Uncle Nearest Founder Fawn Weaver Published a Book This Year, But the Ascending Whiskey Brand’s Story Is Far From Over

Founder and CEO, Grant Sidney, Inc. and Uncle Nearest, Inc., Fawn Weaver speaking at the 2024 Forbes Power Women’s Summit at Jazz on Sept. 11 at Lincoln Center in New York, NY. (Photo by Efren Landaos/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)

When considering the American whiskey landscape, most thriving distilleries can be placed in one of three categories. You have the Goliaths — your old-school producers, who are deeply steeped in tradition and have built up decades of proof of concept and reputation. Then you have the young upstarts, your craft distilleries with major cult followings that are having success on a smaller scale. Finally, there are the middle-grounders, which started out as small, craft producers but have grown to the point that they were either acquired by a conglomerate, which financed their growth, or have simply been so successful that they’ve been able to expand to the point that they can no longer be viewed as a “little guy” of the industry.

In Shelbyville, Tennessee, a mere half-hour drive from one of the very largest of Goliaths — Jack Daniel’s — lies perhaps the biggest example of that third category.

Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey was founded in 2017 and is still independently owned, with no plans to change that. Despite its youth, Uncle Nearest has quickly stacked up accolades. In 2020, Wine Enthusiast named Uncle Nearest its Spirit Brand of the Year.” In 2022, Inc.com included Uncle Nearest on its annual list of the 5,000 fastest-growing privately owned companies in the U.S.

Uncle Nearest claims to be “the most awarded bourbon and American whiskey for six years running,” and its distillery has become a true tourism attraction — the seventh-most-visited distillery in the world, according to the brand.

The mass interest in Uncle Nearest stems from the man it’s dedicated to. The brand is an ode to Nathan “Nearest” Green, a man born into slavery who taught Jack Daniel himself how to make whiskey and became the first master distiller at the Jack Daniel Distilling Company.

Green’s story had been largely lost to history until a reporter named Clay Risen published a bombshell story unearthing his identity for the New York Times in 2016.

Fawn Weaver, Uncle Nearest’s founder and CEO, came across that story and, long story short, it set in motion a chain of events that led us to today. The full story is laid out thoroughly in Weaver’s book, “Love & Whiskey,” which hit shelves in June.

‘Love & Whiskey’: A Brief Review

“Love & Whiskey” is an excellent read for not only any whiskey enthusiast, but also anyone whose interest is piqued by a look behind the curtain at the start and rise of a business.

“The one comment that we’re getting from men, more than anything, is that this is either the first book or the second book they’ve ever read in their lives where they read cover to cover in two days,” Weaver told Bottle Raiders. “And I think that a part of the reason why it’s so fascinating to them is because it does include the entrepreneurial journey from the beginning.”

Indeed, what makes “Love & Whiskey” special is going on the journey with Weaver, from the earliest days all the way to the destination: Uncle Nearest, wildly successful whiskey brand.

In her exploration and research of history — be it that of the Green family tree, the development of the Lincoln County Process or any other number of things — Weaver is incredibly thorough and cites her myriad of sources.

Weaver takes the reader through the sort of painstaking hurdles that come with starting a spirits brand from scratch as a minority and even the evolution of her tenuous relationship with Jack Daniel’s.

Thanks to “Love & Whiskey,” we’re able to peek inside Weaver’s heart and mind, giving us rare access to what we can understand to be her true motivations and feelings. This in turn helps us to believe in Uncle Nearest and the power of its messaging; we can’t shrug it off as a mere PR stunt or money grab.

All in all, Weaver’s book is a gripping read that will be of exceptional interest to any whiskey fan but also appeals to a wider audience.

The Story Isn’t Finished

Like, literally. “Love & Whiskey” is still going. Weaver is releasing bonus chapters alongside limited-edition bottles of Uncle Nearest.

We tasted the first “bonus chapter” bottle — Uncle Nearest 777 Anniversary Blend — The Lost Chapter — and came away impressed. Click here to read our review.

Uncle Nearest is thriving, and it’s nowhere near finished. Earlier this month, it introduced a new whiskey — Nearest Green Tennessee Whiskey — a lower-priced, lower-proofed alternative to Uncle Nearest’s usual mainstays.

Whether it’s working on a movie about Nearest’s story, building a hotel near the distillery, adding a space for concerts at the distillery or building a mini golf course (an ode to mini golf being invented in Tennessee), Weaver has plenty of plans in the works. And if you get to know her through the pages of “Love & Whiskey,” I think you’ll come to learn she’s the type of person who will never stop going.

It’s that drive and perseverance that have gotten her to where she is today and will continue to elevate Uncle Nearest higher and higher.

“The story isn’t finished being written, and I don’t feel as though I need to put a period at the end of this,” Weaver said. “I feel like there’s a comma.”