Lisa Wicker

“Widows, Lyons, and Thieves”

Lisa Roper Wicker’s route to the stillhouse runs through workbenches, costume racks, vineyards, and, eventually, some of the most talked-about whiskey rooms in America. She grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, where her father was an electrical and mechanical engineer, so that creating things felt normal. As a teenager she realized for the first time that, as she put it, “People could make alcohol for a living.” It was a notion that would take root as she moved from the arts to agriculture and finally to whiskey.

Early on, Wicker built a life in the world of performance, as she founded a costume shop that supported dance productions in southern Indiana. Then when friends talked her into helping in a grape harvest, the practical, hands-on work immediately clicked, so she moved seamlessly into viticulture. There, Wicker apprenticed in several Midwestern wineries and learned production the hands-on way; at the same time, college course work patched in at UC Davis and Purdue. That winery-to-distillery pivot became the spine of her story: learn by doing, then carry the lessons forward.

When she stepped into whiskey, first at Limestone Branch Distillery in Lebanon, Kentucky, she proved to possess an instinct for flavor and production constraints, and soon helped put the young distillery on the map with her locally famous “MoonPie Moonshine,” a hit that kept the lights on while her barreled whiskey aged. Lisa’s role at Limestone Branch sharpened both her blending and process chops, and it led to consulting work with Starlight Distillery in Indiana, Preservation Distillery in Bardstown, and George Washington’s Distillery at Mount Vernon. It was George Washington that she learned open-fire pot-still practice, which she used when she later collaborated on historic spirits. Those years made her an “itinerant distiller” in the best sense: comfortable moving between still types, mash bills, and brand voices, and just as comfortable switching from cellar notebooks to public-facing work. By 2018, Wicker was distilling at Mount Vernon on wood-fired pots, helping set sensory standards in historically accurate runs, and gaining experience that would color her approach to cuts and texture from that point on.

Wicker’s highest-profile chapter came at Widow Jane Distillery in Brooklyn, New York. Hired as a distiller and distillery manager, she quickly became Head Distiller and President. At Widow Jane, she blended deep stocks of mature whiskey, built brand-defining releases like The Vaults and Decadence, and tied production to agriculture by advancing the cultivation of an heirloom corn cross used for the distillery’s own-make. She also extended Widow Jane’s footprint back into Kentucky, distilling at Castle & Key while proving out her belief that water, grain, and wood should be treated as musical “notes” a blender can harmonize.

In late 2022 Wicker took on a new challenge as CEO and Master Distiller of Lyons Brewing & Distilling (part of the Alltech family that includes Town Branch Distillery in Lexington and Pearse Lyons in Dublin, Ireland), returning her to Kentucky full-time while widening her operational scope across multiple facilities. The role showcased her ability to lead at scale by balancing brand building, production bandwidth, and agricultural inputs. A brief and turbulent 2024 interlude followed as Master Distiller at Garrard County Distilling Co., a major new Kentucky project. Her tenure there was short, and the distillery later folded; Wicker moved forward undeterred and quickly, bringing the same steadiness that has marked her career.

In June 2025, Whiskey Thief Distilling Company in Franklin County, Kentucky, announced Wicker as its Director of Distilling. Whiskey Thief, rebuilt and expanded in recent years by owner and “Chief Thief” Walter Zausch, hosts tens of thousands of visitors annually and later added a posh Louisville tasting room as its profile grew. Wicker’s arrival at the farm distillery came as the team leaned into single-barrel, hands-on experiences; her mandate is to guide distilling with an eye for nuance while nurturing the house style. Inside Whiskey Thief, Wicker works shoulder-to-shoulder with Zausch and COO Jeffrey Markowitz, as well as a distilling bench that brims with up-and-comers Brandon Reynolds, Kelley Tennille, and Benjamin Eaves. In a company culture that spotlights both hospitality and production, her role functions as both compass and coach: setting sensory targets, mentoring colleagues, and translating years of experience into repeatable floor practices.

The personal throughline across all of this is Wicker’s family and persistence. She is married and the mother of three grown kids, Rachel, Jordan, and Meg. Public remarks and profiles over the years describe years of moves as her devoted family followed, with Wicker balancing child-rearing and career before returning decisively to beverage alcohol.

As if her plethora of accomplishments were not enough, Wicker was also commissioned a Kentucky Colonel in 2024.

Lisa Roper Wicker’s story is the story of a maker who has kept moving until the work matched the curiosity, and then kept moving anyway, taking good people with her. And it’s for that reason that the Whiskey Thief chapter fits: it’s practical, public, and rooted in Kentucky, a place where Wicker’s long apprenticeship to flavor now leads a team into the next run.

Sources:

Whiskey Thief Distilling website, “Wicker Joins Whiskey Thief…”, whiskeythief.com
The Spirits Business, Ted Simmons, June 2025, thespiritsbusiness.com
Distillery Trail, “Wicker Takes on New Role”, May 29, 2025, distillerytrail.com
Whisky Advocate, “Lisa Roper Wicker Joins Whiskey Thief…”, Julia Higgins, June 2, 2025
Lexington Herald-Leader, “Fired Distiller Snapped Up…”, Janet Patton, May 30, 2025
American Whiskey Magazine, “From Wine to Whiskey”, americanwhiskeymag.com
Whisky Magazine interview, Maggie Kimberl, January 30, 2023, whiskymag.com
New Wine Review, “Whiskey Gifts Moms Actually Want”, Susannah Skiver Barton, April 26, 2024

Contributed by Tracy McLemore, Fairview, Tennessee