Nicola Riske: A day in the life of a whisky brand educator
Nicola Riske, brand educator for The Macallan, talks to Millie Milliken about creative headspace, staying connected with her team and interpreting whisky through the lens of Van Gogh.
“I have never been a naturally early morning riser but I like to get up at about 6am. The first thing I do is make myself a coffee or tea depending on what I’m craving and throw on a podcast. I like to do snippets in the morning, like the ‘NPR News Now’ five-minute update, as well as a lot of mental health podcasts like ‘Everyday Positivity’ – it’s a great way to jumpstart your day.
“Whether I’m home in Madrid or in-market I will try to get my body moving. If I’m in Madrid it’s an early morning run (3km-5km) or out on my terrace for a sunrise spin on my spin bike. If I’m in-market I hope the hotel has a gym, jump on the treadmill or run outside – my sneakers can take me anywhere.
“I have a never-ending to-do list and I prioritise not only by structuring my day, but my entire week. When I have office time I’m really specific so won’t only work my meetings into my schedule, but also my areas of focus time, right down to checking emails and which project I’m working on when. My time is limited and very precious so I don’t want it to be overrun with things that aren’t priorities.
“I travel a lot for work so planning is key. I look at all my markets, collaborate with them and look at priorities, my calendar for the year and decide on fixed and flexible dates. I need to balance my schedule and office time as well as other projects and time for professional development.
“Right now, summer is a great time for projects. I decided to lead the online global brand ambassador conference for September and I’m loving diving into it. It gives me free reign creatively: looking at The Macallan’s story, new expressions we’re rolling out, our messaging and bringing it forward in a way that is engaging on a global scale. This is my first time doing an online project like this, but I worked as an actor for years and in event management so it brings together a lot of those things I’ve worked on previously and I’m adoring the creativity.
“When it comes to my first break of the day, I’m not very Spanish in that I tend to have lunch on the early side, 12pm or 12.30pm. If I’m working from home I love it as I have all my healthy stuff at my fingertips – I’m a veggie and I like to keep it light. I keep my lunch short (25/30 minutes) but I’m active throughout the day – stretching my legs, getting a cup of tea, flipping laundry. If I’m in the office then it’s nice to chat and catch up with colleagues, and if I’m in-market it will be a working lunch at an account with team members.
“I cover central and southern Europe and I have brand ambassadors across various regions so it’s nice to check in with them one-on-one on a monthly basis. I’m here to support them, bring forward education initiatives, new products, so I communicate all that detail with them and check in with them. When you’re a brand ambassador, although we are constantly engaging, it can be very lonely so for me it is really important to stay connected and make sure they’re doing alright. We also meet up online every two months or I’ll just sent a Monday morning text message.
“Early in the afternoon is when I try and squeeze in creative projects as I can give myself the headspace to come up with ideas and bring our brand to life. I’m also a great believer in continued education to keep up whisky knowledge but also continuing to learn in all things using things like online platforms or just book reading.
“One of the things I’m working on right now is completing my WSET Spirits Level 3 with The Mixing Class. I always tell everyone not to just focus on whisky but to learn outside of the box. Flavour drives me in everything I learn. It also makes me realise I know absolutely nothing and sometimes I need to step back and start from go – that’s what I love about doing this course right now.
“In my free time when I’m in my markets I try to carve out time go to an art gallery. Art brings me a tonne of inspiration – Van Gogh made me re-examine textures and colours and made me see different things in whisky and how we perceive things. The more you can get outside of the world of spirits, the more it can influence our work and drive us forward. My learning is not linear in any shape or form.
“If I’m at home my day ends between 5pm and 7pm, but if I’m in-market it ends around 11pm. When I’m at home I try to really own that time and disconnect. There is a nine-hour time difference between me and my family in Canada so I call to catch up with my parents a couple of times a week. I also have a terrace and I love enjoying it, so I will usually do dinner at home, something steamed or grilled, sit back and relax on the terrace or watch Netflix on my iPad while watching the sunset or listen to a podcast.
“I also like to catch up with my girlfriends in the city. I love going to the theatre and seeing live music or I often go out for a weekly Spanish wine tasting group. Since moving to Spain it has given me the opportunity to work my nose and palate in a different way and there is a very nerdy group of us on Thursdays that meet up. I also enjoy audiobooks when I’m out walking or on an airplane. I’ve been listening to ‘Taste’ by Stanley Tucci – he’s a great narrator and it’s amazing hearing him talk about his Italian upbringing in the US and how it has shaped who he is.
“For me balance is really exercise, sleep and nutrition. Working in the whisky industry practicing moderation is also huge – people like to think we imbibe every day but it’s enormously important to me to promote responsible drinking. Other important things are meditation, family and my inner circle – keeping them close to me and having time to connect to them. Having conversations with them is essential – they are the ones who bring me balance.”
