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Beyoncé's release of "Cowboy Carter" in 2024 was a cultural moment, and a time when the singer firmly rewrote the narrative on the breadth of her career and who was allowed in the country music space. In true Beyoncé fashion, she followed the release of the album with a flurry of activity — and one of her moves was to enter the whiskey world. Beyoncé expanded her empire with the launch of her own whiskey line, SirDavis, which was inspired by her great-grandfather and former "moonshiner" Davis Hogue. "When I discovered that my great-grandfather had been a moonshine man, it felt like my love for whisky was fated," the singer said in a statement about SirDavis, seen via CNN. "SirDavis is a way for me to pay homage to him, uniting us through a new shared legacy."

This wasn't just an opportunistic move, though: Beyoncé's whiskey had been in development for several years, and clearly stems from her genuine enjoyment of the drink. SirDavis has a spicy, fruity mouthfeel, sitting somewhere between a Japanese and a Scotch whisky, and clearly speaks to the singer's specific tastes when it comes to the drink. Each bottle also comes emblazoned with a horse, fitting in with the Cowboy Carter aesthetic.

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When Kiefer Sutherland wasn't running around as Jack Bauer, defusing bombs and preventing cyberwarfare, we like to think that he was kicking back at the end of a long day on set with a glass of Canadian whisky. The actor's love of the drink runs deep, and began at a pretty young age, an origin story that he explained during the launch of his own beverage Red Bank whisky. "When I was 15 I was cast in a play and the next youngest person in the cast was 32 years old," he said to Master of Malt. "One night he took pity on me and he took me to the bar. I ordered a Coke and was told I needed to order a proper drink. My parents drank J&B, this was the early '80s so it was still the biggest whisky in the world then, and so that's what I ordered."

It seems that at that moment, his love of whisky was set in stone — and he proceeded to fall further in love with Scottish single malts as the years went on. Eventually, though, he found his way back to the whisky-making traditions of his home country, and in making Red Bank whisky he fulfilled a longstanding dream. "My whole deal was that I wouldn't go forward with it unless it was something I could be proud of, and as a Canadian brand, something Canada could be proud of, and I think that we've accomplished that."

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It's probably no surprise whatsoever that Matthew McConaughey likes whiskey. The Texan actor has long had a reputation as a slightly rough-around-the-edges but lovable leading man, and his image cleanly fits in with him being a whiskey drinker. McConaughey's a particular fan of Kentucky bourbon (with the state containing the bourbon capital of the world), and he marked this with a collaboration with Wild Turkey. In 2016, McConaughey was brought on as the brand's creative director and worked with the Russell family, the driving force behind Wild Turkey, to develop Longbranch, his own spin on the liquor.

Longbranch whiskey is intended to be a marriage of Texan and Kentuckian whiskey traditions, and brings McConaughey's heritage to the front and center. The whiskey took two years to develop, but it seems like it was worth it. As for how he likes to drink his whiskey, McConaughey says that it depends on the time of day. If it's slightly earlier he likes it chilled, with a couple of rocks in the glass. At the end of the night, he takes it neat.

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Perhaps the most famous footballer in the world, David Beckham has long exuded a sense of sophistication in his post-game years. That sophistication has been paired with a host of products and endorsements that bolster his image, and just one of those is his Haig Club Clubman, a Scotch whisky. This isn't just a money-grab on Beckham's part, though: The sportsman is a noted admirer of the drink, and is a particular fan of an old fashioned. This is no bottom-shelf whiskey, folks, it's a classy one. 

It seems like Beckham's taste in whisky leans towards the lighter side. Haig Club Clubman is a gentler Scotch with notes of coconut and vanilla, which makes it an excellent liquor to pair with mixers. Beckham's especially proud of the ability for the whisky to be one that appeals to people who aren't traditional drinkers of the beverage — like his wife Victoria. "I asked her to try some and she said she wasn't a whisky drinker, but she did in the end and loved it," Beckham said to Harper's Bazaar. "I don't want this to be just for gentlemen, but for women too."

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Of all the people you think would love whiskey, you might not have pegged Hillary Clinton as among drinkers of the liquor. Well, she is: The former first lady and presidential nominee has been known for a while to enjoy the drink. Hillary Clinton has made her love of whiskey pretty public, and has even included it as a strategy to endear herself with certain voters. Back in 2008, for example, she was seen downing a shot of Crown Royal while on the trail to secure the presidential nomination from the Democratic party, which ultimately went to Barack Obama.

Some folks have even pegged Clinton's love of whiskey as a factor in increasing the appeal of it amongst women. Clinton and her public display of whiskey drinking have been associated with an increase in women drinking it overall. Other celebs like Rihanna, Mila Kunis, and Lady Gaga, who have all championed the drink, are also credited with the rise in women whiskey drinkers.

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When Mila Kunis isn't acting as the voice of Meg Griffin, you can often find her with a whiskey in her hand. Kunis' love of whiskey is relatively recent, and while she's a huge fan of the drink now, it took her a while to get on board with it. She started to lean towards whiskey after marrying Ashton Kutcher, who started to sway her taste. Kunis started by drinking the Penicillin cocktail, before moving on to enjoying the slightly more unfiltered bourbon on the rocks (Kutcher, in case you were wondering, is a fan of rye).

Kunis later solidified her fandom by becoming a spokeswoman for Jim Beam, fronting an ad campaign put out by the whiskey company. The partnership between Jim Beam and Kunis was informed by a mutual feeling that the whiskey market doesn't do enough with its female fanbase. "There's an emptiness in the market for females promoting brown spirits," Kunis said in an interview with Forbes. "I see women promoting wine and ultra-feminine drinks, and I think whiskey is not any less feminine. I wanted to open that door and say it's OK for women to order a whiskey and be just as empowered as if she ordered a Cosmo."

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Of all the major pop stars out there, Lady Gaga is probably the most likely of them to enjoy whiskey — and you'd be right if you think so. Her love of the drink clearly plays into the more rock-focused side of her persona, and so it's only fitting that she was pretty vocal about enjoying whiskey during her press tour for her "Born This Way" album, which had plenty of rock-influenced songs. Gaga cheekily made reference to her enjoyment of whiskey in an interview with British comedian Alan Carr. "The only thing I do straight is my whiskey," she slyly stated on his "Chatty Man" talk show over on YouTube, upon being offered a drink by the host.

Gaga's brand of choice is Jameson, which she cites as being behind the creative inspiration for some of her songs. We'd imagine this is less because of the whiskey itself, and more because of the effect it has on her writing — although she has cited the drink in the lyrics of her music. She's gone so far as to call Jameson her "longtime boyfriend" during a concert in Ireland. We'd imagine that went down a storm with the locals.

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The appeal of whiskey ranges a lot further than you think. Even members of the royal family are known to love this drink, and the late Queen Elizabeth II was known to be fond of it. The Queen was known to be a fan of The Famous Grouse, a Scotch whisky that starts its story in Perth in the early 1800s. It's no big surprise that Queen Elizabeth would lean towards Scotch over other types of whiskies, given her well-known love of Scotland and her extensive time spent at Balmoral Castle, where she died in 2022.

The Queen's love of The Famous Grouse was marked by her awarding the brand a royal warrant in 1984. Royal warrants are given to companies that are thought to produce quality goods that are worthy of supplying the royal households with their items. There are plenty of other whisky brands that have been given the warrant, including Royal Lochnagar, Johnnie Walker, and most recently Laphroaig. The latter is thought to be the favorite brand of King Charles III, who has previously praised its traditional production methods upon a visit to the distillery in 1994.

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When some celebrities score their own limited edition whiskey, it's not a huge surprise, such as the partnership between Lagavulin and "Parks and Recreation" star Nick Offerman. The comedy actor was awarded his own Lagavulin Offerman Edition Aged 11 Years, which he developed with the distillery in recognition of his love of its Scotch whisky. "'Carrying the signature Lagavulin Islay Single Malt peatiness with sweet berry and orchard fruit notes, this Scotch whisky is for those who adore Lagavulin's patented smoky flavor and the patience required to masterfully distill a Single Malt' is what they told me to say, but I would rather just tell you that I am giggling with delight at the notion of people enjoying this limited-edition Scotch," the actor said in a typically sly statement to The Scotsman.

Offerman's admiration for Lagavulin isn't just for show, either. He loves it so much that he's managed to work it into the story of perhaps his most famous character to date. In a season 6 episode of "Parks and Recreation," Offerman's character Ron Swanson makes a visit to Lagavulin distillery, which was clearly prompted by the actor's love of the drink.

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There must be something in the rock star handbook that states that all of its biggest stars must love whiskey. Our assumption of this is proved yet again in the form of Bob Dylan, who's been a longtime lover of the liquor and is well-known for his knowledge around the drink. Dylan's also dropped plenty of references to whiskey into his songs throughout the years, and given his knack for autobiographical songs, we can take his lyrics about drinking it as truth.

Additionally, Dylan has tapped into the ever-growing whiskey market with a product of his own. In 2018, he was the face of Heaven's Door Spirits, a whiskey that he conceived with entrepreneur Marc Bushala. Apparently, Dylan was more interested in how the whiskey would feel to drink than its specific formulation or how it would taste. It's also clear that he was approaching this newfound role as a whiskey creator from being a genuine fan, as opposed to just jumping on the bandwagon of celebs making liquors.

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Think of Frank Sinatra, and you likely think of many things — New York, Vegas, and iconic ballads being among them. What a lot of people also think about is likely whiskey, which makes sense given Sinatra's well-known love of the drink. Sinatra would famously drink whiskey during his concerts, and Jack Daniel's was his brand of choice. He was even credited with helping to turn the brand into the juggernaut it is today, through his vocal admiration of the drink at his shows. He even went so far as to call Jack Daniels the "nectar of the gods," according to the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation.

Sinatra would drink his Jack Daniel's on the rocks, but he also enjoyed his whiskey in other forms. The singer was a big fan of the rusty nail, a cocktail that requires only two ingredients. Sinatra would mix Scotch with Drambuie, and then serve it to his friends as they were hanging out backstage. We can think of worse evenings than hanging out with the Rat Pack sipping on cocktails, to be honest!

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Another day, another whiskey brand created by an aging rocker. This time, it's Rod Stewart's turn. In late 2023, Stewart launched his Wolfie's Whiskey, a blended Scotch with a warm, spicy flavor. In keeping with the singer's style, the whiskey has a puckish, trendy appearance and a diverse taste profile that reflects his multifaceted music.

This isn't just a cash grab on Stewart's part, though: He really is a fan of the liquor, and has been for a while. Interestingly, though, he was never one to drink it straight until relatively recently. "In Faces, we rarely drank whisky straight and often mixed it with orange juice, which wasn't the best concoction," he said in an article for Rolling Stone that discusses his release of Wolfie's. "After I met Duncan [Frew, the CEO of Wolfie's], I started drinking whisky a lot more and the liquid we tried was so smooth that I fell in love with it." We guess this is proof of something that we've always believed: It only takes one good whiskey to convert people to the drink for good.

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The image of the famous writer clutching a glass of whiskey is one that's as old as time, and the father of American literature Mark Twain certainly doesn't disappoint on that front. However, it might surprise you to hear that Twain was less enamored with whiskey, and more of a fan of whisky. Sounds like a tiny distinction, right? We'll explain. Whisky is the spelling that refers to the Scotch version of the drink, and this was Twain's drink of choice. Whiskey, the spelling that refers to the American version, was drunk by Twain earlier in his life but later took a backseat to the Scottish beverage.

It all changed for Twain when he was sailing to England in 1873. The writer (who was born Samuel Langhorne Clemens) was served a newfangled drink called a "cock-tail," which was a concoction of Scotch and lemon juice. Twain's taste quickly changed to accommodate the peatier version of the drink, and he became a committed fan of it from there on out. He would even be sent casks of Scotch as a gift from Andrew Carnegie, once the famed businessman found out that he loved the tipple.

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It probably doesn't come as a huge shock that one of the most famous hellraisers in rock is a fan of whiskey. True to form, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards is a famous acolyte of the drink. Richards is most famous for being a fan of Jack Daniel's, which he would frequently drink on stage back in his band's heyday. Bottles of the drink would sit next to cans of Coke and Coors beer as the Stones would rip through their hits, and we can credit the whiskey for a fair bit of the band's on-stage shenanigans (and, we can imagine, their off-stage ones too).

Nowadays, Richards is a little less likely to reach for a glass of Jack Daniel's on the regular, although it's fair to say that he still enjoys a drink. The rocker gave up many of his vices throughout the years, including kicking cigarettes in 2019. He's also moved on from many of his other favorite drinks, which would include a combination of vodka and orange soda. In his older years, he's embraced a slightly more sophisticated palette.