As part of Women’s Month, we at Tipsy want to shine a light on our favorite women wine and spirit-makers, whether they’re new to the game or industry veterans.

Bridget Firtle, founder of Owney’s Rum, left a lucrative Wall Street job to start distilling rum in 2012, inspired by a vision to bring rum distilling back to her native New York City. Fertile gained experience in global alcoholic beverage investing while working at a hedge fund – and then one day had a daiquiri that changed her life.

“I remember trying a Hemingway daiquiri for the first time and being blown away! That night kick started my exploration into rum cocktails and inevitably into different types of rum from different regions of the world,” she told The Rum Lab in an interview. “That interest was cultivated alongside my keen following of the American distilling movement. A perfect storm of a love of rum, a trend in American distilling driven by changing legislation and a new consumer, the romanticism of history and entrepreneurial dreams erupted and here I am!”

Fertile also has spirits in her DNA – she grew up in Rockaway Beach, with a former speakeasy as a basement, and is just as enthralled in the history of distilling as she is by its future.

You can find Owney’s Rum ($38) at Tipsy.