Head of Sensory & Distillery Quality Control

Heaven Hill Brands; Bardstown (KY); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Vacation

11 Paid Holidays

Health, Dental & Vision eligibility

FSA/HSA

401K match

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

Maternity/Paternity Leave

Job summary

Heaven Hill Brands seeks a Director of Sensory & Distillery Quality Control to lead an enterprise-wide sensory and quality program across our distilled spirits portfolio. This role guides sensory strategy, panel governance, and blending across Bernheim and Springs distilleries, with travel between Louisville, Bardstown, and other Heaven Hill sites.

The ideal candidate has advanced degrees and 12+ years in sensory science, microbiology, fermentation, maturation, and blending leadership, with

Qualifications

• Advanced degree (MS or Ph.D.) in Microbiology, Fermentation Science, Food Science, Chemistry or related field.
• Minimum 12 years in sensory science, microbiology, fermentation, maturation, blending, and/or quality leadership.
• Experience building and leading enterprise-level quality and/or sensory programs.
• Deep experience in distilled spirits production, bourbon and American Whiskey.
• Expertise in sensory methodologies and statistical analysis.

Responsibilities

• Lead quality control programs across all distillery operations from grain handling to maturation.
• Establish microbiological control strategies across fermentation and processing systems.
• Define, implement, and enforce process control standards with production teams.
• Provide technical leadership on fermentation performance and yeast management.
• Lead sensory and quality strategy for blending and aged whiskey inventory.
• Develop and maintain enterprise sensory governance and panel programs.
• Integrate data from microbiological, analytical and inventory sources.
• Partner with operations, maturation, and commercial teams to align blending with brand standards.

Skills

Sensory science

Quality leadership

Fermentation science

Distilled spirits

Statistical analysis

Cross-functional leadership

Continuous improvement

Education

MS/PhD in Microbiology

Fermentation science degree

Tools

SAS

Quality Management Systems

Job description

Heaven Hill Brands seeks a Director of Sensory & Distillery Quality Control to lead an enterprise-wide sensory and quality program across our distilled spirits portfolio. This role guides sensory strategy, panel governance, and blending across Bernheim and Springs distilleries, with travel between Louisville, Bardstown, and other Heaven Hill sites.

The ideal candidate has advanced degrees and 12+ years in sensory science, microbiology, fermentation, maturation, and blending leadership, with