We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jaime Lamping a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jaime, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

Here at 8th Day Distillery, we pride ourselves in making bold full-flavored spirits such as bourbon, rye, rum, absinthe, and more, using ingredients sourced as locally as possible. We firmly believe that when one small business is supported, it can help enhance all small businesses. We get our corn, rye, and malt from a local farm at Sugar Creek Malt in Lebanon, Indiana. Our canned cocktails such, as The Earl, utilize honey from a local honey farm in southern Indiana. The distillery has a procution side and our Bottle Shop & Cocktail Bar where our bartenders use local ingredients to craft unique cocktails to share with our incredible patrons.

It has been truly humbling to see regulars who believe in our mission of supporting our local communities by creating a positive, inviting, and safe space for all to come and enjoy high-quality spirits. We are always grateful to our patrons who’ve shared our story with friends, family, and the general public. It is thanks to our patrons that we have been able to thrive in Indianapolis.

We couldn’t do what we do without our amazing team. We didn’t know that opening a distillery would fabricate this amazing culture and an astonishing community. It is truly humbling to see where we are today from where we started. Here at 8th Day Distillery, we are all about celebrating the dreamers, the doers, and all the people pouring themselves into their passion as much as we pour into ours. We want to be remembered for not only the good times imbibing but the community we have built.

Jaime, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

We are Matt & Jaime Lamping, husband and wife duo making our dream a reality. Throughout the years, we have often had a conversation about wanting to live life without regrets. That intention led us to the idea that if we could only have an 8th Day in the week, what would we do with it? The answer we landed on was to make locally sourced, hand-crafted spirits and cocktails, and to curate experiences around them that would inspire others to live without regrets.


In 2015, we signed a lease on the near East side of downtown Indy, bought equipment, and started filling barrels of bourbon. With boots on the ground, we launched Gin and Rum to the market getting our brand and products on the shelves of different Indy bars, restaurants, and liquor stores. 

In 2018, we opened the Bottle Shop & Cocktail Bar. Here you can enjoy cocktails, mocktails, bottles, and cans to go. We rotate our menu utilizing what’s in season. We host regular popups in partnership with local businesses. Every quarter, we feature new artists’ creations in our space and invite you to hang out in our hip living room atmosphere.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

We had been in business for 2 years in the Bottle Shop & Cocktail Bar then Covid hit. We were just getting in our groove and dusting off the “new business dust”. We had to pivot, keep the lights on, and still pay our people as I know this was a struggle for most businesses.
During this weird and uncertain time, we were able to sock away a lot of barrels of aged spirits. Flashing forward 4 years that bourbon is now mature. Before Covid we did not have bourbon in distribution and now flash forward 4 years we are ready to release that into the wild.
We were able to put processes into place in case something like this happens again so we can survive and thrive once again!

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Never in my wildest dreams would I have pictured working alongside my husband. We are a husband and wife duo making things happen. We met when we were teens and started dating in 2002 when we were in high school. High school sweethearts! We have been together ever since and supoort each other entirely. Matt and I have different roles within 8th Day. Matt handles production, finances, and anything manufacturing 8th Day while I handle HR, admin, sales, and the bar. We have a small but mighty team that keeps this business moving forward. Some days it is difficult to have that work-life balance when we are both so immersed in the business and live a half mile from 8th Day, but it is such a blessing to be able to create yet another beautiful thing with the person you love.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.8thdaydistillery.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/8thdaydistillery/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/8thdaydistillery
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/8th-day-distillery-indianapolis

Image Credits

Grant Kinast