Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery has been open for three years and owners Charlie and Andy Nelson are celebrating by giving back to the community with the second Louisa Nelson Awards, an “annual accolade honoring women of achievement, inspiration, and vision in Nashville who show exemplary successes in their field and leadership in the community.” The awards’ recipients will be announced on September 18, 2017, at Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery’s own Oak Room.
The award is named after the owner’s great-great-great grandmother, Louisa Nelson, the wife of the Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery founder Charles Nelson. She spearheaded the business after the Charles died in 1891, becoming one of the rare women to run a commercial distillery. Prohibition forced her to close in 1909 but the distillery has now re-opened under the same family, with brothers Andy and Charlie Nelson. Charlie says that “In addition being a powerful business owner, Louisa Nelson was a woman who refrained from judging others, a characteristic exemplified by her consistent leadership in employing disabled and minorities. Today, her foundation and business model remains a driving force in our own practices, and we named the big copper still that anchors our production floor ‘Miss Louisa,’ in her honor.”
This year, 2017, marks 126 years since Louisa took over at Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery. In her honor, Andy and Charlie have established the Louisa Nelson Awards. Three awards will be given to three Nashville business women who are known for the attributes of Louisa Nelson: “hard working women excelling in their industries and making a positive impact in their community.”
In each award winner’s name, Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery will contribute to a local charity of her choosing.
The nomination process ends in late August: Click here for details.
