Lia Niskanen

Founder

Lia Niskanen is dedicated to the power of story telling, and is a passionate whiskey advocate.
Lia is an Executive Bourbon Steward (Stave and Thief Society) and award-winning distillery visitor experience professional with a deep passion for whiskey history.

Most recently, Lia spearheaded the premiere public tour program for Kings County Distillery in Brooklyn, New York. As their first Manager of Tours and Events, Lia created and developed KCD’s onsite distillery tour, winning the TripAdvisor “Certificate of Excellence” in 2017, 2018, and 2019. During her tenure at KCD, Lia also executed a wide roster of other educational activities including private tours, tastings, classes, and large events. Pivoting during the pandemic shutdowns, she created a virtual whiskey tasting program for a range of corporate and private guests.

Prior to her tenure at Kings County Distillery, Lia developed and conducted day long tours of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail for Mint Julep Tours in Louisville Ky, educating and entertaining guests with history and production information on such landmarks distilleries as Jim Beam, Makers Mark, Woodford Reserve, and Buffalo Trace.
She is now embarking on a new venture as founder of "Barrel Strength Talent", providing a dynamic roster of world class spirits creators and industry insider professionals for virtual and in person events nationwide.