Lynne Dant of Log Still Distillery: Why Rebuilding Your Family's Pre-Prohibition Legacy Requires Embracing The Uncomfortable

The world of wine and spirits is not only about the nuances of taste, aroma, and presentation but also about understanding the intricacies of the business, mastering the craft, and building meaningful relationships. It’s an industry rich in tradition, yet ever-evolving with trends, technologies, and tastes. Navigating this fascinating landscape requires a blend of passion, knowledge, strategy, and a touch of artistry. In this series, we aim to shed light on the key ingredients that brew success in the wine and spirits industry. We’re speaking to industry veterans, master sommeliers, distillers, marketers, and professionals in the wine and spirits industry to discuss the essential elements needed to create a highly successful career in the industry. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Lynne Dant.

Lynne Dant — Chief Operating Officer, Head Distiller, Co-Founder

Lynne brings her global and domestic experience from the past 28 years in operations, manufacturing, marketing, sales and business development to Log Still Distillery. With a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from the University of Dayton and MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, her crucial work as Co-Founder, Chief Operating Officer, and Head Distiller has laid the foundation for the company’s rapidly expanding operations. Her efforts, leadership, and intentional forethought established the infrastructure for raising a production facility and amenities to a massive player and destination venue in the bourbon industry.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about your origin story, and your childhood?

I was born and raised in Louisville, KY — the granddaughter of a tobacco industry buyer and a bourbon whiskey distiller, the daughter of two teachers, and the 3rd of four children in my family. I am a Catholic Christian and my faith is very important to me. I loved both school and sports growing up; being raised by teachers helped me appreciate the importance of a good education, and I loved the competition and collegiality of team sports. My favorite subjects were math and science (yes, I was a nerd!), which led me to a chemical engineering career path.

Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to the wine and spirits industry?

I am a fifth-generation distiller. My great-great-grandfather was one of the earliest distillers in Kentucky, and many generations of my family before me were very prevalent in the industry before Prohibition. After Prohibition, my grandfather continued distilling on the property where my cousins and I opened our distillery. My grandfather, whose oldest son worked with him, sold the business, as my father and most of my uncles were enlisted during WWII and Korea (and unfortunately, my aunts -women- were not considered options to run the distillery in those days). The property changed hands many times, and in 2019, my cousin purchased the property, and I joined him as his first employee to build the destination distillery campus we have today at Log Still (distillery, Tasting Room, 6 B&B’s, 2300-seat amphitheater, 20,000-sq-ft events & wedding venue, 12-acre fishing lake, train depot, and -coming soon- restaurant).

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

For me, the most interesting “story” is the resurfacing and reconnecting with the past. The collection of stories I’ve heard about my grandfather and his distillery/the relatives I’ve met that I didn’t know before/and the items from my grandfather’s distillery (blueprints, old bottles, distillery equipment) that people have brought us and donated back to us/this distillery, in celebration of what is being rebuilt here at Log Still has been incredible. While family has always been core to who I am and how I was raised, the importance of both family and community has really stood out in the welcoming spirit of this southern Nelson County community: supporting each other is so important.

It has been said that sometimes our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that? Maybe this would be thinking that we could do so much in such a short period of time. We had several projects we were building/implementing in parallel, and experienced consultants would caution us to rethink our timeline. I learned that I would have gotten more sleep if I had listened to the consultants (but we’d be behind where we are now)!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?

I think the key for me is that, yes, I have had my share of help along the way, but I would not single out any one particular individual. As I have been through a variety of experiences and assignments throughout my life and career, I have found lots of mentors along the way, connecting with different guides and mentors for different parts of my journey. My parents, of course, have always been my foundational source of support, but there have been teachers and coaches who helped me learn not just subject matter and skills, but life lessons as well. I’ve had bosses who have given me both great guidance in my career as well as tough feedback when it was needed. For me the important thing is to understand where you need insight and guidance and to seek that out.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

1. Pushing myself out of my comfort zone — I have a desire to constantly grow and learn, and in order to do that, I have had to push myself outside of my comfort zone. I think two examples stand out that give a sense of this: first would be choosing a 10-day hike in the Himalayas as my first outdoor camping experience (“go big or go home”!) — I really wanted to travel to that part of the world, and the opportunity came in the form of a camping trip, so I talked to a lot of folks who were outdoors people and read up on similar experiences and had a blast! I also learned I could really stretch myself and come out ok! A second example would be accepting a promotion and succeeding in a plant manager role early in my career — as (one of) the youngest plant managers in the Fortune 500 company where I was working. It was a bit of a stretch for me, but I learned a lot about myself and managing others, and while I had some missteps along the way, I think people knew I was generally trying to help us all achieve together — and we did hit some key milestones!

2. Empathy — I think concern for others is critical in life. As a leader, it is so important to realize that people make up our teams, and each individual on the team has their own set of experiences, skills, and motivations. While it is important to set goals and push to achieve those, it is more important to realize that a balance of compassion is important in doing that pressing. As a young leader, I had to make some really tough decisions, and one of our most experienced team leaders told me, after-the-fact, that he knew I would make it as a leader when he saw the deep concern I had for those whom my decisions impacted. I had not taken my decisions lightly, but I did not realize how evident my concern for others was in that process…and most importantly, how that concern was valued by my team.

3. Attention to Detail (“perfectionist”) — this can be both a strength and weakness, and I still have to balance what level of detail and accuracy is necessary at times (I’m an engineer by training, and we’re wired this way!). I want things to be at the highest level of quality they can be, and I push for that, but it is important to bring in the “80/20” rule and recognize when extra effort is giving diminishing returns.

Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? How do you think that will help people? I love the second part of this question!

Yes, we have an exciting project we are working on — building a restaurant for our campus. I love the “how will it help people” part of the question, because “giving back to the community” is a key part of our mission at Log Still. The restaurant will both provide jobs and economic development for members of the community, as well as provide a place where family and friends can join to enjoy each other’s company and create lasting memories.

Ok. Thank you for all that. Let’s now jump to the main core of our interview. Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the wine and spirits industry today?

1 . The growth of the industry. We are experiencing exciting growth in the distilled spirits industry (US volume growing at almost 5% in 2022, more than double the rate of economic growth overall), and that allows for good momentum in expanding distribution for a new company like ourselves.

2 . The creativity of the players in the market. As the market grows, with good headwinds, that allows for more creative product development and offerings. With a small-scale distillery as part of our amenities at Log Still, in addition to our full-scale distillery, this allows us to play with multiple product offerings for our customers — which is fun!

3 . The opportunity to blend hospitality with spirits. At Log Still, we are creating a new model for how family and friends can come together to enjoy spirits responsibly…by adding many hospitality amenities on our distillery campus — B&B’s, an amphitheater, restaurant and event venues, a fishing lake, a train depot, etc. Creating such a fun environment for people to come together and create fun experiences and memories is really special.

Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest?

1 . The growth of the industry. While the energizing pace of growth is one of the most exciting areas of the industry, we are also adding capacity at an unprecedented pace, and balancing these two factors is an important consideration of long-term success.

2 . Not so much a concern but more a cautionary item: the industry currently has an element of responsible consumption in all its advertising, and it is my expectation that the industry will not just continue this but continue to evolve this messaging to meet the needs of our society.

3 . The regulatory environment for distilled spirits (vs wine and beer). Some legislative success has occurred in the recent past, but equality of spirits with wine and beer in the US, relative to direct-to consumer shipping and a level playing field for Ready-to-Drink beverages are important hurdles to still overcome.

You are a “Wine and Spirits Insider”. If you had to advise someone about 5 non-intuitive things one should know to succeed in the wine and spirits industry, what would you say? Can you please give a story or an example for each?

1 . Having a strong team! People are our most important asset, not brands or facilities. When starting up the distillery, I was told that we would be able to find workers fairly quickly. However, we have been very deliberate about our hiring process and worked hard to bring in people to match the family culture we are building. The approach has really paid off, as one industry insider (a 30+ year veteran) indicated that our team was one of the best he’d encountered in his entire career! We have a team who enjoys working together and does great work as a team, and as a result we produce great spirits and enjoy doing so!

2 . Persistence is key. Taking on the creation of a business is no small task, involving many ups and downs. The important thing is to keep striving toward the end goal, having confidence in your team and your own abilities to reach that goal. My brother wisely told me “things are never as good as they seem, and things are never as bad as they seem.” That has helped me keep perspective and moving forward to achieve great things with the team.

3 . Networking is very important. Especially in the whiskey industry, I have found it to be an extremely collegial industry on the manufacturing side. We operate in a “rising tides lift all boats” mindset where folks are glad to provide guidance, insight and support. Women especially do not tend to network as much as men, and networking is an aspect which I often have to remind myself to continue. In doing so, I have met and established an incredible and growing network of colleagues.

4 . Keep learning, keep moving forward. The wine and spirits industry is one that is continually evolving, and there is always more to learn — something I really love about it! One veteran and well-respected master distiller once asked me at an industry function how things were going. When I responded, “Things are going well, but I still have so much to learn!” he replied, “We are ALL still learning!” It was a great comment because it made me realize how much room for growth and opportunity there is for all of us in the industry!

5 . Keep a long-term perspective. With products that won’t hit the shelves until years after they’re produced, long term planning is critical, especially for a small and growing company.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

I believe that “giving back and paying it forward” is an important way to live. In a world of such diversity, we all have different gifts that can contribute to the whole for better results than if we try to go it alone. My mother taught me “all of us are smarter than some of us”. I have many examples of teams that I have been on that succeeded — in school, in sports, in the workplace — because we had a good diverse group of individuals who came together to accomplish a common goal.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

An area that continues to concern me is the state of education in our country. We continue to ask more of our teachers with little to no “reward” for their efforts — it is becoming harder, it seems, to attract and retain teachers — the ones in our society who are educating and training our leaders of tomorrow and who touch every citizen’s life in the most important years of development. With so many family members and friends who are in/have been in the teaching profession, I continue to hear of bright, young minds who are leaving for other careers. I do not know what the answer is, but I think if we can ensure that those with the talents and desire to educate and train our youth would have long fulfilling careers in the field of education, that would certainly vie for an area that would provide the “most amount of good to the greatest amount of people”.

Thank you so much for the time you spent with this. We wish you only continued success!

About the Interviewer: Douglas E. Noll, JD, MA was born nearly blind, crippled with club feet, partially deaf, and left-handed. He overcame all of these obstacles to become a successful civil trial lawyer. In 2000, he abandoned his law practice to become a peacemaker. His calling is to serve humanity, and he executes his calling at many levels. He is an award-winning author, teacher, and trainer. He is a highly experienced mediator. Doug’s work carries him from international work to helping people resolve deep interpersonal and ideological conflicts. Doug teaches his innovative de-escalation skill that calms any angry person in 90 seconds or less. With Laurel Kaufer, Doug founded Prison of Peace in 2009. The Prison of Peace project trains life and long terms incarcerated people to be powerful peacemakers and mediators. He has been deeply moved by inmates who have learned and applied deep, empathic listening skills, leadership skills, and problem-solving skills to reduce violence in their prison communities. Their dedication to learning, improving, and serving their communities motivates him to expand the principles of Prison of Peace so that every human wanting to learn the skills of peace may do so. Doug’s awards include California Lawyer Magazine Lawyer of the Year, Best Lawyers in America Lawyer of the Year, Purpose Prize Fellow, International Academy of Mediators Syd Leezak Award of Excellence, National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals Neutral of the Year. His four books have won a number of awards and commendations. Doug’s podcast, Listen With Leaders, is now accepting guests. Click on this link to learn more and apply.