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

Nick, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I’ve always gone into hobbies with ardent enthusiasm. As I was falling down the rabbit hole of becoming a well-and-true whiskey enthusiast, I found myself writing my thoughts in a tiny little whiskey review notebook. After my first few reviews began to span 4, 5, or sometimes more of these pages, I thought, “I seem to be better at this than this company expects most people to be.” I sought out better a better medium for writing and ultimately set out to do it all on my own, because that’s what well-reasoned, inexperienced introverts always do of course. Writing about the experiences that I have when patiently exploring whiskey notes with intention brought me a level of joy that I don’t experience in my primary career as a product design engineer & engineering team manager. I wanted to bring that joy to others who might be in a similar position to me, making sure everyone knows it’s okay to be tech smart AND creative.

Nick, 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?

Amongst the Whiskey is the passionate writing persona I use to tell the elegant, nuanced story of the wide world of whiskey. From Irish whiskey, to bourbon, to rye, to malts – there is so much that can be discovered through taste and smell. My life experiences and years of exploring whiskey have led me to the palate that I have today. I work hard to keep myself educated on the nuance of taste and smell so that I can continue to excel as someone who enjoys recounting the incredible adventure of responsibly enjoying whiskey.

As a whiskey writer, my word is my bond. I always promise to give honest feedback. Regardless of where the whiskey originated, I only care about what is in the bottle. I don’t apply any scaling or adjustments based on price or availability. My 5-point rating scale is quite simple and designed to allow the wide range of releases I explore to follow a normal distribution. If my process is working properly, a majority of my reviews should fall into my 3/5 rating. I chose this scale because I have long lamented the industry norm of whiskey ratings being on a 100 point scale, but you only ever see scores between 85 and 100. What’s the point of the rest of that scale?

Beyond offering whiskey reviews, I also enjoy hosting enlightening tastings, visiting distilleries for single barrel selections with retail partners, and coordinating several whiskey clubs that bring unique experiences to those who might not otherwise have access to such interesting experiences. At the core of everything I do is a sense of duty, inclusiveness, and intention.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

One thing that seems quite simple, but is unfortunately not often undertaken is giving distinct credit for creative works. Too often are opinions formed based on the work of writers, artists, and other creatives without any description of where the information was gathered from. We can all do better to not adopt another person’s thoughts as our own, and celebrate the fact that we can agree with a fellow human so deeply that we desire to reshare the carefully crafted perspective with a nod to the originator.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

To borrow a few lines of lyrics from “Bees” by The Ballroom Thieves,

“I once read that I should write something worth reading
Or I should do something worth writing about
And as my ears they buzz like bees upon the ceiling
I start to pour a little more than I’m allowed.”

My goal with AmongstTheWhiskey.com is to bring meaningful descriptions of whiskeys that are both entertaining and educational. I aim to celebrate the passion that whiskey makers bring to their own artistic process of distillation, aging, and brand building while layering in my own deeply calibrated, honest perspective. I want to do all of this while encouraging responsible consumption; sipping and exploring whiskey is so much more meaningful than the buzz that usually follows. Regularly employing spittoons, taking breaks, and drinking for the right reasons with intention are all great ways to not end up pouring “a little more than I’m allowed”.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.amongstthewhiskey.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amongstthewhiskey
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/massbourbonalliance/
• Other: https://www.patreon.com/spiritanimalsociety