Old Forester Master Taster Melissa Rift in a suit, leaning against a wall of bourbon plaques.

Old Forester’s Melissa Rift Took the Long Way to Master Taster, and Found Belonging in Bourbon

September 25, 2026/in Culture, Hospitality/by Macey Fix

From her back porch in Louisville, Old Forester’s Master Taster Melissa Rift guided me through how to enter the world of bourbon. She suggested starting with cocktails, like whiskey sours and highballs, then working up to lower-proof pours in the 80-90 proof range. She said that while her personal favorite pour changes with the seasons, she’s come to appreciate the art of drinking on the rocks and is usually either drinking a 100-proof bourbon or rye these days.

She shared a trick she learned from Old Forester’s Master Distiller Chris Morris, where you use small ice cubes with a double pour, so the drink gets slightly slushy. The result, she said, tastes similar to sweet tea.

Rift’s knowledge of and passion for bourbon are palpable, and it’s clear why the country’s first brand to bottle bourbon chose her to be its primary storyteller. However, her path to master taster was not a direct one.

Melissa Rift’s Unconventional Path Into Bourbon

While Rift was born in Louisville, she spent her formative years in North Dallas. She returned to the Bluegrass State in her 20s for a master’s degree in social work and marriage and family therapy from the University of Louisville. Although her studies focused on counseling, a few side gigs and some time spent exploring the Bourbon Trail changed the trajectory of her career.

“Accessing bourbon by way of the Bourbon Trail was just a recipe for sucking me into [the industry] because it totally spoke to what I loved,” said Rift.

With a newly sparked interest in bourbon and a need for extra cash, Rift started taking work that kept her close to the industry. She drove Louisville’s Thirsty Pedaler and bartended at a brewery. Eventually, she landed a role as a distillery tour guide, which quickly became full-time, launching a career in bourbon.

Over the following years, Rift built a diverse set of skills. She became deeply familiar with the history of bourbon, learned about brand management and even launched a single barrel program, which deepened her understanding of production and tasting.

“I had gained this unique skill in being able to translate the technical side of bourbon to all audiences,” said Rift. “Because I had just fallen into the industry and done all these different things over the course of seven to ten years, I was well suited to step into the master taster role.”

Rift became Old Forester’s master taster in November 2022, a role combining all the pieces of her unconventional path through the industry. According to Rift, the role of master taster marries the technical side of whiskey production with brand education and consumer experiences.

When talking about her place in bourbon, Rift said she’s thankful for those who came before her.

“By the time I get engaged in the industry, there is a lot of equality happening. There’s a lot more women in the workforce. There’s a lot more interest in diversifying who you have working on your brands to be able to speak to different audiences,” said Rift. “I always say, especially, from a women in the workplace perspective, there was definitely one, maybe two cohorts ahead of me that really kicked the doors down.”

While Rift credited the cohorts ahead of her with kicking the doors down, she continues to widen that gap. Rift has been out for her entire career, speaks openly about her family and identity, advocates for inclusivity and is vocal about what she expects from employers. Overall, Rift said she’s been able to work around and among many like-minded people, and said she’s found that the bourbon industry today is a welcoming and surprisingly gay place to be.

What Bourbon and the Queer Community Share

For Rift, the connection between the bourbon industry and the queer community runs deeper than a shared love of Kentucky’s signature spirit.

“Bourbon’s all about storytelling. If you think about the way the queer community thrives and survives, it is by way of storytelling. That’s like how we exist. It’s how we carry traditions forward,” said Rift. “Resilience is also a theme that is shared between bourbon and the queer community. There’s so many parallels you can find in the way that bourbon has existed, that queer people have existed.”

Rift’s own unconventional path into the industry plays into that idea of resilience, and proves that there’s not a right way to enter the world of bourbon. For her, bourbon is all about the stories and traditions people carry forward, and the communities built along the way.

See Melissa Rift at Bourbon & Belonging

Old Forester will host the Whiskey Row Garden Party on Friday, Oct. 2, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at 119 W. Main St. in Louisville, with seasonal cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and live music on the rooftop terrace. The event is free, but capacity is limited. Details and RSVP at bourbonandbelonging.com.

Bourbon & Belonging: Kentucky’s Queer Bourbon Week will take place October 1-4, 2026, across Kentucky. For the full slate of events, visit bourbonandbelonging.com.

Disclosure: Bourbon & Belonging is produced by Queer Kentucky, and Old Forester is a sponsor of the event. Melissa Rift is a former member of the Queer Kentucky board of directors.

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