Full Name
Mel Heim
Job Title
CEO & Head of Product
Company
Big Nose Brands dba Big Nose Kate Whiskey
Speaker Bio
Mel Heim is a true renaissance woman in the spirits industry - a Jane-of-all-trades and a living example of potential over credentials. With an early love for craft beer and a liberal arts degree on pause, she followed her curiosity into the world of spirits, inspired by the growing wave of craft operators in her hometown. Taking a leap of faith, she accepted an apprenticeship at Rogue Ales & Spirits, never imagining it would spark a 17-year (and counting) career.
Her path has been anything but linear. From running a rum operation, to starting over as a part-time labeler, to ultimately rising to EVP of Operations and taking a craft distillery all the way to NASDAQ, Heim’s journey reflects grit, vision, and relentless reinvention. Named to *Wine Enthusiast’s* 40 Under 40 in 2017, she is now CEO and Head of Product at Big Nose Kate Whiskey, the company she co-founded, where she continues to defy convention and build with purpose.
Early on, Heim also discovered how rare it was to see women in the distilling world. At her first American Craft Spirits Festival in 2008, she stood in a room of “great men - but all men, nonetheless.” Determined to change the landscape, she conceptualized The Clear Boots Society, modeled after the newly formed Pink Boots Society in beer, to support women in distilling. What began as clipboards at festivals and Facebook DMs grew into a network of women across every role in spirits—even though, at the time, there were fewer than 10 women distillers nationwide.
As the industry matured, that grassroots network evolved into Ladies of American Distilling (L.O.A.D.) - a name born from the heavy weight women carried in a male-dominated field. L.O.A.D. grew to include 40 distillers and hundreds of operators. With scholarships and guerrilla marketing, the movement expanded further into the Women’s Distillers Guild, a group so large it became untenable for its volunteer board. Heim and her counterparts ultimately transitioned the community into Women of the Vine, broadening the internationally recognized platform to fully include spirits. Today, there are over 250 female head distillers in the U.S., with hundreds more climbing the ranks.
While widely respected for her innovative recipe development and industry accolades, Heim considers her greatest achievement to be serving as a rung in the ladder for others to climb. She remains both mentor and advisor to women entering the business, committed to creating the pathways that didn’t exist when she began. A pioneer, advocate, and leader, she continues to push the boundaries of what the spirits industry can look like - and who gets to shape it. She jokes that it’s now rarer to find a left-handed distiller than a female one - though she proudly claims both titles.
Her path has been anything but linear. From running a rum operation, to starting over as a part-time labeler, to ultimately rising to EVP of Operations and taking a craft distillery all the way to NASDAQ, Heim’s journey reflects grit, vision, and relentless reinvention. Named to *Wine Enthusiast’s* 40 Under 40 in 2017, she is now CEO and Head of Product at Big Nose Kate Whiskey, the company she co-founded, where she continues to defy convention and build with purpose.
Early on, Heim also discovered how rare it was to see women in the distilling world. At her first American Craft Spirits Festival in 2008, she stood in a room of “great men - but all men, nonetheless.” Determined to change the landscape, she conceptualized The Clear Boots Society, modeled after the newly formed Pink Boots Society in beer, to support women in distilling. What began as clipboards at festivals and Facebook DMs grew into a network of women across every role in spirits—even though, at the time, there were fewer than 10 women distillers nationwide.
As the industry matured, that grassroots network evolved into Ladies of American Distilling (L.O.A.D.) - a name born from the heavy weight women carried in a male-dominated field. L.O.A.D. grew to include 40 distillers and hundreds of operators. With scholarships and guerrilla marketing, the movement expanded further into the Women’s Distillers Guild, a group so large it became untenable for its volunteer board. Heim and her counterparts ultimately transitioned the community into Women of the Vine, broadening the internationally recognized platform to fully include spirits. Today, there are over 250 female head distillers in the U.S., with hundreds more climbing the ranks.
While widely respected for her innovative recipe development and industry accolades, Heim considers her greatest achievement to be serving as a rung in the ladder for others to climb. She remains both mentor and advisor to women entering the business, committed to creating the pathways that didn’t exist when she began. A pioneer, advocate, and leader, she continues to push the boundaries of what the spirits industry can look like - and who gets to shape it. She jokes that it’s now rarer to find a left-handed distiller than a female one - though she proudly claims both titles.
Speaking At
