beam White Label. It kept me from drinking for years to come! My first actual dram was Yellowstone, which was always in the house.

What does whisky mean to you?
To me, whisk(e)y is the spirit of the people and their environment. Having grown up in Kentucky bourbon country, I’ve always felt it was a spirit that emerged from the culture, our history and our surroundings.

This was driven home to me after I spent a week on Islay. I had never been a fan of heavily peated whisky, but when I was there, it felt and tasted exactly right. It was the perfect expression of the island, springing from the soul of the place — the salt spray, the chill in the air and the oysters. It all came together in the whisky, which was true to the area and reflected its terroir.

Where would you like to see yourself in five years’ time?
We have no plans to keep expanding our product line or our production. My family has been whisky makers since at least 1795 — it’s simply what we do. In five years’ time, God willing and the creeks don’t rise, I’ll be doing exactly what I am now: trying to make an exceptional whisky, hopefully with a little more aged stock to work with.

What was your last dram?
Yellowstone Limited Edition 2018. It has become my nightly sipper — it is fantastic!

Do you have a favourite whisky and food pairing combination?
I have a sweet tooth, so I occasionally enjoy some bittersweet chocolate after a dram of bourbon.

What’s your favourite time and place to enjoy a dram?
At the end of the day when I’m winding down, or any time with friends and family.

What do you think is going to be the next big thing on the whisky horizon?
I think one of the next big developments in the industry will be the growing interest in the wider whisky category among the new generation of consumers.

As they become more comfortable with their own tastes, they will begin to explore all whiskies — American, Scotch, Irish and Japanese. Hopefully, this will lead to less of a pack mentality, with people chasing the latest mob-endorsed unicorn, and more enjoyment of what they personally understand and prefer.

What’s the one dram you couldn’t live without?
A great seven- to twelve-year-old bourbon — and of course, I prefer Yellowstone.

Many thanks to Stephen Beam. Who will be our next Whisky Insider? Check back soon to find out!