Meet Mike: How Bourbon Found Me (And Why I’m Here)

One Man’s Journey in Bourbon

Hello! You may be wondering how I ended up here, writing for Tortured Bourbon. Allow me to wax poetic for a moment.

I’m an older guy — a solid Gen X’er — and someone who only recently discovered this wide, wonderful world of whiskey. Growing up, alcohol wasn’t really a presence in my life. My mom might have had an occasional drink with friends, but my dad was firmly anti-alcohol. Like most young men, I eventually found my way to beer at parties, but it never clicked. Later in life, my ex-wife’s father was a functional drinker, which pushed her into the no alcohol camp — so again, booze wasn’t really around.

Fast-forward to 2018. I separated from my then-wife and started dating again. I met someone who enjoyed wine, but I discovered I preferred stouts over IPAs. She did introduce me to Bulleit and Buffalo Trace, though — two bottles I liked for totally different reasons — but I didn’t dig deeper yet. I was still on my beer path.

Jump to 2022. I picked a bourbon-forward bar for a first date… and suddenly bourbon created a “moment.” Something stuck. But life, as it does, threw a curveball. In early 2024, a personal bombshell left me with more silence than I could handle. I hit a rough patch — a mental health crisis, truthfully — and I struggled. Hard.

Thankfully, I had built a small but supportive circle, and with their help, I made it through the dark and into something better.

So what does bourbon have to do with all this?

Everything.

Bourbon offered something I desperately needed: community. A place to belong. People who welcomed me without judgment. When my old passions — music and sports — stopped filling the void, bourbon stepped up and took the weight. It gave me new friends, new experiences, and new hope.

Yes, I said hope.

I’ve been on the record saying bourbon saved my life — and I mean that. And I’ll always be grateful for places like Bourbon Real Talk, That Bourbon Dude, and now — most importantly — Tortured Bourbon.

Those first two channels had Facebook communities with zero tolerance for negativity. Safe places for someone new to the whiskey world. I joined some local groups too, and one day an active member dropped a link to Tortured Bourbon asking NC bourbon folks to check them out (thank you Steve!).

I clicked.

I watched.

I laughed.

And then I reached out on Instagram with a show idea. They replied — which shocked me. A couple weeks later, my name was mentioned on their channel. I felt like a six-year-old running downstairs on Christmas morning. Me — a high school dropout (stay in school, kids!), a bourbon newbie — they wanted to use my idea? I was floored.

From then on, I was hooked.

One random Saturday, I got word that some Still Austin bottles had dropped at an ABC outside my county (shoutout to controlled states and their confusing rules). I DM’d Heather asking if she and B wanted one since I’d be driving 40 minutes to grab it. I’d never met them in person, but she said yes. I scored two bottles — story for another day — and delivered one to them at their local ABC.

They were exactly like the people I had been watching for months — real, warm, and barrel-free in person. They invited me to their first anniversary celebration, and from that point forward I was all-in on helping Tortured Bourbon grow.

I’m not special. I’m just an average guy trying to learn what I like, why I like it, and how to describe bourbon without sounding like I’m making up flavors no human has ever tasted. I’ll get things wrong, and I’m okay with that.

In my day job, I’ve been managing people for over 30 years — it’s what I do. But in my bourbon life, I’m still early in the journey, and I want to bring you along with me. In upcoming articles and shows, we’ll explore topics like:

• how to train your palate

• whether glass shape actually matters

• and other bourbon questions I’ve asked (and Googled) myself

You can find me on social media as PourBourbonDecisions, and I look forward to your feedback. Heather, B, Katie, and Bandit have all encouraged me to join the Tortured Bourbon family — and I’m excited to rise to the occasion.

As we always say around here…

Cheers, y’all.