AT A GLANCE
Uncle Nearest 1856 Premium Whiskey debuted in July 2017 to honor the memory of Nathan Green, the freed slave who was the first master distiller for Jack Daniel's Whiskey. Nathan went by the nickname Nearest and was called uncle by those who new him well.
Green was born in Maryland around 1820. At that time, Maryland had one of the largest populations of free blacks in the US so it is not yet know if Green was born a slave or born free and forced into slavery. However, by 1850 Green was living in Lincoln County, Tennessee as a slave and working as an experienced distiller for Dan Call, a Methodist preacher who owned a distillery near Lynchburg. Around that time, a young boy named Jasper Daniel, began working on Call’s farm and Call instructed Green to teach Daniel how to make whiskey. After the Civil War Daniel and Call restarted the distillery as partners and hired Green to be the head distiller. Eventually Daniel bought out Call’s shares and renamed the distillery Jack Daniel’s, after himself. In Daniel’s papers he clearly gave credit to Green for teaching him how to make whiskey and Green continued to work for him until 1884, when Green disappears from the historical record. Since then, decedents of Green have continued to work for Jack Daniel’s. Three of his sons, two of his grandsons and even a great-great-granddaughter who works on the bottling line for Jack Daniel’s today.
In 2016, Fawn Weaver, an author and real estate investor first read the story of Nathan Green in a New York Times article and felt compelled to find out all she could about him. She moved to Lynchburg, TN and began searching archives for evidence of Green and eventually made contact with his family. All told, Weaver collected about 10,000 documents on Green, established a foundation in his name and donated many of them documents and artifacts about his life to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
However, even all of that work would have meant that the story of Green would have remained a footnote in the long history of American whiskey. Determined to share his legacy with the world and to have his name spoken of in the pantheon of whiskey legends such as Evan Williams, Elijah Craig, Jim Beam, E.H. Taylor and Jack Daniel’s, Weaver decided to create a whiskey company and brand in his honor. At present, Uncle Nearest is made from purchased whiskey, most likely from George Dickel, though that has not been corroborated by the brand’s marketing materials. That being said, the Nearest Green Distillery is currently under construction in Shelbyville, TN and will eventually distill and age the whiskey that goes into the bottle.
For now, Uncle Nearest 1856 Premium Whiskey is said to be a blend of whiskies from Tennessee aged between 8 and 14 years old and that were mellowed using the Lincoln County Process. It is not clear if the brand chose to not label Uncle Nearest a Tennessee Whiskey or if there is some technical reason that it could not be labeled as such. Either way the decision is somewhat confusing given Green’s strong connection to both the state and Lincoln County, whose eponymous process is key to defining Tennessee Whiskeys uniqueness. All of that being said, Nathan Green has earned his well deserved place among the legends of American Whiskey and Uncle Nearest has done a good job at telling his story.
TASTING NOTES
Nose: The nose has a very nice sweet aroma of caramel, corn bread and charred oak. At 100 proof you notice the alcohol but it does not overpower the aromas. As the whiskey breaths you get a lovely floral perfumed aroma of white peaches and a mix of roses and irises.
Palate: On the palate the whiskey is slightly sweet and has a medium body. As the whiskey crosses your tongue there is a pleasantly sweet fruit flavor mixed with nutmeg followed by a hint of chocolate caramel. These brighter flavors are supported by a solid oak character, which has a very slight greenness to it that overall provides a nice earthy balance to the spirit.
Finish: On the finish the whiskey is soft with a light fruity character of raspberries, and cotton candy, underlined with a mellow woodiness.
Conclusion: Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey is a very enjoyable whiskey and does a good job of honoring the memory of its namesake. At 50% ABV the spirit is soft enough to sip neat and the flavor is robust enough to carry through an old fashioned, manhattan or any other classic whiskey cocktail.
