06/19/2026
I myself am very happy to have an active winery in town 😌💃🏻🍷 who else feels the same? 👀 show of hands
Former Montgomery County Executive William O. Beach, along with his daughter Louisa and her husband Ed Cooke, would each become imperative figures to the modern commercial wine industry in Tennessee. The building of Beachaven Vineyards & Winery was the culmination of hard work and detailed planning that began years prior to the grand opening of the winery on June 1,1987. Winemaking for commercial purposes had effectively stopped in the state during the era of Prohibition.
It wasn’t until the establishment of the Tennessee Viticulture and Oenological Society (TVOS) in 1973 that the concept of reviving Tennessee winemaking in a commercial capacity really took hold. The TVOS encouraged the growing of Tennessee grapes to craft Tennessee wines. Mr. Beach was a founding member of the society, as well as being an essential advocate in having legislation passed in 1977, the “Grape and Wine Law”, that allowed commercial wineries to be established in the state.
Ed and Louisa Cooke also made significant impacts to Tennessee’s wine industry. After the passing of Mr. Beach in 1991, Ed and Louisa Cooke owned and operated Beachaven Vineyards and Winery for the following 30 years. The Beachaven brand grew exponentially under their stewardship. Ed Cooke was the foremost oenologist and viticulturist for Beachaven Winery for the duration of his ownership. Every aspect of the winemaking process, from the growing of grape varieties suitable to the local climate, to the final step of bottling the wines, was overseen by him.
Louisa Cooke served as the winery’s public relations director, implementing the hugely popular event “Jazz on the Lawn”, among many other notable happenings at the winery, while also managing the office and sales of the business. Both were active members of TVOS, and each served as president of the society in different years. Their son Wilson Cooke is Operations Manager of the Beachaven Winery today.
Thank you to the Archives team for preserving and sharing our local history.
