How Uncle Nearest Founder Fawn Weaver Built A Billion-Dollar Whiskey Business | Forbes from rise of lost empires full Watch Video

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✓ Published: 01-Jun-2024

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Fawn Weaver founded Uncle Nearest to honor the formerly enslaved master distiller who taught Jack Daniel the secret to making great whiskey. Seven years later, she owns the most successful Black-owned liquor empire, worth $1.1 billion, with ambitious plans for the future. Including real estate, Weaver’s 40% stake makes her worth $480 million, landing her at No. 68 on Forbes’ Richest Self-Made Women list.<br/><br/>Weaver wasn’t a Jack Daniel’s drinker, but she knew there were countless former slaves whose stories, like Green’s, had been erased from history. As Green was no longer part of parent company Brown-Forman’s official history of Jack Daniel’s, Weaver sought to rectify that.<br/><br/>The first Uncle Nearest whiskey—named 1856 for the year it is believed Nearest Green perfected charcoal filtration—debuted in 2017 and went on to win the first of more than 1,000 awards for the brand. Today, there are seven Uncle Nearest releases—bourbons and ryes all produced under the direction of Victoria Eady Butler, Green’s great-great-granddaughter.<br/><br/>Read the full story on Forbes:<br/>https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2024/05/28/fawn-weaver-interview-uncle-nearest-whiskey-unicorn/<br/><br/>0:00 Intro<br/>1:21 From Rebellious Kid to Entrepreneur<br/>2:40 Leaving Home at 15<br/>3:32 Finding Purpose<br/>4:52 The Story of Uncle Nearest Green<br/>7:25 Fitting the Pieces Together<br/>9:31 The Power of Charcoal Filtration<br/>10:04 “I Should Have Failed”<br/>12:49 Setting Up the Next Generation<br/>14:03 Beating the Odds<br/><br/>Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1<br/><br/>Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:<br/><br/>https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript<br/><br/>Stay Connected<br/>Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com<br/>Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes<br/>Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes<br/>Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes<br/>More From Forbes:http://forbes.com<br/><br/>Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.