Behind the whiskey / FILM 14 / 37 SECONDS
The Humble Jar
An early mistake, kept in a Ball jar.
By Old Treasure · September 7, 2026
From our recorded conversations at Whiskey Thief.
BEHIND THE CONVERSATION
An early mistake, kept in a Ball jar.
Lisa once saved an early distillate in a jar because it was bad. She called it the humble jar. Looking back at her time at Limestone Branch, she remembers it as a useful reminder of how she began.
The jar also gave her a way to encourage someone learning. Getting it wrong is an experience she knows firsthand. She later threw the jar away and wishes she hadn’t; the lesson was worth keeping.
Read the full film transcript
I've made every single mistake you could possibly make. My first distillate that I made at Limestone Branch, I used to keep a little Ball jar of it and I called it my “humble jar” because it was so bad. But I was so proud that I'd made it that I kept it, and then finally I tossed it out. I wish I'd kind of kept it now, but I got to where I couldn't even taste it anymore. It'd be cool for you to have kept it so that way when you had new, up-and-coming distillers that were hard on themselves, be like, “No, this is my first thing. I'm crushing it now, but look what I used to do.” And then you learn the flaws because you’re like, “I messed up this fermentation and this is what’s wrong with it.” You can at least share the story.
Story adapted from the accompanying filmed conversation. Guest makers describe their own experiences and methods; these are not production specifications for Old Treasure.
