Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 4, Episode 11 - Shine Overboard - full transcript
The final weeks of shine season are here. Josh & Bill's liquor gets stuck six feet under. Chico & Tyler brew a sweet & sticky moonshine game-changer. Tickle gets trumped by his old buddy. ...
I think bill's been sippin'
since 11:00 yesterday morning,
And, uh, he's started to get
a little crazy on me here
The last couple hours here.
He's about to make me
go insane.
When he drinks this much,
He tends to go
a little crazy, and --
Right on, man.
[ chuckles ]
Narrator:
Tonight on "moonshiners"...
Tim reclaims his territory...
I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
You don't have to
do that no more.
...While tickle
gets cut out...
What am I supposed to do,
Just send all this shine
back to kentucky?
To hell with this
corn liquor [bleep]
...Two shiners
sweeten the pot...
Make twice as much money
and do half the work.
...Josh shuts it down...
Oh, crap!
I-if I just get, like,
a branch or a rock --
You gonna damn mess
our [bleep] up?
Damn you, bill.
...And mark's season is sunk.
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
We're in trouble.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
Got one.
Man: This is how
we make the moonshine!
Captions paid for by
discovery communications
Narrator: The final weeks of
moonshine season are closing in.
With the leaves turning
and the liquor flowing,
It's now a race against time.
Outlaws are digging deep,
Aiming to move their high-proof
product to market
And steer clear of the law.
[ siren wails ]
Darkness hangs over
the backwoods of south carolina
As josh and bill near the bitter
end of their moonshine marathon.
Dude, you been [bleep]
sleeping, man.
Oh [bleep]
and I've been working.
You're getting
on my damn nerves.
Well, I don't care!
They thought they had
the perfect still site...
[ dogs barking ]
...Until some unwanted visitors
left them exposed.
[ growls ]
So josh and bill
have risked everything
On an all-night run...
There she comes.
...Hoping to rack up 300 gallons
before abandoning their spot.
We need to get this thing
out of here,
'cause if we don't,
we're gonna end up in jail.
Long [bleep] night.
[ sighs ]
Bill's been drinking since
yesterday morning at 11:00.
And the sun just came up,
and he's still drinking.
There went my beer.
I wished he had
hit the dirt,
'cause he's done
getting on my damn nerves.
We got that tote down there.
It's gonna hold 300 gallons,
And I'm not gonna leave here
until it's full.
[ snoring ]
He wouldn't let me
get no rest for nothing.
And even when he laid down,
Hell, he still wouldn't
let me get no rest.
[ snoring continues ]
Tossing and turning
and frickin' snoring.
[ snoring continues ]
[ snoring stops ]
Didn't -- [ coughs ]
[bleep] man.
[ chuckles ]
Oh, god damn!
I do not believe you just hit me
in the head with a beer can.
Can't believe you just poked me
in the ribs with a damn stick!
You look crazy.
He's on the warpath
right now.
I mean, he is going
plumb [bleep] nuts.
Miss pie!
Miss pie!
[ belches ]
That's a lot of damn moonshine
right there.
Hey, bud.
We should quit running?
The tank's full.
Kill the heat.
Josh:
We're finally done with the run,
And my main concern right now
Is getting that liquor
in the stash house
And getting into bed.
Josh!
[ leaves rustling ]
Damn it.
Hey, bill.
What's wrong?
He's all to pieces.
He's going crazy on me.
[ engine turns over ]
Narrator: Josh and bill
aren't out of the woods yet.
They need to get
from still site to stash spot,
And the law is on the lookout.
Josh: The last thing I want
to do is get caught out here.
Narrator:
200 miles to the north,
Another shiner's up at daybreak,
Desperate to shake
his streak of bad luck.
Tickle: Doing the best
I can with what I got.
You know, it's done getting
to where, actually,
Some of this is having
to come out of my own pocket,
And that's not good.
After a slow start
selling chico and tyler's liquor
In virginia...
So, how long you
reckon it might be
Before you get rid
of all that?
...Things quickly went
from bad to worse for tickle...
Tickle: He stole
the damn shine, man.
...Forcing him to cough up
two grand of his own green
To pay his associates
their share.
Pretty much broke now.
But with $6,000 of kentucky
shine to unload
Before he gets right
with his partners,
He's having to gamble on
bigger and riskier sales.
I come out here today.
Got a guy that I -- he likes
to get a pretty good amount.
I-I got 16 gallons he's gonna
come pick up from me today.
All right.
That's $1,600 right there
in my pocket,
But, you know,
it's not just for me.
I got tyler and chico.
They're sending up shine.
I need just a couple
of more sales like this,
And I think I can put myself
right where I want to be.
But while tickle is striving
to save his partnership...
Get this fired up here.
...Chico and tyler have already
moved on to plan "b."
What up, brother?
You find any honey?
Yeah, boy. 50 pounds.
50 pounds.
What you wanted, right?
Yeah.
With less than a month left
in moonshine season...
...The two have started
selling in kentucky
And cutting their partner
out of the process.
Tyler: We've moved this stuff
to virginia.
That was a problem.
But at the end of the day,
we got to go bigger or go home.
Oh, yes. This is
fine stuff right there.
Narrator: Now they're
banking on a new formula
That could finally put them
on the map and in the money.
Liable to get some bees
out here today.
[ chuckles ]
I don't need no bees.
Well, 50 pound of honey
ain't cheap. I know that.
Tyler: You know,
everybody knows about
How moonshine's made out of
corn or grains and everything,
But how many times
have you ever heard about
Somebody making honey moonshine?
Yeah.
Narrator: Tyler's bet
that he can make premium liquor
For a pretty penny
is rooted in a long tradition
Of using honey in spirits.
For centuries,
This savory sweetener
has been the key ingredient
In producing mead,
An age-old beverage made
from fermented honey and water.
Dating back almost 9,000 years,
The drink was enjoyed by both
The ancient greeks
during the golden age
And the danish warriors
in "beowulf."
That's gonna be
some good money.
The ingredients
may prove pricier,
But so's the payout --
twice that of typical shine.
Tyler: There's people that
go out, dig in the dirt.
They dig for gold.
We can guarantee gold.
The steam sure smells good.
Chico: Mm-hmm.
It smells wonderful.
We can't be selling this
To fat dudes coming out
of rundown houses.
To hell with this
corn liquor [bleep]
If these people want
to pay me $200 a gallon,
We might as well
make twice as much money
And do half the work.
With this,
I think we went all-in.
Well, here's to making
some damn money.
Right on.
Let's do it.
Narrator: While chico and tyler
try to break new ground,
In graham county,
north carolina,
Two veterans
are bringing it all back home.
Mark and jeff
have lined up a blockbuster deal
With a big tennessee buyer.
Mark: Yeah.
But the local roads
are crawling with cops.
How you doing, big guy?
So they've decided
to hit the water...
We're floating!
Jeff: Surprised me.
...Bootlegging their 50 gallons
by boat.
With the law on the lookout,
The delivery
must be done at night,
So the two shiners
are scoping out a stash house
That's a stone's throw from the
lake -- mark's ancestral home.
Yeah.
That's an old house.
It's over 100 year old
when I moved here.
Yeah, I'd say it ain't no
stranger to liquor, either.
No. This right here -- this is
a real special place to me.
My grandpa's old house.
Grandpa, oh, he, uh,
made a lot of liquor here,
And I know I did.
Drunk a lot here, too.
This was the living room.
Froze to death in here.
You just about had to stand in
that fireplace to feel any heat.
Jeff: Yep.
Mark: Got to thinking
this would be a good place
Close to the lake,
this old house.
Ain't nobody
be around it much.
[ clatters ]
Can't think any place would be
any better to stash our liquor.
Can put a lot of liquor
in there and close the door,
Couldn't you?
Mm-hmm.
Either that or see if we can
put it under the floor.
Ain't gonna be no law
over in here. No way.
I believe
this will work.
Mark and his family made
a lot of liquor out here
Close to where
we're standing.
Kindly keep
the family tradition going.
You know, as long as
we don't get caught.
Narrator: Coming up,
tickle feels the pinch...
I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
But, you know, you don't
have to do that no more.
I don't make no money?
No, I can't do that.
...Josh and bill
go down under....
Every bit of work
out of this entire year
Is sitting up under
that truck right now.
...And mark's shine
sleeps with the fishes.
Hey, huck?
Yeah?
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
Narrator: Deep in the backwoods
of south carolina,
Josh and bill are staying off
the beaten path.
Josh: The last thing I want
to do is get caught out here.
Narrator:
After an all-night run,
The two are transporting
300 gallons of white whiskey.
It looks like water,
but we're still running around
With a few hundred gallons
of liquor in the back of a truck
In broad daylight.
I mean, it's -- we're not gonna
be able to let our guard down.
Come on.
Driving down the road in this
little-bitty red pickup truck
With almost two tons
of moonshine in the back?
That's crazy.
But we got
the moonshine here,
And, uh, we got
300 gallons of liquor
To put in our stash house.
To hold their massive haul,
Josh and bill are pumping
the 30 grand of liquor
Into their subterranean
stash spot.
Money in the ground, baby.
Two 300-gallon tanks
Safely hidden under layers
of plywood and steel
And topped off with
a hollowed-out pickup.
You put the pump on,
all right?
[ chuckles ]
I knew that something
wasn't right there.
What are you doing,
cutie pie?
[ pump whirring ]
We're good to go, man.
I'm gonna get down in there.
You can pass her to me.
Hold on a second. Let me
get down here on the cap.
All right, buddy.
I'm gonna turn it on.
Right on.
[ pump whirring ]
You getting it?
Yep, yep.
Sweet.
Josh:
My grandma always told me,
"don't ever count all
your chickens before they hatch,
And don't ever put all your eggs
in one basket."
Somebody finds our stash,
well, there goes christmas.
There's no better way
to say it.
We got our entire lives
sitting up under this truck.
We need to camouflage this thing
before we do anything else.
I'm thinking, like,
take the bobcat
And scoop up a few pine trees
by the root ball
And place them in here
all around it and stuff.
We'll make it where
it's hard to get to, and...
Yeah, we got to get
this thing covered up.
I mean, it -- it looks like
a lot more than just a truck
Sitting out in the middle
of the woods.
Every bit of work that we put
in out of this entire year
Is sitting up under
that truck right now.
It's sitting on steel "I" beams.
We got plywood up under it.
I mean, it looks like
somebody's up to something.
Narrator: With hunters
active near their site
And the local law
wise to their operation...
Josh:
That's it, bill.
That's all of her?
Yeah.
...Keeping their stash safe
could be the difference between
30 grand in the bank
and 3 years in the slammer.
Get that thing camouflaged,
make our final runs,
Tear our site down,
and be done for the damn year.
Josh and bill
aren't the only ones
Trying to keep a tight lid
on their liquor.
Across the state line,
Mark and jeff have pumped out
200 gallons of the good stuff
In record time.
Now they've secretly moved
a quarter of their batch
To mark's lakeside
stash house...
...To prep for
their first bootleg by boat.
[ sighs ]
Jeff: I've got a connection
in tennessee this year
To buy about 90% of our alcohol.
And, uh, we're gonna deliver it
just across the tennessee line.
You know, it's kindly hard to
hold them five-gallon buckets
On a boat, so, you know,
It's easier for us to put it
in the gallon jugs anyways.
Get me another bucket over here.
That one's just about empty.
The law, they're getting closer
and closer to us, you know,
And don't want to get caught,
But if we get by with it
all season,
It'll be the best season
we've ever had of moonshining.
That's a lot of liquor.
Yeah, boy.
I bet you they ain't
a handful of people
That ever seen
this much liquor.
Well, that's what we was
waiting for, ain't it, mark?
That's it.
You just have to take them.
Where do you want to
set them at, though?
Set them there
in the corner.
And then come back
for them.
And now, the next step of this
is deliver it to tennessee.
Hopefully,
no bad luck with this.
Narrator: While mark and jeff
are eager to take to the water,
In virginia, tickle's struggling
to stay afloat.
I got this high-demand shine.
Everybody's wanting
tim's recipe.
It-it's about time to see
some money start being made
Out of this.
After a big 16-gallon sale,
He's hustling to unload
the rest of his kentucky shine.
But first, he has to answer an
urgent call from an old friend.
Got a call from tim
a little while ago.
He wants me
to come see him.
You know, he's back
around town, and you know,
It'd be good
to get up with tim.
He sounded pretty
doggone excited.
I mean, things must be
going good for him.
Ain't been up here
in a de rn while.
All right.
See what he's got.
[ bell jingles ]
Tickle!
Tickle: Tim!
Look at this
right here, buddy.
What do you got?
What is that?
Look at that.
Look at that.
Virginia abc?
Abc.
Abc.
Yeah, yeah.
No, you may be surprised.
Huh? Look at that.
Oh, there you go.
This right here...
Yeah.
...Says I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, you know
what I mean?
You know, I'm glad it's
in the store, you know?
I know you definitely
wanted it here.
It's a lot of years
trying to get this right here.
Narrator: It's a monumental
moment for tim smith.
Just last season, virginia
rejected the home-grown shiner.
But this year's different.
I get this phone call
from the state of virginia.
They're saying,
"hey, we reviewed everything,
And now you can sell
in the state of virginia."
I was so excited
when they called me.
I was like, "man! Wow!"
We get to take one bottle
to these abc people, at least?
Tell them,
"hey, suck it.
It's legal.
[ laughs ]
Huh?
All them years
we was in the woods...
Yeah.
...It built up to this.
Think about how many
of the abc agents
Are probably gonna
go buy it now?
Oh, you can guarantee it.
They're gonna go buy it,
'cause they want some.
They finally get to taste
what they was trying to find.
[ chuckling ] yeah.
They been looking
for it for years.
How about that?
Yeah.
Course, I mean, you know,
we've been selling
Climax moonshine here
a long time.
[ laughing ] yeah,
I know, but not legally.
That means everybody
can go to a local store,
Just like anybody else,
And buy my moonshine.
Well, you know, we've been
having the territory.
You know, we've been having
that covered, you know?
I know, I know.
We've been keeping
the climax around here.
I know you been
taking care of business,
But, you know, you don't
have to do that no more.
No more taking care
of the clients.
I got it now.
You don't have
to do that no more.
It's so many years
I've been trying
To get the state of virginia
to accept my moonshine.
I don't think they're playing
at jokes, and I trust tickle.
But whatever's in kentucky
stays in kentucky.
Hey, if tickle
stays in kentucky,
It'll probably be a good thing.
So, you all-in?
You -- you good?
Why not, man?
What am I supposed to do,
Just send all this shine
back to kentucky,
I'll cut myself out,
I don't make no money?
I mean, I got two options here.
I can either not sell it
Or I can sell it here
and just not let tim know.
I was kind of excited.
Oh, yeah.
Understandably so.
It's gonna be a new adventure.
Yeah.
It really puts me between
a rock and a hard place.
Narrator: Coming up, josh's plan
doesn't pass the smell test...
People ain't gonna buy liquor
out of a damn [bleep] truck.
...And bootlegging in the black.
Narrator: In a remote patch
of woods near spartan burg,
Josh and bill are busy
covering their tracks.
Josh: Thinking we ought to
just put dirt all around it
The best we can
and then maybe go scoop up
A few of these pine trees
out here somewhere
And place a couple
around it.
With thousands of dollars
sitting just six feet under
In their trick shine cellar...
Sounds like a plan.
...Getting caught
with their massive stockpile
Could spell serious jail time.
We got all this moonshine
to get rid of.
I don't really want to
make any sales,
Because the law
is hot and heavy right now.
Well, first things
are first.
We got to get this
stash house covered up.
We got to get it camouflaged
so nobody can find it,
And, well, I don't
want to go to jail.
Bill: We got it underground,
and for now, it's safe,
You know, but we're still
gonna have to move it.
Now, I mean,
since the law's been on us,
Uh, we just got to be
more careful from here on out.
Oh, damn.
My knee's sore.
We only brought
one shovel?
Nah, you can grab
that other one.
Look at that snake.
I know you're the reptile
whisper er and all that...
[ laughs ]
...But we got some work to do.
[ both laugh ]
I got a pile started
back here.
I'm trying to get
as much of our platform
Covered up as possible.
You know something, bill?
What's that?
We're gonna have all our eggs
in one basket here.
That's a lot of damn cash.
Yeah.
600 gallons.
That's more liquor than we've
ever tried to sell at one time.
How are we gonna haul large
amounts of liquor anywhere
Without the cops
catching it?
'cause all you got to do
is get pulled over one time --
A routine traffic stop.
Right.
And then you're busted.
So, we need a front.
[ sighs ]
We could act like we're running
a damn portal john service
And be delivering
moonshine.
And it could have a tank
inside of the tank
That's where the moonshine goes,
and it's never around dodo-doo.
People ain't gonna buy liquor
out of a damn [bleep] truck.
Why wouldn't they?
That'd be some good [bleep]
[ sighs ]
I've got another idea.
What if we take my race car
truck
And we slap a wrap
on the side of it, you know,
That says "such and such
water company,"
And we put all our moonshine
in those, uh --
In those water jugs
like when you go into
A doctor's office.
Put all the moonshine
in that,
Then we can haul it all over
the damn countryside.
We get caught in
transporting or selling,
I mean, that --
that's game over.
They're not gonna pop the top
on a jug of water.
It's gonna be clear.
That'll work.
I'm on board.
I knew exactly how I was gonna
sell him on this.
"hey, bill. Let's put
a fuel cell in a [bleep] truck
And be selling moonshine
the whole time."
He's all about
the water business now.
[ sighs ]
I love it. I love it.
Beautiful.
Uh-huh.
Got it.
I told you we could do it.
I told you this was a good idea.
That'll work.
I love it when a good plan
comes together.
Narrator: As the sun sets
over the smoky mountains,
Mark's ready to get on the water
For his first sale
of the season.
He's bootlegging 50 gallons by
boat to a big tennessee buyer.
But it's a two-man job,
And jeff and lance are busy
running their 750-gallon still.
Looks like we made it,
huck.
So mark's brought in some
backup -- his cousin huck.
Mark: Me and huck have
been friends all of our lives,
And ain't nobody else
I'd trust any more than him.
If you can hand it to me
and just set it down in here,
I'll run it to the truck.
Yeah.
Huck: Seven.
Ah! Ga!
Let's cover it up
and get out of here.
Yeah, this is the riskiest part
of the whole deal right here
Is moving the stuff,
But if I'm gonna get caught,
I'll get caught the first time.
Narrator: To keep out
of the law's cross hairs,
Mark and his partner
wait for nightfall
Before setting out
on their boat's maiden voyage.
Let's line it up, huck.
Then we'll start loading.
All I know.
Just be careful, huck.
It's slick.
But there's still a chance
The cops could be watching
the water,
So mark's hidden
a floating storage container
Beneath the floorboards
to keep the shine out of sight.
Mm-hmm.
All right.
Mark:
All right, huck.
All I can say
is hand them to me.
Let's go.
Huck:
That'll work.
I hope there's a lot
of money waiting on me.
I need to take a right out here.
We'll hit the main channel.
Turn up the river. We're
going towards tennessee.
Yeah, it's harder
to do at night,
But it's
a whole lot safer.
There's a lot of money
under this boat right now.
To reach
their cross-state buyer,
Mark has to navigate 16 miles
of pitch-black waters.
Huck: Need to go
to the right, mark.
Right?
Yeah.
Well, hold
your light straight
And I can tell
where I'm going.
That's what I'm doing.
You're going straight into
That hill over there if
you don't go to the right.
Can't see nothing.
Uh, go -- go to
the left, mark.
Or do you want to go
towards the bridge?
Uh, I don't know
which way the bridge is.
I believe it's right up
through there.
Hang a right, then.
Right?
Yeah.
Should see lights.
There it is.
Yeah.
I believe the bridge
is right around the bend.
Just right in there.
Just hold the light straight.
Next cove, we'll be there.
Uh, there we go.
Let's untie --
let's untie the back, huck,
And we'll just then
float our boat back.
And we'll unload
right here.
Huck: All right.
It's loose.
All right.
Hey, huck?
Yeah.
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
Every jug we got's gone.
Narrator: Coming up,
liquor lost at sea...
I see some jugs
floating here, mark.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
...And classing up
the clientele.
We looking at people
that's got fat bank rolls
And no common sense.
Suit-and-tie
tty bar-type.
Narrator:
On a secluded lake in tennessee,
Under the cover of darkness...
Need to go to
the right, mark.
...Mark and his cousin huck...
...Are bootlegging 50 gallons
of shine by boat
To a cross-state client.
You see all right?
Yeah, I can see good.
With this sale,
the north carolina moonshiners
Could score five grand
in a single night.
Let's untie the back,
then float our boat back.
We'll unload right here.
But there's just one problem.
Hey, huck?
I got a lot of bad news.
Every jug we got's gone.
[bleep]
I don't understand.
What are we gonna do?
Don't know.
[bleep]
That's $5,000 or more
right there.
Yeah, I know it.
Well, we ain't got nothing here
for the ella to pick it up.
We're in trouble.
All on me, buddy.
Should've strapped
it down.
That's a hard lesson.
We lost a lot of money
right there.
I just figured, you know,
it'd just float right along,
But water pressure pushed it out
is what happened.
There's more pressure
coming back through there
Than you'd think.
It's just -- I don't know.
It's just pressed its way
out the back, one jug at a time.
Could have put a rope
through it or something.
Yeah,
we have to tie it down.
Took us all summer
to set this deal up,
And then something like
this happens -- pretty bad.
We need to get
this liquor found.
Let's load our boat
and get out of here.
To salvage any chance
for the sale,
Mark and huck
need to recover the shine
Before it's lost for good.
I can't see nothing.
I don't know where we're
going, where the bank's at.
I don't know
where nothing's at.
You're doing good.
Oh, go --
Can't see nothing.
Go to the left, mark.
Left?
Yeah.
See anything?
No, not yet.
Hey, mark?
Yeah?
Turn around and go back down.
I think I seen something.
I can't hear you.
I seen some jugs
floating here, mark.
Slow down a little bit.
Right here's three
if we can get them.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
Can you see them over there
if I hold the light over there?
I see them.
I'll take us up,
left side of them.
You just pick them up
on the right side.
Just guide me in.
Tell me which way to cut.
Turn to the right.
Maybe a little bit
to your left.
Okay.
Got one.
Go to your left.
If you can get up close
to them, we can get them.
Hard left.
That's the hardest
I can go right there.
I got another one.
Turn around and go back down.
Narrator:
Mark and huck recover six jugs,
But 44 are still missing...
Go to your left
just a little bit.
...Putting them
over $4,000 in the hole.
How many have we found?
Six?
Six.
I don't see no more.
What we gonna do now
about the other guy?
Have to have
a different pick-up date.
This right here
is my mistake.
I'll just have to fix it.
Narrator:
Darkness is keeping mark from
finding the rest of his run.
But over in kentucky,
The moonlit night is proving
perfect for pumping out shine.
Chico:
We're finally moving forward.
Tyler: We got plenty of time to
deal with tickle in the winter.
Narrator: After leaving tickle
in the dust,
Chico and tyler are ready
to run their first batch
Of their honey home brew...
Tyler: About right
in here, ain't it?
...Hoping to make their own mark
this shine season.
Chico: All I know is we make
a whole lot of noise
Coming in here.
We're in a pretty good
little spot here, though.
Anybody back here
is fooling around.
They're gonna have to be
into something wrong anyway.
Barney found this son of a bitch
in the daylight.
Tyler:
With this honey moonshine,
We decided we'd get out here
in the dark
And get a little more cover
on us
And run this high-dollar liquor
out here at night.
I believe we've made
a little liquor in here before.
That's why
they call it moonshine.
You run the stuff at night
by the light of the moon.
You got that hose?
Yeah, I got the hose.
This old metal pipe
coming out of the ground
Is hooked to an
underground spring.
We get that cold spring water
coming out of the ground.
Chico: We was excited to make
this honey liquor to start with.
Come on around.
Let me see.
The mash just smelt
real strong, you know?
Boy, honey mash
sure smells good.
It don't smell like
I thought it would.
It burn your nostrils when
you took a big snort of it.
Smell like a bee farted out
a lightning bolt.
We ought to get at least
12 gallon out of this run.
I never did pay attention
in math much,
But that sounds like a pretty
good payday for chico and tyler.
That's $2,400
off this one run.
We're gonna run one more
of these, so that's $4,400.
We stepping up to a clientele
that's on another level.
Suit-and-tie
tty bar-type.
Pretty much.
[ amplified ]
ph!
Chico: We've cut out
of selling liquor in virginia.
You know, the money ain't coming
like it's supposed to,
And this higher-end alcohol's
gonna appeal to, hopefully,
Higher-paid clients, you know?
How's that work?
Doctor-, lawyer-type stuff.
We're looking at people
that's got fat bank rolls
And no common sense.
You go ahead
and light this thing up.
I'm gonna cut this gas on.
I'm looking forward to
seeing what the product's
Gonna be like
coming out of here.
We ain't never run no honey
out of this still.
Hurry up and wait.
Now we play
the waiting game.
I tell you what.
We can go ahead
and make that paste up
And get it on there
before it even gets hot,
And it'll go
baking on there
Just as soon as it
gets warmed up.
You reckon we can get
$200 a gallon out of this?
Well, I don't reckon.
I know.
I know we can get
$200 a gallon out of this.
These guys is wanting
this top-shelf liquor
That nobody else
is making.
We the last of a dying breed.
Dying breed.
It's on its way.
That's getting hot there.
I can hear the thump
every once in a while.
[ chuckling ]
oh, buddy!
That's hot.
Look there.
It's running now.
Damn, boy.
That's running there.
I can smell it.
Oh, man.
Whew!
I tell you what,
It don't get much better
than that right there.
When I put that right here
and tasted it -- oh, man.
Oh, yeah.
There ain't nobody
on the face of this planet
That's ever run liquor
tastes like that.
If they have, I want to meet
them and shake their hand.
[ coughs ]
[ laughs ]
There's enough there
to get two people drunk,
And you just drank all of it.
[ laughs ]
Let's get this thing shut off
and get it out of here.
I can't move right now.
Man, I'm proud of that.
Narrator: Coming up,
a shiner comes clean.
I lost the whole load.
Jeff: Oh, lord.
That's what I said.
"oh, lord."
[ spits ]
Narrator:
In south carolina,
With the final days of shine
season fast approaching,
Josh and bill roll up
on their underground stash site,
Anxious to start moving
their 300 gallon haul to market.
Let's hurry up
and do this.
If we can get the hose
right to the truck,
Right to the buckets,
Then we ain't even gonna
have to unload none of that.
We got a sale.
The guy's waiting on us.
I'm ready to just
get in and get out.
We're out here. We got
all this moonshine here.
We don't want anybody
seeing us coming or going.
We got to get this moonshine
pumped, get it delivered,
And collect some
of that hard-earned cash.
I'm about to throw the switch
and throw the valve.
You ready?
Yeah.
It ain't running?
I got the switch on.
I got the valve turned.
It ain't doing nothing, man.
Oh, drang.
There a battery hooked up?
Bill goes
and flips the switch.
Nothing.
Let me see what's wrong
with this thing.
It should be pumping.
There it is.
She's doing something.
Oh, crap!
What is it?
Uh, damn!
Son of a bitch.
Bill.
Yeah?
We've lost about
a gallon of liquor.
Hold on.
I'm coming.
Yeah, we got problems.
The frickin' plywood
settled down on the pipe
And crimped off our plumbing.
We can't pump no shine, and now
we're about to lose our sale.
Narrator:
The two 300-gallon tanks
That hold josh and bill's stash
Are hidden under
a protective blanket of plywood
And a set
of two steel "I" beams.
But the two-ton truck that
sits atop their booze bunker
Is far too heavy,
Putting pressure
on the steel and plywood
And crushing the pipe
that pours out the shine.
Without the proper plumbing
to pump their liquor,
Their stash and season
are all stopped up.
Bill: If I can just take,
like, a rock or a stick,
A branch or something,
The framing's sitting
on the plywood,
And the truck's
sitting on it.
Listen...
If I can --
...You are not gonna be able
to beat that out of there.
It has enough pressure on it to
cut a piece of pvc pipe in two.
You're not just gonna
beat it out, and if you do,
You're gonna cause
that dirt to fall in there.
All we got to do is --
I'll run back to the house,
Get the damn seawall,
I'll cut a notch in it,
And it'll be done.
If I just get, like, a branch
or a rock or something --
You are not beating
that out of there, man.
Knock the plywood --
I'm just telling you
you're gonna damn mess
Our [bleep] up
when all you got to do
Is let me run back
to the house
And get the seawall
and cut a notch in it,
And vila, it's done.
Well, if I just get a rock
or a stick or something,
I can knock --
damn you, bill!
I mean, just --
Hey [bleep] how about
opening that hood back up?
Funny, funny guy.
Narrator: In north carolina,
After bungling a $5,000 sale
to a big buyer in tennessee
And searching through the night
to recover his lost load,
It's time for mark
to face the music.
Do what?
Somebody rip you
off, or...?
What happened?
From what
I can figure out...
Did you find
any of it, or...?
Uh, yeah, I went back and
looked and looked best I could.
It was dark, but we --
we found six or seven jugs.
Oh, lord.
That's what I said,
"oh, lord."
Thought and thought about it,
But I don't know what
to even say about it, but...
We'll do something so it
can't get out of that box.
Seems to me like we're just
having a lot of bad luck.
Narrator:
Next time on "moonshiners"...
Got a sale lined up.
It's not a guy I really know.
...A backdoor deal goes bust...
Tickle: It was only
supposed to be one guy.
This is the first time
I'm meeting this guy.
...Josh and bill
are back in business...
Josh was able to
score us a truck.
We got a big sticker
gonna go on the side.
We can't use that.
Supposed to say,
"can of spring water."
How do you spell that?
...And the law cracks down
on jeff and lance.
Slow, slow, slow.
All right, boys.
You got to get
out right now.
You got anything
in the vehicle?
since 11:00 yesterday morning,
And, uh, he's started to get
a little crazy on me here
The last couple hours here.
He's about to make me
go insane.
When he drinks this much,
He tends to go
a little crazy, and --
Right on, man.
[ chuckles ]
Narrator:
Tonight on "moonshiners"...
Tim reclaims his territory...
I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
You don't have to
do that no more.
...While tickle
gets cut out...
What am I supposed to do,
Just send all this shine
back to kentucky?
To hell with this
corn liquor [bleep]
...Two shiners
sweeten the pot...
Make twice as much money
and do half the work.
...Josh shuts it down...
Oh, crap!
I-if I just get, like,
a branch or a rock --
You gonna damn mess
our [bleep] up?
Damn you, bill.
...And mark's season is sunk.
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
We're in trouble.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
Got one.
Man: This is how
we make the moonshine!
Captions paid for by
discovery communications
Narrator: The final weeks of
moonshine season are closing in.
With the leaves turning
and the liquor flowing,
It's now a race against time.
Outlaws are digging deep,
Aiming to move their high-proof
product to market
And steer clear of the law.
[ siren wails ]
Darkness hangs over
the backwoods of south carolina
As josh and bill near the bitter
end of their moonshine marathon.
Dude, you been [bleep]
sleeping, man.
Oh [bleep]
and I've been working.
You're getting
on my damn nerves.
Well, I don't care!
They thought they had
the perfect still site...
[ dogs barking ]
...Until some unwanted visitors
left them exposed.
[ growls ]
So josh and bill
have risked everything
On an all-night run...
There she comes.
...Hoping to rack up 300 gallons
before abandoning their spot.
We need to get this thing
out of here,
'cause if we don't,
we're gonna end up in jail.
Long [bleep] night.
[ sighs ]
Bill's been drinking since
yesterday morning at 11:00.
And the sun just came up,
and he's still drinking.
There went my beer.
I wished he had
hit the dirt,
'cause he's done
getting on my damn nerves.
We got that tote down there.
It's gonna hold 300 gallons,
And I'm not gonna leave here
until it's full.
[ snoring ]
He wouldn't let me
get no rest for nothing.
And even when he laid down,
Hell, he still wouldn't
let me get no rest.
[ snoring continues ]
Tossing and turning
and frickin' snoring.
[ snoring continues ]
[ snoring stops ]
Didn't -- [ coughs ]
[bleep] man.
[ chuckles ]
Oh, god damn!
I do not believe you just hit me
in the head with a beer can.
Can't believe you just poked me
in the ribs with a damn stick!
You look crazy.
He's on the warpath
right now.
I mean, he is going
plumb [bleep] nuts.
Miss pie!
Miss pie!
[ belches ]
That's a lot of damn moonshine
right there.
Hey, bud.
We should quit running?
The tank's full.
Kill the heat.
Josh:
We're finally done with the run,
And my main concern right now
Is getting that liquor
in the stash house
And getting into bed.
Josh!
[ leaves rustling ]
Damn it.
Hey, bill.
What's wrong?
He's all to pieces.
He's going crazy on me.
[ engine turns over ]
Narrator: Josh and bill
aren't out of the woods yet.
They need to get
from still site to stash spot,
And the law is on the lookout.
Josh: The last thing I want
to do is get caught out here.
Narrator:
200 miles to the north,
Another shiner's up at daybreak,
Desperate to shake
his streak of bad luck.
Tickle: Doing the best
I can with what I got.
You know, it's done getting
to where, actually,
Some of this is having
to come out of my own pocket,
And that's not good.
After a slow start
selling chico and tyler's liquor
In virginia...
So, how long you
reckon it might be
Before you get rid
of all that?
...Things quickly went
from bad to worse for tickle...
Tickle: He stole
the damn shine, man.
...Forcing him to cough up
two grand of his own green
To pay his associates
their share.
Pretty much broke now.
But with $6,000 of kentucky
shine to unload
Before he gets right
with his partners,
He's having to gamble on
bigger and riskier sales.
I come out here today.
Got a guy that I -- he likes
to get a pretty good amount.
I-I got 16 gallons he's gonna
come pick up from me today.
All right.
That's $1,600 right there
in my pocket,
But, you know,
it's not just for me.
I got tyler and chico.
They're sending up shine.
I need just a couple
of more sales like this,
And I think I can put myself
right where I want to be.
But while tickle is striving
to save his partnership...
Get this fired up here.
...Chico and tyler have already
moved on to plan "b."
What up, brother?
You find any honey?
Yeah, boy. 50 pounds.
50 pounds.
What you wanted, right?
Yeah.
With less than a month left
in moonshine season...
...The two have started
selling in kentucky
And cutting their partner
out of the process.
Tyler: We've moved this stuff
to virginia.
That was a problem.
But at the end of the day,
we got to go bigger or go home.
Oh, yes. This is
fine stuff right there.
Narrator: Now they're
banking on a new formula
That could finally put them
on the map and in the money.
Liable to get some bees
out here today.
[ chuckles ]
I don't need no bees.
Well, 50 pound of honey
ain't cheap. I know that.
Tyler: You know,
everybody knows about
How moonshine's made out of
corn or grains and everything,
But how many times
have you ever heard about
Somebody making honey moonshine?
Yeah.
Narrator: Tyler's bet
that he can make premium liquor
For a pretty penny
is rooted in a long tradition
Of using honey in spirits.
For centuries,
This savory sweetener
has been the key ingredient
In producing mead,
An age-old beverage made
from fermented honey and water.
Dating back almost 9,000 years,
The drink was enjoyed by both
The ancient greeks
during the golden age
And the danish warriors
in "beowulf."
That's gonna be
some good money.
The ingredients
may prove pricier,
But so's the payout --
twice that of typical shine.
Tyler: There's people that
go out, dig in the dirt.
They dig for gold.
We can guarantee gold.
The steam sure smells good.
Chico: Mm-hmm.
It smells wonderful.
We can't be selling this
To fat dudes coming out
of rundown houses.
To hell with this
corn liquor [bleep]
If these people want
to pay me $200 a gallon,
We might as well
make twice as much money
And do half the work.
With this,
I think we went all-in.
Well, here's to making
some damn money.
Right on.
Let's do it.
Narrator: While chico and tyler
try to break new ground,
In graham county,
north carolina,
Two veterans
are bringing it all back home.
Mark and jeff
have lined up a blockbuster deal
With a big tennessee buyer.
Mark: Yeah.
But the local roads
are crawling with cops.
How you doing, big guy?
So they've decided
to hit the water...
We're floating!
Jeff: Surprised me.
...Bootlegging their 50 gallons
by boat.
With the law on the lookout,
The delivery
must be done at night,
So the two shiners
are scoping out a stash house
That's a stone's throw from the
lake -- mark's ancestral home.
Yeah.
That's an old house.
It's over 100 year old
when I moved here.
Yeah, I'd say it ain't no
stranger to liquor, either.
No. This right here -- this is
a real special place to me.
My grandpa's old house.
Grandpa, oh, he, uh,
made a lot of liquor here,
And I know I did.
Drunk a lot here, too.
This was the living room.
Froze to death in here.
You just about had to stand in
that fireplace to feel any heat.
Jeff: Yep.
Mark: Got to thinking
this would be a good place
Close to the lake,
this old house.
Ain't nobody
be around it much.
[ clatters ]
Can't think any place would be
any better to stash our liquor.
Can put a lot of liquor
in there and close the door,
Couldn't you?
Mm-hmm.
Either that or see if we can
put it under the floor.
Ain't gonna be no law
over in here. No way.
I believe
this will work.
Mark and his family made
a lot of liquor out here
Close to where
we're standing.
Kindly keep
the family tradition going.
You know, as long as
we don't get caught.
Narrator: Coming up,
tickle feels the pinch...
I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
But, you know, you don't
have to do that no more.
I don't make no money?
No, I can't do that.
...Josh and bill
go down under....
Every bit of work
out of this entire year
Is sitting up under
that truck right now.
...And mark's shine
sleeps with the fishes.
Hey, huck?
Yeah?
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
Narrator: Deep in the backwoods
of south carolina,
Josh and bill are staying off
the beaten path.
Josh: The last thing I want
to do is get caught out here.
Narrator:
After an all-night run,
The two are transporting
300 gallons of white whiskey.
It looks like water,
but we're still running around
With a few hundred gallons
of liquor in the back of a truck
In broad daylight.
I mean, it's -- we're not gonna
be able to let our guard down.
Come on.
Driving down the road in this
little-bitty red pickup truck
With almost two tons
of moonshine in the back?
That's crazy.
But we got
the moonshine here,
And, uh, we got
300 gallons of liquor
To put in our stash house.
To hold their massive haul,
Josh and bill are pumping
the 30 grand of liquor
Into their subterranean
stash spot.
Money in the ground, baby.
Two 300-gallon tanks
Safely hidden under layers
of plywood and steel
And topped off with
a hollowed-out pickup.
You put the pump on,
all right?
[ chuckles ]
I knew that something
wasn't right there.
What are you doing,
cutie pie?
[ pump whirring ]
We're good to go, man.
I'm gonna get down in there.
You can pass her to me.
Hold on a second. Let me
get down here on the cap.
All right, buddy.
I'm gonna turn it on.
Right on.
[ pump whirring ]
You getting it?
Yep, yep.
Sweet.
Josh:
My grandma always told me,
"don't ever count all
your chickens before they hatch,
And don't ever put all your eggs
in one basket."
Somebody finds our stash,
well, there goes christmas.
There's no better way
to say it.
We got our entire lives
sitting up under this truck.
We need to camouflage this thing
before we do anything else.
I'm thinking, like,
take the bobcat
And scoop up a few pine trees
by the root ball
And place them in here
all around it and stuff.
We'll make it where
it's hard to get to, and...
Yeah, we got to get
this thing covered up.
I mean, it -- it looks like
a lot more than just a truck
Sitting out in the middle
of the woods.
Every bit of work that we put
in out of this entire year
Is sitting up under
that truck right now.
It's sitting on steel "I" beams.
We got plywood up under it.
I mean, it looks like
somebody's up to something.
Narrator: With hunters
active near their site
And the local law
wise to their operation...
Josh:
That's it, bill.
That's all of her?
Yeah.
...Keeping their stash safe
could be the difference between
30 grand in the bank
and 3 years in the slammer.
Get that thing camouflaged,
make our final runs,
Tear our site down,
and be done for the damn year.
Josh and bill
aren't the only ones
Trying to keep a tight lid
on their liquor.
Across the state line,
Mark and jeff have pumped out
200 gallons of the good stuff
In record time.
Now they've secretly moved
a quarter of their batch
To mark's lakeside
stash house...
...To prep for
their first bootleg by boat.
[ sighs ]
Jeff: I've got a connection
in tennessee this year
To buy about 90% of our alcohol.
And, uh, we're gonna deliver it
just across the tennessee line.
You know, it's kindly hard to
hold them five-gallon buckets
On a boat, so, you know,
It's easier for us to put it
in the gallon jugs anyways.
Get me another bucket over here.
That one's just about empty.
The law, they're getting closer
and closer to us, you know,
And don't want to get caught,
But if we get by with it
all season,
It'll be the best season
we've ever had of moonshining.
That's a lot of liquor.
Yeah, boy.
I bet you they ain't
a handful of people
That ever seen
this much liquor.
Well, that's what we was
waiting for, ain't it, mark?
That's it.
You just have to take them.
Where do you want to
set them at, though?
Set them there
in the corner.
And then come back
for them.
And now, the next step of this
is deliver it to tennessee.
Hopefully,
no bad luck with this.
Narrator: While mark and jeff
are eager to take to the water,
In virginia, tickle's struggling
to stay afloat.
I got this high-demand shine.
Everybody's wanting
tim's recipe.
It-it's about time to see
some money start being made
Out of this.
After a big 16-gallon sale,
He's hustling to unload
the rest of his kentucky shine.
But first, he has to answer an
urgent call from an old friend.
Got a call from tim
a little while ago.
He wants me
to come see him.
You know, he's back
around town, and you know,
It'd be good
to get up with tim.
He sounded pretty
doggone excited.
I mean, things must be
going good for him.
Ain't been up here
in a de rn while.
All right.
See what he's got.
[ bell jingles ]
Tickle!
Tickle: Tim!
Look at this
right here, buddy.
What do you got?
What is that?
Look at that.
Look at that.
Virginia abc?
Abc.
Abc.
Yeah, yeah.
No, you may be surprised.
Huh? Look at that.
Oh, there you go.
This right here...
Yeah.
...Says I can sell it anywhere
in the state of virginia.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, you know
what I mean?
You know, I'm glad it's
in the store, you know?
I know you definitely
wanted it here.
It's a lot of years
trying to get this right here.
Narrator: It's a monumental
moment for tim smith.
Just last season, virginia
rejected the home-grown shiner.
But this year's different.
I get this phone call
from the state of virginia.
They're saying,
"hey, we reviewed everything,
And now you can sell
in the state of virginia."
I was so excited
when they called me.
I was like, "man! Wow!"
We get to take one bottle
to these abc people, at least?
Tell them,
"hey, suck it.
It's legal.
[ laughs ]
Huh?
All them years
we was in the woods...
Yeah.
...It built up to this.
Think about how many
of the abc agents
Are probably gonna
go buy it now?
Oh, you can guarantee it.
They're gonna go buy it,
'cause they want some.
They finally get to taste
what they was trying to find.
[ chuckling ] yeah.
They been looking
for it for years.
How about that?
Yeah.
Course, I mean, you know,
we've been selling
Climax moonshine here
a long time.
[ laughing ] yeah,
I know, but not legally.
That means everybody
can go to a local store,
Just like anybody else,
And buy my moonshine.
Well, you know, we've been
having the territory.
You know, we've been having
that covered, you know?
I know, I know.
We've been keeping
the climax around here.
I know you been
taking care of business,
But, you know, you don't
have to do that no more.
No more taking care
of the clients.
I got it now.
You don't have
to do that no more.
It's so many years
I've been trying
To get the state of virginia
to accept my moonshine.
I don't think they're playing
at jokes, and I trust tickle.
But whatever's in kentucky
stays in kentucky.
Hey, if tickle
stays in kentucky,
It'll probably be a good thing.
So, you all-in?
You -- you good?
Why not, man?
What am I supposed to do,
Just send all this shine
back to kentucky,
I'll cut myself out,
I don't make no money?
I mean, I got two options here.
I can either not sell it
Or I can sell it here
and just not let tim know.
I was kind of excited.
Oh, yeah.
Understandably so.
It's gonna be a new adventure.
Yeah.
It really puts me between
a rock and a hard place.
Narrator: Coming up, josh's plan
doesn't pass the smell test...
People ain't gonna buy liquor
out of a damn [bleep] truck.
...And bootlegging in the black.
Narrator: In a remote patch
of woods near spartan burg,
Josh and bill are busy
covering their tracks.
Josh: Thinking we ought to
just put dirt all around it
The best we can
and then maybe go scoop up
A few of these pine trees
out here somewhere
And place a couple
around it.
With thousands of dollars
sitting just six feet under
In their trick shine cellar...
Sounds like a plan.
...Getting caught
with their massive stockpile
Could spell serious jail time.
We got all this moonshine
to get rid of.
I don't really want to
make any sales,
Because the law
is hot and heavy right now.
Well, first things
are first.
We got to get this
stash house covered up.
We got to get it camouflaged
so nobody can find it,
And, well, I don't
want to go to jail.
Bill: We got it underground,
and for now, it's safe,
You know, but we're still
gonna have to move it.
Now, I mean,
since the law's been on us,
Uh, we just got to be
more careful from here on out.
Oh, damn.
My knee's sore.
We only brought
one shovel?
Nah, you can grab
that other one.
Look at that snake.
I know you're the reptile
whisper er and all that...
[ laughs ]
...But we got some work to do.
[ both laugh ]
I got a pile started
back here.
I'm trying to get
as much of our platform
Covered up as possible.
You know something, bill?
What's that?
We're gonna have all our eggs
in one basket here.
That's a lot of damn cash.
Yeah.
600 gallons.
That's more liquor than we've
ever tried to sell at one time.
How are we gonna haul large
amounts of liquor anywhere
Without the cops
catching it?
'cause all you got to do
is get pulled over one time --
A routine traffic stop.
Right.
And then you're busted.
So, we need a front.
[ sighs ]
We could act like we're running
a damn portal john service
And be delivering
moonshine.
And it could have a tank
inside of the tank
That's where the moonshine goes,
and it's never around dodo-doo.
People ain't gonna buy liquor
out of a damn [bleep] truck.
Why wouldn't they?
That'd be some good [bleep]
[ sighs ]
I've got another idea.
What if we take my race car
truck
And we slap a wrap
on the side of it, you know,
That says "such and such
water company,"
And we put all our moonshine
in those, uh --
In those water jugs
like when you go into
A doctor's office.
Put all the moonshine
in that,
Then we can haul it all over
the damn countryside.
We get caught in
transporting or selling,
I mean, that --
that's game over.
They're not gonna pop the top
on a jug of water.
It's gonna be clear.
That'll work.
I'm on board.
I knew exactly how I was gonna
sell him on this.
"hey, bill. Let's put
a fuel cell in a [bleep] truck
And be selling moonshine
the whole time."
He's all about
the water business now.
[ sighs ]
I love it. I love it.
Beautiful.
Uh-huh.
Got it.
I told you we could do it.
I told you this was a good idea.
That'll work.
I love it when a good plan
comes together.
Narrator: As the sun sets
over the smoky mountains,
Mark's ready to get on the water
For his first sale
of the season.
He's bootlegging 50 gallons by
boat to a big tennessee buyer.
But it's a two-man job,
And jeff and lance are busy
running their 750-gallon still.
Looks like we made it,
huck.
So mark's brought in some
backup -- his cousin huck.
Mark: Me and huck have
been friends all of our lives,
And ain't nobody else
I'd trust any more than him.
If you can hand it to me
and just set it down in here,
I'll run it to the truck.
Yeah.
Huck: Seven.
Ah! Ga!
Let's cover it up
and get out of here.
Yeah, this is the riskiest part
of the whole deal right here
Is moving the stuff,
But if I'm gonna get caught,
I'll get caught the first time.
Narrator: To keep out
of the law's cross hairs,
Mark and his partner
wait for nightfall
Before setting out
on their boat's maiden voyage.
Let's line it up, huck.
Then we'll start loading.
All I know.
Just be careful, huck.
It's slick.
But there's still a chance
The cops could be watching
the water,
So mark's hidden
a floating storage container
Beneath the floorboards
to keep the shine out of sight.
Mm-hmm.
All right.
Mark:
All right, huck.
All I can say
is hand them to me.
Let's go.
Huck:
That'll work.
I hope there's a lot
of money waiting on me.
I need to take a right out here.
We'll hit the main channel.
Turn up the river. We're
going towards tennessee.
Yeah, it's harder
to do at night,
But it's
a whole lot safer.
There's a lot of money
under this boat right now.
To reach
their cross-state buyer,
Mark has to navigate 16 miles
of pitch-black waters.
Huck: Need to go
to the right, mark.
Right?
Yeah.
Well, hold
your light straight
And I can tell
where I'm going.
That's what I'm doing.
You're going straight into
That hill over there if
you don't go to the right.
Can't see nothing.
Uh, go -- go to
the left, mark.
Or do you want to go
towards the bridge?
Uh, I don't know
which way the bridge is.
I believe it's right up
through there.
Hang a right, then.
Right?
Yeah.
Should see lights.
There it is.
Yeah.
I believe the bridge
is right around the bend.
Just right in there.
Just hold the light straight.
Next cove, we'll be there.
Uh, there we go.
Let's untie --
let's untie the back, huck,
And we'll just then
float our boat back.
And we'll unload
right here.
Huck: All right.
It's loose.
All right.
Hey, huck?
Yeah.
I got a lot of bad news.
What's wrong?
Every jug we got's gone.
Narrator: Coming up,
liquor lost at sea...
I see some jugs
floating here, mark.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
...And classing up
the clientele.
We looking at people
that's got fat bank rolls
And no common sense.
Suit-and-tie
tty bar-type.
Narrator:
On a secluded lake in tennessee,
Under the cover of darkness...
Need to go to
the right, mark.
...Mark and his cousin huck...
...Are bootlegging 50 gallons
of shine by boat
To a cross-state client.
You see all right?
Yeah, I can see good.
With this sale,
the north carolina moonshiners
Could score five grand
in a single night.
Let's untie the back,
then float our boat back.
We'll unload right here.
But there's just one problem.
Hey, huck?
I got a lot of bad news.
Every jug we got's gone.
[bleep]
I don't understand.
What are we gonna do?
Don't know.
[bleep]
That's $5,000 or more
right there.
Yeah, I know it.
Well, we ain't got nothing here
for the ella to pick it up.
We're in trouble.
All on me, buddy.
Should've strapped
it down.
That's a hard lesson.
We lost a lot of money
right there.
I just figured, you know,
it'd just float right along,
But water pressure pushed it out
is what happened.
There's more pressure
coming back through there
Than you'd think.
It's just -- I don't know.
It's just pressed its way
out the back, one jug at a time.
Could have put a rope
through it or something.
Yeah,
we have to tie it down.
Took us all summer
to set this deal up,
And then something like
this happens -- pretty bad.
We need to get
this liquor found.
Let's load our boat
and get out of here.
To salvage any chance
for the sale,
Mark and huck
need to recover the shine
Before it's lost for good.
I can't see nothing.
I don't know where we're
going, where the bank's at.
I don't know
where nothing's at.
You're doing good.
Oh, go --
Can't see nothing.
Go to the left, mark.
Left?
Yeah.
See anything?
No, not yet.
Hey, mark?
Yeah?
Turn around and go back down.
I think I seen something.
I can't hear you.
I seen some jugs
floating here, mark.
Slow down a little bit.
Right here's three
if we can get them.
I can't --
I can't see nothing.
Can you see them over there
if I hold the light over there?
I see them.
I'll take us up,
left side of them.
You just pick them up
on the right side.
Just guide me in.
Tell me which way to cut.
Turn to the right.
Maybe a little bit
to your left.
Okay.
Got one.
Go to your left.
If you can get up close
to them, we can get them.
Hard left.
That's the hardest
I can go right there.
I got another one.
Turn around and go back down.
Narrator:
Mark and huck recover six jugs,
But 44 are still missing...
Go to your left
just a little bit.
...Putting them
over $4,000 in the hole.
How many have we found?
Six?
Six.
I don't see no more.
What we gonna do now
about the other guy?
Have to have
a different pick-up date.
This right here
is my mistake.
I'll just have to fix it.
Narrator:
Darkness is keeping mark from
finding the rest of his run.
But over in kentucky,
The moonlit night is proving
perfect for pumping out shine.
Chico:
We're finally moving forward.
Tyler: We got plenty of time to
deal with tickle in the winter.
Narrator: After leaving tickle
in the dust,
Chico and tyler are ready
to run their first batch
Of their honey home brew...
Tyler: About right
in here, ain't it?
...Hoping to make their own mark
this shine season.
Chico: All I know is we make
a whole lot of noise
Coming in here.
We're in a pretty good
little spot here, though.
Anybody back here
is fooling around.
They're gonna have to be
into something wrong anyway.
Barney found this son of a bitch
in the daylight.
Tyler:
With this honey moonshine,
We decided we'd get out here
in the dark
And get a little more cover
on us
And run this high-dollar liquor
out here at night.
I believe we've made
a little liquor in here before.
That's why
they call it moonshine.
You run the stuff at night
by the light of the moon.
You got that hose?
Yeah, I got the hose.
This old metal pipe
coming out of the ground
Is hooked to an
underground spring.
We get that cold spring water
coming out of the ground.
Chico: We was excited to make
this honey liquor to start with.
Come on around.
Let me see.
The mash just smelt
real strong, you know?
Boy, honey mash
sure smells good.
It don't smell like
I thought it would.
It burn your nostrils when
you took a big snort of it.
Smell like a bee farted out
a lightning bolt.
We ought to get at least
12 gallon out of this run.
I never did pay attention
in math much,
But that sounds like a pretty
good payday for chico and tyler.
That's $2,400
off this one run.
We're gonna run one more
of these, so that's $4,400.
We stepping up to a clientele
that's on another level.
Suit-and-tie
tty bar-type.
Pretty much.
[ amplified ]
ph!
Chico: We've cut out
of selling liquor in virginia.
You know, the money ain't coming
like it's supposed to,
And this higher-end alcohol's
gonna appeal to, hopefully,
Higher-paid clients, you know?
How's that work?
Doctor-, lawyer-type stuff.
We're looking at people
that's got fat bank rolls
And no common sense.
You go ahead
and light this thing up.
I'm gonna cut this gas on.
I'm looking forward to
seeing what the product's
Gonna be like
coming out of here.
We ain't never run no honey
out of this still.
Hurry up and wait.
Now we play
the waiting game.
I tell you what.
We can go ahead
and make that paste up
And get it on there
before it even gets hot,
And it'll go
baking on there
Just as soon as it
gets warmed up.
You reckon we can get
$200 a gallon out of this?
Well, I don't reckon.
I know.
I know we can get
$200 a gallon out of this.
These guys is wanting
this top-shelf liquor
That nobody else
is making.
We the last of a dying breed.
Dying breed.
It's on its way.
That's getting hot there.
I can hear the thump
every once in a while.
[ chuckling ]
oh, buddy!
That's hot.
Look there.
It's running now.
Damn, boy.
That's running there.
I can smell it.
Oh, man.
Whew!
I tell you what,
It don't get much better
than that right there.
When I put that right here
and tasted it -- oh, man.
Oh, yeah.
There ain't nobody
on the face of this planet
That's ever run liquor
tastes like that.
If they have, I want to meet
them and shake their hand.
[ coughs ]
[ laughs ]
There's enough there
to get two people drunk,
And you just drank all of it.
[ laughs ]
Let's get this thing shut off
and get it out of here.
I can't move right now.
Man, I'm proud of that.
Narrator: Coming up,
a shiner comes clean.
I lost the whole load.
Jeff: Oh, lord.
That's what I said.
"oh, lord."
[ spits ]
Narrator:
In south carolina,
With the final days of shine
season fast approaching,
Josh and bill roll up
on their underground stash site,
Anxious to start moving
their 300 gallon haul to market.
Let's hurry up
and do this.
If we can get the hose
right to the truck,
Right to the buckets,
Then we ain't even gonna
have to unload none of that.
We got a sale.
The guy's waiting on us.
I'm ready to just
get in and get out.
We're out here. We got
all this moonshine here.
We don't want anybody
seeing us coming or going.
We got to get this moonshine
pumped, get it delivered,
And collect some
of that hard-earned cash.
I'm about to throw the switch
and throw the valve.
You ready?
Yeah.
It ain't running?
I got the switch on.
I got the valve turned.
It ain't doing nothing, man.
Oh, drang.
There a battery hooked up?
Bill goes
and flips the switch.
Nothing.
Let me see what's wrong
with this thing.
It should be pumping.
There it is.
She's doing something.
Oh, crap!
What is it?
Uh, damn!
Son of a bitch.
Bill.
Yeah?
We've lost about
a gallon of liquor.
Hold on.
I'm coming.
Yeah, we got problems.
The frickin' plywood
settled down on the pipe
And crimped off our plumbing.
We can't pump no shine, and now
we're about to lose our sale.
Narrator:
The two 300-gallon tanks
That hold josh and bill's stash
Are hidden under
a protective blanket of plywood
And a set
of two steel "I" beams.
But the two-ton truck that
sits atop their booze bunker
Is far too heavy,
Putting pressure
on the steel and plywood
And crushing the pipe
that pours out the shine.
Without the proper plumbing
to pump their liquor,
Their stash and season
are all stopped up.
Bill: If I can just take,
like, a rock or a stick,
A branch or something,
The framing's sitting
on the plywood,
And the truck's
sitting on it.
Listen...
If I can --
...You are not gonna be able
to beat that out of there.
It has enough pressure on it to
cut a piece of pvc pipe in two.
You're not just gonna
beat it out, and if you do,
You're gonna cause
that dirt to fall in there.
All we got to do is --
I'll run back to the house,
Get the damn seawall,
I'll cut a notch in it,
And it'll be done.
If I just get, like, a branch
or a rock or something --
You are not beating
that out of there, man.
Knock the plywood --
I'm just telling you
you're gonna damn mess
Our [bleep] up
when all you got to do
Is let me run back
to the house
And get the seawall
and cut a notch in it,
And vila, it's done.
Well, if I just get a rock
or a stick or something,
I can knock --
damn you, bill!
I mean, just --
Hey [bleep] how about
opening that hood back up?
Funny, funny guy.
Narrator: In north carolina,
After bungling a $5,000 sale
to a big buyer in tennessee
And searching through the night
to recover his lost load,
It's time for mark
to face the music.
Do what?
Somebody rip you
off, or...?
What happened?
From what
I can figure out...
Did you find
any of it, or...?
Uh, yeah, I went back and
looked and looked best I could.
It was dark, but we --
we found six or seven jugs.
Oh, lord.
That's what I said,
"oh, lord."
Thought and thought about it,
But I don't know what
to even say about it, but...
We'll do something so it
can't get out of that box.
Seems to me like we're just
having a lot of bad luck.
Narrator:
Next time on "moonshiners"...
Got a sale lined up.
It's not a guy I really know.
...A backdoor deal goes bust...
Tickle: It was only
supposed to be one guy.
This is the first time
I'm meeting this guy.
...Josh and bill
are back in business...
Josh was able to
score us a truck.
We got a big sticker
gonna go on the side.
We can't use that.
Supposed to say,
"can of spring water."
How do you spell that?
...And the law cracks down
on jeff and lance.
Slow, slow, slow.
All right, boys.
You got to get
out right now.
You got anything
in the vehicle?