Nelson's Green Brier Distillery: The Revival of a Lost Tennessee Whiskey

Nelson's Green Brier Distillery in Nashville makes Tennessee whiskey, bourbon and rye. It revives a nineteenth century distillery that closed when Tennessee enacted prohibition in 1909.

Key facts

• Location: Nashville, Tennessee

• Original distillery: Greenbrier, Robertson County, 1867 to 1909

• Revival announced: 2011, by Charlie and Andy Nelson

• Nashville distillery opened: 23 November 2014

• Owner: Constellation Brands, minority stake 2016 and majority stake 2019

• Original site on the National Register of Historic Places: 2008

The original distillery

The first Nelson's Green Brier stood on Rocky Fork Creek in Greenbrier, Tennessee. It ran from 1867 until Tennessee prohibition began on 1 July 1909. Charles Nelson, a Nashville businessman, acquired it in 1870 and expanded it.

In 1885 it produced 380,000 US gallons of whiskey, at a time when the Jack Daniel's distillery in Lynchburg had an annual capacity of 23,000 US gallons. The equipment was shipped to Canada in 1923 for use by Seagram.

The revival

In 2011 great-great-great-grandsons Charlie and Andy Nelson announced plans to revive the brand using Charles Nelson's recipes. From 2013 they bottled MGP of Indiana whiskey as Belle Meade Bourbon while waiting for permits and equipment. The new distillery opened in Nashville on 23 November 2014.

Constellation Brands bought a minority stake in 2016 and a majority stake in 2019. The brothers remain heavily involved.

Range

• Nelson's Greenbrier Tennessee Whisky, a wheated whiskey launched in 2019

• Bottled in Bond and Cask Strength Tennessee whiskey

• Marathon Malt

• Nelson Brothers Classic and Reserve Bourbon

• Nelson Brothers Rye and Nelson's Greenbrier Rye

• Cask finished bourbons, gin, vodka and a cream liqueur

Frequently asked questions

Who owns Nelson's Green Brier?

Constellation Brands holds a majority stake since 2019. The Nelson brothers remain involved.

Is it Tennessee whiskey?

The flagship Nelson's Greenbrier Tennessee Whisky is. The Nelson Brothers line is bourbon and rye.

What was Belle Meade Bourbon?

A sourced MGP bourbon bottled between 2012 and 2023.

The Nelson family story, according to the distillery

The distillery's own Our Story page says Charles Nelson was born on 4 July 1835 in Hagenow, in northern Germany, and emigrated to the United States with his family in 1850. After time in Cincinnati he moved to Nashville shortly before the Civil War and opened a grocery store, where coffee, meat and whiskey were his best sellers. He later sold the grocery business to focus on whiskey.

The page says Charles bought a distillery at Greenbrier, Tennessee, along with a patent for improved distillation, and expanded production. It states that in 1885 he sold nearly 380,000 gallons of Nelson's Green Brier Tennessee Whiskey, and that he was among the first to sell whiskey in bottles rather than by the jug or barrel. It was known as Old Number Five, because it was registered distillery number five in the fifth tax district. These figures are the company's own claims.

Charles Nelson died on 13 December 1891 and his wife Louisa took over the business. Statewide Prohibition arrived in Tennessee in 1909 and the Greenbrier distillery closed. The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the page says the spring still runs.

The revival

In 2006 brothers Charlie and Andy Nelson came across a historical marker for the Greenbrier distillery and traced their descent from Charles Nelson, a great-great-great grandfather according to the distillery. With help from the Robertson County Historical Society they found two original bottles and a recipe printed in a newspaper. After about three years of work the brand returned in 2009, according to the company's account. The Nashville distillery underwent a large renovation in 2023 that added a restaurant and event spaces.

Visiting

The official site lists whiskey tastings, a Bottle Your Own Brier experience, premium tasting experiences, a supper club and a restaurant with Sunday brunch. Book through the official site, as availability changes.

Sources and gaps

• Nelson's Green Brier Distillery, Our Story page (read 20 October 2026)

• Wikipedia, Nelson's Green Brier Distillery (read earlier, 20 October 2026)

Gaps: stills and mash bill, current range, and independent confirmation of the 1885 sales figure, which is the company's own claim. Search snippets differ on dates: one trade article dates Charles Nelson's grocery store to 1858, while the distillery page only says just before the Civil War. Check before publishing.

Whisky Clan does not publish tasting notes in its distillery profiles.