The shots are on her. Elizabeth McCall makes whiskey for a living, and she does it with help from the local farmers and gardeners of Woodford, Kentucky. “I do not drink all day,” she laughs, “but I do spend all day thinking about what’s in your drink.” (Hint: more sustainable grain alcohol, at least if Elizabeth has anything to do with it.)

What’s it like navigating a Southern heritage brand as a modern American woman? Why does your bottle of whiskey represent American trade laws? And how does Elizabeth balance her expertise with the worst kind of mansplainer—a drunk one? We asked the Kentucky native for her sobering advice.

How did you learn to make whiskey?
By majoring in psychology.

No…
I thought I’d be a therapist, and I commend every person who does that work. Mental health is so important. But it just wasn’t for me… I ended up at the sensory department at my company, because they look for people with a psych background.

What is a “sensory department?!”
It’s mainly doing tasting panels. I went home and gussied up my resume so it fit what they were looking for… Psych is key because the job is measuring how someone perceives our whiskey.

Did that job usually flow into the distillery?
No, but I fell in love with how we make whiskey. And pop culture started getting really into it; public interest exploded. At tastings, people would ask, “What are the rules about how to drink bourbon? Where exactly was it made?” I didn’t know, so I went down that rabbit hole. I took classes with our master distiller, and I was the girl with 10 million questions. Eventually, I was asked, “Do you want to train to be a master distiller?” Of course I did!

How much science did you need to learn on the job?
So much. Whiskey is a natural product. You have to be careful or distillation is really scary. You’re creating a pressurized ball, and you can blow things up if you don’t do it correctly… You’re basically making a bowl of porridge that can either turn into gold or literally explode. I learned a lot of chemistry and a lot of history.

You learned history?
Yeah! Bourbon really tells the story of American history, and specifically, the Cumberland Gap. The government said, “Move west! We’ll give you a plot of land if you move to Kentucky and grow corn.” And what did settlers do with leftover grain? Make alcohol. It became a form of currency in the West at that time. It was huge for economic development.

It’s hard to talk about Kentucky history without talking about slavery. How do you reckon with that part of whiskey’s past?
That’s a great question, and we have a lot going on in the [racial justice] space. When we talk about our site history, we acknowledge there were enslaved people working the property at that time. We won’t shun or shy away from that; it’s something we need to acknowledge. And as a company, we’re pushing ourselves to be inclusive at every level, and we have really strict protocols… I’m very proud of the work the company is doing.

How are you working with local farmers and agriculture experts?
I’m working directly on something big—The Kentucky Rye Project—because if you’re a large distillery, you’re probably sourcing your grain from Europe or northern areas, but nothing’s really local on a major scale. But rye is an amazing crop when it comes to soil health, which also impacts water health. To source it locally cuts down on your carbon emissions, helps root the soil and protect our waterways, and it supports local small farms.

Help: I don’t get the connection between your whiskey and the Kentucky Derby. Why is it “A Thing?”
Because of science, again! The world’s greatest racehorses come from Kentucky and it’s because of the limestone water. It has calcium, potassium, and magnesium. Mineral-rich water gives horses strong bones… We also use it to make our bourbon because it’s iron-free. Iron can give you off notes and decolor your whiskey. So we use Kentucky water to make our whiskey stronger, just like the racehorses do.

Help again: I want to like whiskey, but I have no idea what to drink.
Order it in a cocktail first. There’s an Old Fashioned, which is classic. It’s whiskey, simple syrup, bitters, and fruit. It’s very whiskey-forward. It’s boozy, but it’s got sugar, which cuts the ethanol impact on your palate so you don’t experience the harshness. There’s a Manhattan, which is also really boozy, but because it has sweet vermouth, it has a wine character. A Whiskey Sour is less alcohol-forward, because it’s got the juice component with lemon tartness. A bar should be able to make any of those 3 very easily!

As a female whiskey expert, how much mansplaining do you encounter?
It used to happen more, at tastings. I’ve had wonderful experiences with my male colleagues, but at a tasting, I’ve had an older gentleman go, “Let me help you understand this.” Or they’ll ask me a question, I answer it, and then they say “Well actually…” and answer it again—using my words!

How do you handle it while still being professional?
I try to let it roll off my back. If somebody’s gonna do that, it’s not my job to change them. You power forward. As a woman, the best thing you can do is know why you’re in the room. “You are qualified, and you are the best person to have this job.” I feel sometimes I can forget that… but I’m where I’m supposed to be. I worked hard for this role.