Master Distiller (2019–…): Season 3, Episode 9 - Holiday Spirits Showdown - full transcript

All right, guys. Listen.

You've won one.

You've won one.

It's my turn.

I wanna do another competition
between us,

but with a twist this time.

I'm ready.

Let's get going.

Do it.

this time on
master distiller...

Welcome back, men.



mark, digger
and tim bring back

three of their favorite
past competitors...

It's good to see all
three of you guys again.

I wish the best to all of you.

...And roll up
their own sleeves

for a chance at redemption.

This ain't just a one-man-show
no more.

This sits on
everybody's shoulders.

whoa!

You's are all
on the losing team.

judged by
a panel of their peers...

This is fantastic.

I gotta base my decision
on marketability.

This is definitely the hardest
one I've judged.



Yeah.

Hell, boy, this is redemption.

to determine which

of these legendary
moonshiners...

I'm sorry you're fixed to take

the ass-whooping
you're fixed to take.

We'll see.

...Can coach
the next master distiller.

Y'all know you're gonna
lose, right?

Proof's in the pudding.

welcome back, men.

Everybody's been here before,

fought like champs,

didn't come home to victory.

We're here to figure out
which one of you all

is gonna win redemption,

and which one of us
makes the best coach.

Peg leg, we know who
that's gonna be.

I have never beat these two.

I want redemption myself.

We got to choose our
favorite past contestant.

And, big mike, you know
I've got your back.

Leo, we got this.

For your first challenge,

you got the same still setup.

You got the same good
corn mash.

You will do your run.

We will then do
a blind tasting

for the order in which you
will pick your still parts.

We're looking for a smooth,
high-proof liquor.

after you
build your stills,

it's gonna get
really interesting.

You're gonna build your mash

from what you bought
from home.

This is your most
marketable recipe.

We're gonna be there
every step along the way,

even mashing and even
all the way through the run.

We're gonna be there
in your corner, coaching.

All right, boys,

you got four hours to make us
your best jar of liquor.

Your time starts now.

Good luck to all of you.

Thing about it is their stills
are exactly the same.

How they run them is what's
gonna determine their quality.

Exactly.

All we need is one good jug.

They don't get no more
backwards than

this right over here.

It's Sunday before they get
the Wednesday news,
where he lives.

You know, I chose peg leg
number one,

because he's just
an outstanding guy in my book.

I think he got shortchanged.

He didn't even get to run
his signature mash.

You know, it's just
a hand that fate deals
in this game sometimes.

I wanna see what
he brings to the table.

He's made a tremendous
amount of liquor.

Everything from bourbon
to brandies to raw liquors.

My name is stan wisniewski.
They call me peg leg.

I've been distilling since
I was 12 years old.

You put a little bit
in a container.

family members
were running liquor

when I was younger.

And I learned from them.

It's no good.
You want a nice blue flame.

And, you wanna make sure
that it's good alcohol.

It's probably about
a 150 proof.

When I was here last time,

I couldn't find rye anywhere.

At the last minute,

we found a bag of flaked rye.

I've never used flaked greens
before in my life.

And my yeast didn't convert
everything over.

I knew it wasn't
going anywhere.

Very little alcohol in there.

There's my jar.

All I got was green water
coming out.

So, I'm taking myself
out of the competition.

Peg leg, that's pretty
honorable, buddy.

I felt like somebody just

ripped their hand in my chest

and pulled my heart out.

And that's how I felt

until I was asked
to come back.

If I won this,
I'd be so happy and proud.

It would be unbelievable.

Big mike, I'm counting on you.

Oh, we're doing the way
to dance,

me and you.

you know, big mike,
he's a hoot.

He's just a big ball of fun.

Last time he was here,

he ran gin,

which isn't even
his specialty.

And he blew us away.

You know, he always
brought humor.

He was more than willing
to help the other contestants.

That, to me, is exactly

the true mark of
a good moonshiner.

That's why I chose big mike.

Come on, big boy.

My name is michael fannon.

I'm from hinton,
west virginia.

I've been distilling,
probably...

12, 13 years.

My interest in distilling
got started

with my grandmother's dad.

He was a moonshiner
in the prohibition era.

Just a few gallons,
two gallons or so.

I was here last year.

Second round, they told us
all three of us

coming back to the third
round because

everything was so good.

You're all
outstanding distillers.

There is one here, though,
that,

I think, makes you wanna go
back and buy a second bottle.

Jason, you're the next
master distiller.

congratulations, buddy.

if I was to win
this redemption round,

that would be considered
the bragging rights

of having the bragging rights.

It's just a whole new level.

Leo, how we doing?

Like james brown said,

I feel good.

that's what
I'm talking about.

Last time leo was here,

he was competing in
the peach brandy run.

I'm a brandy man myself.

You know, he works with
some unique ingredients.

And I've gone to a lot of
different distilleries.

I'm trying to always learn

different distilling
techniques.

I wanted to give him
a shot at redemption.

And maybe I could learn
a thing or two myself.

My name is leopold sawadogo.

I'm a master brewer.

and, I own a brewery

in beautiful montclair,
new jersey.

I've been distilling
ever since

I started brewing
20 years ago.

Let's run this thing up.

I learned from my mom
in west africa.

I decided to distill

with ingredients that come
from my country.

The baobab is my favorite
fruit to work with.

My first trip to
master distiller
was incredible.

But what happened is

I was unable to produce liquor
to satisfy the judge.

Unfortunately, buddy, this jar
bought you.

Take it home.

-We appreciate you, buddy.
-Thank you.

You know what you've done?

You just won the most
marketable jar.

Winning that title of
master distiller

would mean everything to me.

I wanna introduce a piece
of my country to the world,

and what a great venue
to do that.

oh! Right!

big mike, you ain't
got no thumper, so...

Yeah, I've never not used
a thumper.

Right.

I'm what you call
a thumper guy.

Without a thumper,
it's one distillation,

so you have to be super
careful with the fact that

you don't have a thumper

to help clean it up
if you make a mistake.

I gotta start playing it out
in my head.

As far as the proof
and the runtime...

You'll have liquor out
quicker without the thumper.

a whole lot quicker.

Cap's starting to get hot.

How are you feeling about
this mash?

Fine alcohol in the
bottom of that barrel.

So, your game plan,
that's to get to about 120

back at--
right, so go back down?

-Back it down.
-130 somewhere in there.

Watching temperatures
as it comes up.

I believe you gonna be
the winner.

I can guarantee you
I'm gonna be the winner.

- hey, leo.
- yes, sir.

-You like that mash?
-Absolutely.

-Mash is good.
-Mash is clean.

-Yeah?
-Mash is good.

I always use stainless steel.

I'm not used to copper.

I learned a lot the first time
I was here.

So, I went back
and studied everything

and, then, here we are.

I want to be careful
of the timing

of when the liquor is run.

And also how fast
it's gonna heat up.

You good on the burner?

-Yeah, everything
is under control.
-All right.

And, all we need is...

Is a real good jar.

I'm not gonna disappoint you.

-I know you won't.
-All right.

Well, that's why I chose you.

Exactly.

All three of 'em working
with a plan.

It's just sad that
peg leg's and leo's

plans just ain't up to speed
with mike.

leo, don't you let him
worry you, okay?

It is not in my nature
to worry.

-I got your back.

boys, hour-and-a-half.

This comes...

I like to make noise.

we got some drips.

Ooh, that smells good.

There you go.

Oh, yes.

getting some drip-drip.

Coming down, mikey?

Won't be long before
I can smell it.

Here we go, leo.

Looks to me like they're all
on even keel at this point.

Yeah.

this'll be
a lighter jar.

That gets a little
higher than 120.

Get a couple more jars,
I'll be done.

Looks like these boys
are getting about

where they need to be.

You got a pile
of jars over there.

yeah.

I'm about to cut
this thing off.

look how slow
that's coming out, at our
own pace.

I'm the tortoise.

Those boys are the hare.

They're gonna get beat by
way more than the hare.

30 minutes, boys.

fellars, I think
I'm gonna shut down.

I think I'm good.

Where we at, boss?

I think
we're right there on it.

You had no trouble
without the thumper?

No, I got some high proof
in there.

Look, it's probably 130.

I had a run which
started about 100, 105.

And I started to
hit...

Damn, I'm feeling good, boss.

Looks like me and you
got the winning hand.

We gonna throw them
out of the bus.

I was tasting
the sweetness of the mash.

And, that's when I knew
I was getting into my hearts.

That was giving me the right
time to start blending.

Good.

And that's far as I can go.

Put this right here
with spring water.

best liquor in
the world, in my opinion

tempered down with
a little bit of spring water.

Brings those flavors up.

Got a really good
corn flavor to it.

And it's really sweet.

And the corn flavor
really comes through,

running it
without a thumper.

You boys ready?

Bring it on.

You might as well get misery
out of your way immediately.

all right, big boy,
get on out of here.

Get you some rest.

You're gonna need it
when you get

the bad news here
in a little bit.

Yeah, we'll see what
kind of bad news.

I think my man's
already finished.

He's already the losing jar,
and don't even know it.

that's pretty bead,
right there.

I can see that from here.

I felt good about the jar.

It was not extremely
high a proof

that it scorch your...

Your throat when
you're drinking.

It was smooth.

All right.

The winning jar.

That's it.

That's what I'm talking about.

Get your rest up,

we're break the bad news
to you here directly.

don't you worry, leo.

That's the best looking jar
on the table.

Oh, I don't know about
all that.

Now, my contestant,
while we're looking,

he's running liquor
the way you're supposed to.

That's the one,
that's the one.

Think that's it, peg?

I think so.

I used as much time
as I could.

I used the whole four hours.

I blended mine.

I took a little bit from each
part of the jar that I had

and tasted it along the way.

When I got that sweetness
coming in,

that's when I knew I had it.

Look at that, that jar is full

you couldn't tell there's
anything in it.

See you shortly.

yes sir.

All right, boys,

at this point I don't
even trust me.

This needs to be
a true blind test.

I just so happen to
know somebody.

-Get him.
-All right, I'm gonna get him.

We're back.

All right.

tell you
what, fellars,

I done mixed these
jars up so much

that even I don't know
whose is whose.

It's definitely gonna be
a blind taste test.

What do you think the judges
are saying right now?

I guarantee they're
saying right now

that my jar is the winner.

jar number one.

All right, looking
pretty good.

Breaking away, I'd put it
at about 90.

I wanna say
if there is a bad jar here,

I'm gonna really be surprised.

We've got all top-notch
competitors right here.

-Right.
- I'll tell you what,

that is clear as
the day is long.

Well, it smells good.

it's got
a good smell to it.

Tastes like liquor, don't it?

It ain't buttermilk.

That is real good.

Don't have any fire in it.

Oh, no, there's no
burning activity to it at all.

That's good drinking liquor,
right there.

yes it is.

Jar number two.

Think we got a little bit
more there.

About 95.

That one got a little bit of
a different bite to it.

Bites me a little bit
in the back of the throat.

Yeah, but
that ain't a bad thing.

I wanna know I'm
drinking liquor.

Well, hell, if you don't know
when you're drinking liquor,

then you're in
the wrong business.

I know it, but when I
sip something

I don't wanna mistake it

for low proof,
being so damn smooth.

-I like it. Boy, it's
real easy on the nose and--
-yeah.

It's still a good, smooth job

but it's got a little bit
more bite in the last...

-Really good, really good.
-Run a little faster than it
should've been, I believe.

You and I never work on
copper still,

it heat up pretty quick.

Yeah, you gotta watch out
for that.

Go by sight,

taste, smell...

-Listen to your still.
-Yeah?

The still will talk to you.

It'll even fart every now and
then. Give you a smell,
you know what I mean?

Oh, yeah.

You've been sitting around
and...

-something don't smell right.
-Yeah.

jar number three
looks crystal clear.

Every one of them has been.

Hm, I think we're little bit
high on proof on that one.

Damn, 'course they all smell
about the same.

that's the highest proof

and that's
the smoothest jar...

It is a good jar.

All three of them
are really good.

They're all outstanding.

I know where I'm at, though.

I know where
I'm at on it, too.

I'll go fetch these fellars.

-Go fetch them.
-Bring my winner in first.

Love you to death,

but I'm gonna give you
a run for your money.

I don't know about that.

-Good for you.
-We'll see.

You take off running too fast,
leo, and we'll trip you.

all right, fellars.

-All right.
-Hello, hello, hello.

Welcome back.

And I knew we were
gonna be facing

three fine jars of liquor.

Why one of y'all couldn't have
screwed up a little bit,

make it a little bit easier,
is beyond me.

All that being said,

nobody's going home today.

All this is gonna choose
is the pecking order

and which folks go
to the still house

and pick their parts.

Ain't a jar sitting
on that table

I wouldn't love
to be sitting on

a creek bank fishing with.

Then it come down to just
minute differences on them.

It's very difficult

to say anything bad
about them, right?

Yes, one of them
is a little bit

better than the other one.

One of them is a little bit
higher proof

than the other one.

But, all three of you,
outstanding job.

Thank you.

Pull the labels, tim.

The number one jar is...

Peg leg!

-yeah!

-That's my partner.
-Thank you.

Second place...

Big mike!

-That's right.

-good job, mike.
-Appreciate it.

Well, get the suspense over,

find out who
the third place is.

The third place is...

Leo!

That is all great.

fellars, with that being said,

-let's go to the still house.
-All right.

I got my truck
running outside.

It's got a flat tire.

Any one of y'all know
how to blow a tire up?

Oh, yeah.

I ain't got no pumps.

Someone's gonna
have to blow it up.

You know, they say
if it walks like a duck

and quacks like a duck--

but I had a buddy,

played a pretty damn
convincing duck.

We are here to pick
our still parts.

Y'all are gonna have
three minutes.

Peg leg, you are up first.

Starting now!

Uh-oh.

Peg leg sounds like
he's getting off to

a good start in there.

I know I didn't
need a thumper,

so I had no other alcohol

or anything I wanted to put
in there for that.

All I needed was a pot,

the connections
and a condenser.

ten seconds left!

If you don't come out here
with it, it's mine!

There we go.

Mike, you've got
three minutes,

starting now!

Do you know what to do with
all of them parts in there?

About half of 'em.

Biggest part I'm gonna be
looking for is the thumper.

Because that's what I'm most
comfortable around.

I know how to tune it

to make it run
the way I want it to run.

So, that's the main thing
I want to get.

30 seconds left.

All right, look, mike's
coming out strong.

We have got a doubler
on the scene.

But we still gotta
connect all that.

He came out of there
with all kinds of *bleep*

all right, leo, you're gonna
have three minutes.

-Starting now.
- all right.

You seeing anything you
need in there, leo?

yeah, let me
get this out.

all right, I see
a doubler.

And a pot.

-Are you seeing anything else?
- nope.

right now,
you can't make liquor.

you got
three seconds.

-Three seconds?
- no, I'm just lying.

It's 30 seconds left.

There we go.

All right, now we got
a condenser.

-You sure you're done?
-Yes.

All right, fellars, follow me.

Now, these fellars
just got some still parts

and I believe they're gonna be
ready to roll.

I'm gonna leave these fellars
in y'all's hands.

All right.

welcome back, men.

First thing you gotta do,

get these stills together.

You got one hour.

Your time starts now.

Leo, when we win,

don't brag so much
like I would.

Peg leg, now you really
got to come with it.

There is two things
I'm gonna need here.

I don't know if you have.

What do you need?

I'm gonna need some gasket.

I'm gonna need a cap.

-Would that work?
-Yeah.

-Cool, man.
-That would.

|you need
some gaskets, too.

ain't nothing like

seeing these guys
working good together.

-Thanks, men.
-Yes, sir.

It'll work.

I need something this height.

Oh, lord.

Wait a minute now.

I'm worried about you.

I wanna win
this redemption,

but not by default.

Oh *bleep*

I need something this height.

Wait a minute now.

I'm worried about you.

It will work.

Oh *bleep*

that's crazy.

hey, tim.

I'm gonna go over and help leo

with his still a little bit,
if you don't mind.

Yeah, just take that condenser
out of that.

He don't need that.

-Leo, my man.
-Yes, sir.

You having
a little difficulty?

this is not gonna work.

This right here might fix us.

-Let's see.
-All right.

this fine
arm condenser will do

-exactly the same thing
as this will do.
-Right.

I wanna win
this redemption,

-but not by default.
-Right.

Think that'll work
for you, boss.

-Good luck, leo.
-Thank you.

Solid.

-Good, leo?
-Done.

You good?

-Yes, sir.
- cool.

That's record time.

Boys, we're gonna see
some fine liquor

out of this bunch right here.

that's right,
'cause your stills are done,

ready to run.

We're gonna put 'em
aside for right now.

You guys get
a good night's sleep,

because tomorrow
we're gonna build

your specialty recipe,

your specialty mash.

The one that you think

will win you this competition.

Since we're going to be
in your corner,

mashing and helping you,

we're gonna bring in a very,
very reliable timekeeper

to referee this challenge.

Good luck to each one of you.

All right, fellars,

this is redemption time,
right here.

This is gonna be
three teams, right?

This ain't just
one-man-show no more.

This sits on
everybody's shoulders.

Y'all are gonna have one hour

to make y'all's
signature mash.

You fine-tuned and honed
these recipes.

But now's where we really put
the pedal to the floor.

And your one hour
starts right now.

Get ready.

-Put some water in it,
it'll be ready.
-Yep.

Time to break this
new mash stick in.

I'm making
a three-grain bourbon.

Our recipe is corn, rye
and some barley in there.

Let it mix with
the hot water first.

-Then we're gonna
rehydrate the corn.
-Yeah.

We'll mix it all together when
it gets down to about 140.

-That works for me.
-Okay.

We're gonna be the only two
in tennessee to make this.

Yeah.

I'm making the baobab brandy.

The baobab
is a 100-year-old tree.

And, it takes a 100 years
to bear fruit.

You can find it in west africa
and in madagascar.

They call it the tree of life.

The mash mill is only
baobab powder and sugar.

I kept it very simple.

Think we got it there.

It's almost like a
orange flavor.

Yeah, it's got everything.

A baobab fruit is a flavor
that stands by itself.

What are y'all making
over there?

Y'all making stew over there
or what?

-Chicken stew.

I'd say they're making
chicken *bleep*.

What are you making, big mike?

- here,
I'll show you, leo.
-You got a very good one.

-Ta-da.
-Oh, man.

what do they got?
Chicken in the bucket.

-There's nothing in there.
-More like a bowl of water.

if lord made it
into wine,

I figure I can make it
into liquor if nothing else.

We're going to do
michael whiskey.

It's gonna have
cracked corn in it.

And we're gonna cook it down

and get the starches
to releasing.

Take two real malts of barley.

Uh-huh.

Convert them to starches.

Then, we're gonna take

some of this malt
for bread wheat,

dump it in there
and let it sit.

And, then...

We're gonna take it over here

and we're gonna put it
in the sour mash.

I brought some sour mash
that I had.

The fourth or fifth
generation sour mash

that has been running.

I just keep it going,
keep that flavor going.

That stuff is off the chain.

Yes, it is.

I also added three-quarters
of a gallon

of dark honey,

it should be
a pretty good liquor.

Boy, them little fellars
worked hard

-for all that, didn't they?
-Can you imagine?

we're about 170, 172.

Oh, yeah, that's fine.

We'll slip that warm gelatin

with everything else,
you know.

Yep.

Everybody wants
a sweet corn,
a white corn,

but I like doing
different things.

I use blue dent corn.

And everybody
that tries it goes,

"wow, that is amazing."

fellars, 30 minutes left.

damn,
that smells good.

just mixing
the water around a little bit.

It's gonna turn out, leo.

when it gets to
the right temperature,

it'll take care of itself.

150.

150, on the money.

I'm standing by someone
who is very confident

in what he's doing.

I'm all ears.

I just think he's a
wealth of knowledge.

I wanna learn what he's doing.

If you drink this
every morning...

-You get younger?
-Definitely.

a little bit more
of this magical stuff.

Damn, that's gonna be
an honor to drink

some of this liquor.

Y'all's are on
the losing team!

now, I've been watching,

and I tell you what,

I believe they got
a good handle on it.

Tim, mark, digger,

why don't y'all head out

and let these fellars
finish it up, all right?

Go ahead, boss.

Y'all know you're
gonna lose, right?

Proof's in the pudding.

you're close
to being done?

Yeah, I'm gonna let her soak
and I'm gonna start dumping.

I'm cooling it down,
pitcher 80.

all right, fellars,

we're getting down to it.

There are three minutes left.

gotta get it cooler.

three...

Two...

And, one.

All right, fellars,
drop your paddles.

We'll see y'all in five days.

-Sounds good.
-Good enough.

welcome back, men.

This, right here, gentlemen,

is where you get
your redemption.

This is where it lies.

With your signature mash,
your run.

Obviously, we all have
our horse in the race.

And, since the last few times

that we competed
against each other,

we lost the trust.

So, we're gonna bring in
some outside judges

to be judging you.

Do well, run slow,
and make us all proud.

It's up to y'all what you
bring to the table.

We want to see your best.

Your time starts now, men.

Good luck.

We got this, big mike.

Big w.

Boys,

I'mma go go ahead
and apologize to you now,

I'm sorry you're fixed to take
the ass-whopping

you're fixed to take.

We'll see.

-Peg leg.
-Yes, sir.

How you feel
about it, brother?

-Going good.
-You're, uh...

Bringing out some
of the heavies.

Still working a little good,
though, ain't it?

Oh, yeah.

Man.

tastes good,
don't it?

yeah.

Man, that's got a ton
of alcohol in it.

Yes, it does.

-Good luck.
-Yes, sir. Thank you.

I'm expecting big things
out of you.

Great teamwork, man.

- leo.
-Yes, sir.

Where you at?

I'm mashing 10 gallons.

- you don't need all that
stuff in there, right?
-No.

Baobab got a lot of residue,
but...

- yeah.
- ...It'll work out.

Can I help get
this thing lit up?

Can I do that for you?

Yeah, you can do it.

Yeah, thank you.

Okay.

All right.

You probably gonna start her
running pretty fast ,there.

Yes.

You ain't got a thumper.

You just going
straight up the linem, or--?

I'm just going straight up.

-Big mike?
-Yes, sir.

How you doing, boss?

I'm happier than
a pig in slop.

Think I'll do pretty good
this time, mark.

I'm up to about right here.

Got a gallon-and-a-half
in the thumper.

Already got the fire going.

You know here,
without a doubt,

ain't either one of them boys
running the thumper,

so they're gonna get hot
way before you do.

-Oh, yeah.
-So...

That's why I started
my fire early.

Yeah, you know how to do this.

Oh, yeah.

-Good luck, boss.
-All right.

I'm counting on you now,
I mean it.

I'll see what I can do.

should be in
about 120 now.

I'm taking the full
four hours.

Yeah.

Yeah, this means a lot to me,
this redemption.

I don't know what you guys
are gonna do,

'cause you might need
another redemption.

all of them's gonna make
three of the best of the best.

This mash is their
comfort zone.

It's, uh...

Throw water on, leo.

...It's incredible.

Yeah, water should be on.

You got steam coming out.

Start turning your
fire down, leo.

there you go,
there you go.

It's popping out.

Oh, no.

I'm puking.

Start turning your fire down.

there you go,
there you go.

It's popping out.

You're puking bad.

Oh, no.

my fire is too hot.

Man, you're all over
the place.

put a jar
underneath there.

That's pure alcohol.

yeah.

lot of things
was running into my mind

when the mash was starting
to puke.

I knew I had to turn down
all the flame

and let it take its time.

All right, all right,
all right.

Yeah, we're good now.

going from the kettle

into the condenser,

that's very short.

So, liquid can overflow

and then rise up.

And, then, create bubble
inside the kettle.

And, then, cause that thing
to puke.

Leo, what is happening here?

I think it was boiling
too hot.

Yeah, that's the problem
if you don't have a doubler.

- that's what it is.
- it's okay.

-All you did was just
flush the system out.
- yeah.

you just made sure
it was working right.

- right.

holdin' steady at 160.

Gotta go up.

Oh, she's a-raising
cain now, fellars.

Yeah.

I love going to
thumpers and...

Ah!

You got alcohol.

It's good.

It won't be long now.

I know as mike could
start running later.

He's the only one
using the thumper.

Yeah, he has a whole lot
farther to go.

right.

feeling pretty good
right now.

I can smell it.

you thinking
that's the one?

You smelling it?

It's coming out, buddy.

Let's go look.

Hour-and-a-half.

at any rate,
it's pretty clear.

Every drip counts, leo.

Every single one of 'em.

Leo's baobab brandy,

you cannot buy this stuff
anywhere in the country.

This could help us.
This could hurt us.

How about a little
smell there, peg?

Sure.

I'll let my partner
take a smell.

Holy mackerel.

Getting better as
the jars come out.

Oh, I'm telling you.

Wait till the third
and fourth come out.

I don't know if
I can stand it.

you know, I'm more
than confident with peg leg.

I know what blue corn
brings to the table

when it comes to liquor.

It's super sweet, super tasty.

I just hope these
judges can see

how marketable this liquor is.

Well, like I would say,
proof's in the pudding.

You taste my guy's pudding,

you're gonna throw yours
out the window.

Well, when big mike brings
that jar to the table,

all your hopes and dreams
are gonna fly away.

I'm just glad that we got some

judges coming from outside

to really give us
the true story here.

20 minutes, gentlemen.

you gonna get to
what we need, big mike?

Yes, sir. I'm mixing
the jar up right now.

whatever happens,

it's been an honor

being here,
sitting with you guys.

I'm fine.

Yeah.

I think I'm ready.

The liquid was so clean,

it was just incredible.

that it, leo?

That's it.

I felt good
dropping that jar.

Pretty clear liquor.

I'm very excited

finally to unveil to the world

what the baobab tastes like.

You'll never get
anything like that.

That's what I'm talking about.

Head on back over
to your station,

we got guest judges coming in

and then we're gonna
get out of here.

All right.

Good luck, buddy.

Yep.

what I'm hoping
the judges get from my spirit

is the smell,

the flavor and then the taste.

Delicious blue corn.

And, how it all
combines together,

it's very mellow.

I think it's pretty good.

Boys.

there
is the winning jar.

Good luck, peg.

Yes, sir.

I think that's
the winning jar, right there.

Triple-grain with the honey
and the sour mash,

it's hard to beat
something that good.

Three, two, one.

there's my man

bringing in the winning jar.

that's right.

big mike says
that his sour mash

is what makes his
triple-grain whiskey

his best seller.

I've tasted this stuff.

It is incredible.

I hope the judges
feel the same way.

But, I'll tell you what,

we got three guys,

two of them know
about redemption.

One knows more about
high dollar liquor,

than jack rabbit knows
about rum.

So, we're gonna leave you
in y'all's hands.

Good luck to every damn
one of you.

-Yeah, let's go, guys.
-Good luck, boys.

Peg, leo, big mike,

if it's possible,
I'm rooting for all of you.

especially you.

oh, my god.

This is fantastic.

how's it
going, fellars?

All right.

My name is tickle.

Y'all have met me before.

There's one thing I know
about in my life,

it's redemption.

I'm tim jones.

I've been fortunate enough
to work on

some of the biggest
and most sought after

american whiskeys.

I'm also a bar owner.

So, I'm looking
at these spirits

and trynna figure out,

is this something bartenders
can get excited about,

things like that.

I'm jb rader, the legend.

We have three judges.

We have jb rader, the legend.

Golden tounged tim jones.

Of course, there's tickle.

I don't think tickle's ever

met a jar of liquor
he didn't like.

It's just incredible.

We are here to declare
one winner.

So, with that being said,

we're gonna ask you
all guys to leave.

All right.

-Good luck, guys.
-Thank you.

All right, now there's only
one thing to do,

which is taste them.

-You're right about that.
-Yeah.

You seldom get
a chance at redemption.

It's been really fun

and it's good to see
all three of you guys again.

I wish the best
for all of you.

All right, we got peg leg
up here, first.

It looks good.

What do you reckon right here?

about 105.

That's what I was thinking.

You nervous?

Nah.

I'm steady as a rock here.

I see that.

It's good and clear.
It's floral.

It is nice on the nose.

It's pretty smooth.

The rye is coming through
pretty nicely.

It gives it that nice
peppery punch.

yeah.

But, now, the blue corn,

I'm getting a sweet note from.

Oh, yeah.

I think it's pretty balanced.

It needed a good corn,
too, out there.

-That's the thing,
it's like...
-Yeah.

-...If you know your
corn whiskey...
-Yeah.

...You know this
is a great one.

-Yeah, it is.
-Yes.

I think it's, like,
general enough

to where you could use it

as a base in
a bunch of cocktails.

-Yeah.
-Good marketability.

Yeah.

all right,
fellars, leo.

He's close to 100.

I'm really anxious
to taste this.

It's called a baobab.

We may be

some of the first people
to ever taste this distill.

Yeah, I'm looking forward
to this.

It's like the story
is already there.

-We're already talking
about it, you know.
-The tree of life.

I mean, yeah.

This is something I've been
working for a long time.

I'm probably the first guy
to ever try this.

It's got a distinct aroma.

Definitely fruit forward.

You can tell it's
forward brandy.

almost a cross
between a tangerine

and a pear.

It tastes good.

I'll tell you what,

that just over ice right
there would be amazing.

It would be fantastic.

It would make a great
cocktail, too.

It's very good to
show this to the world,

what the baobab represents.

Big mike's.

-Maybe about 95.
-Yeah.

-But, still great proof.
-Oh, yeah.

And, a sour mash is gonna be
your best liquor.

'cause you done already got

the first couple of real
grainy runs

out of the way.

Whatever they say,

I'll be good with it

as long as you win.

Oh, I'll be good with it
as long as I win, too.

As long as you win.

-Lot of honey.
-Yeah.

It's almost a molasses

which is unique as well.

Got a little fire to it
on my tongue, right now.

But on the tail end.

-I like the little finish
on it.
-Yes.

If it was just smooth
and went away,

-I feel like I'd
be disappointed.
- yeah.

I'd drink it.

It's so honey forward,

you can mix it with anything

that has heavy
simple syrup in it.

It would stand out.

If we win, I don't know
how I'll feel.

Hell, I ain't never won, so.

-I haven't won either.

we've got a tough
decision here, fellars.

Tim.

Well, I gotta base my decision
on marketability.

I think it comes down to that,

because taste
and craftsmanship,

-they're all great.
-Yeah.

This is definitely
the hardest one I've judged.
By far.

-Oh, yeah.
-Yeah.

Hell, boys,
this is redemption.

They all good.

They come out perfect

in their own flavors.

I can't agree more, jb.

Well, guys,
I'm gonna tell you,

ain't nobody going home
a loser,

but there's only gonna be
one number one.

No doubt.

coming up...

I've judged several of these

and this was definitely
the hardest job I've had.

There was no easy
decision here.

I feel very grateful
for coming back here.

I'd be really honored

if you all would sign my leg.

Roll them up.
Get those breeches legs up,
we'll get with it.

match it
off of there, boss.

I can't walk
around without it.

well, that's why they
call him 'peg leg'.

See that?

Oh, wee! It don't smell
really bad.

No, it smells like beer,
don't it?

Yeah.

I've had a lot of people
drink out of that leg.

Well, they're desperate
for a drink, huh?

Tickle and who else?

I guess they use a long straw.

Are you gonna retire
this leg, peg?

When they tell me I have to.

What do you got,
still steel-toe boots in it?

it's a safety measure.

I've never signed
nobody's leg before.

there's a first
for everything.

That's exactly right.

-That's really...

all right, fellars, I got 'em.

Six moonshine masters,

as far as I'm concerned,
right there.

Yeah, exactly.

All right, fellars,

there was no easy
decision here.

Y'all have all
redeemed yourselves greatly.

We'll start off over here
with peg leg.

Tell you what,

never tasted any liquor
made with blue corn.

I could taste
a huge difference.

The sweet notes
coming off of that

combined with your grains
that you put in there

was absolutely amazing.

Yeah, you've
done yourself proud.

That blue corn is exceptional.

That rye come in peppery,

you've done a great job.

Thank you.

I agree, it's a great whiskey.

It was nice and sweet,
but balanced.

I think our bartenders will be
really excited to

have people try it.

You know,
just an exceptional spirit.

-Great job.
-Thank you.

That brings us here to leo.

I'll tell you what, leo,

first time you were here,

you never made it to make
your signature run.

And I'll tell you what,

from what we've tasted today,

had you got to that point,

that would've been
something amazing.

I expected more citrus
out of it by the smell.

But it had this wonderful
mild note to it.

All I can say is great job.

I've never heard of the fruit
in my whole life till this,

and it's good on the palate.

You've done a real great job.

thank you.

I think
it's really interesting.

It was, like,
fruit forward brandy,

it's exactly what
I was hoping for.

But I also think
you can't just

market something or
put something on the shelf

because it's interesting,

it's gotta be great.

-And, you've achieved both.
-Thank you.

All right, well, that
brings us to big mike.

Now, big mike,

when you get to
your sour mash,

that brings the note that
most everybody likes.

That was a smart move
on your part.

And a lot of people have

head-busting liquor
when it comes to honey.

I'll tell you what,

you whopped that dog
before it ever got here.

All I can say is all around,
great job.

Thank you.

That honeycomb, too.

It wasn't harsh,

and that was good and smooth.

And, you've done
an excellent job, too.

Thank you.

Big mike, I tasted
that whiskey

over and over and over,

it's really, really good.

It's nice and sweet, smooth.

When I think about

if I was gonna put that
in the back of the bar,

or try to go to
market with it,

honey's a really
popular flavor.

-People really love
a nice honey whiskey.
-Thank you.

Excellent job.

Thank you.

All right, fellars,

not only did we have

three good moonshiners
here making moonshine.

Y'all also had

a moonshine magician
right beside you.

The combination of all that

really made this

one of the toughest decisions

I've honestly ever had
to make in my life.

-And I believe these guys
will agree with me.
-Oh, yeah.

that being said...

You want me to tell y'all
today or tomorrow?

-well, tomorrow'd be good.

Now that I got
all of y'all smiling,

leo, you
are the master distiller.

way to go, leo!

Way to go, man.

I took the risk to go ahead

and see if the judge can find

the goodness of the baobab.

It was worth it
to take that risk.

It felt absolutely amazing
to share,

you know, a piece of me,

a piece of our history,

a piece of my country,

to the rest of the world.

I don't know what else to say.

It's just incredible.

I've judged several of these.

And, this was definitely
the hardest job I've had.

But, leo,
there's something there

that's, like,
really interesting

that we can get behind
and bring it to market.

I think it's great.

-Congratulations, everybody.

thank you, thank you,
thank you, thank you.

-Congratulations.
-Thank you very much.

-Yes, sir.
-Thank you.

Now, we tried,
didn't we, boss?

Yeah, it kind of hurt
my feelings

just a little bit,

you know, it ought to be
about my turn.

But I don't consider myself
and mike losers.

I'm very much a winner.

I got to do this with mike.

He just showed
exquisite ability.

If I had this
three here fellars,

I'd purchase all in it.

I'll tell y'all what, fellars,

this liquor
is so damn good,

why don't we grab
these three jars,

head out here to the bar

and all of us have
a good drink together?

I'll coat these,

that way they don't
get lost, all right?

I got your liquors.