Spring is always a time for fresh starts and contemplating new horizons, a time when we shake free from the cold hand of winter and revel in a world of growing possibility. It is a season characterized by potential, that glimmer of what well might be that isn’t always grasped or seen by everybody. And the perfect time, we felt, to celebrate the spirited women of craft.
Not that women producing spirits is anything new; in many cultures it was women who traditionally fulfilled this important communal need. Neither is it remarkable today to find women driving trends in spirits preparation, consumption, or just about anything in the world, for that matter. The only thing that is remarkable, really, is that no one finds it remarkable.
The world is changing. We are entering a time unencumbered by preconceived notions. And what is exciting is that it is not only external prejudices, those that give rise to such things as discrimination and gender roles, that are being abolished, but the internal, self-imposed constraints as well. A girl today doesn’t necessarily see herself as a future housewife, secretary, or supermodel. She’s just a girl, and anything is possible.
The same goes for craft spirits. Molds are being broken right and left. Decades of stagnation are being negated in a flurry of new tastes and flavors. There are people making whiskey that doesn’t go down smooth, on purpose. And they are able to do that because their product has personal significance for someone, and because a free and willing market exists with which to share it.
We should never fear change. We should always embrace it; because, in all probability, the inevitability of its course is set already. To resist is to only penalize one’s self, and to miss, not only the potential opportunity, but the catharsis of the moment.
