Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 4, Episode 5 - Tennessee Rising - full transcript

Two former still hands of moonshine legend Popcorn Sutton emerge from the shadows. Tim learns that getting out of the illegal liquor business doesn't get you out of the woods. And a ton of ...

Narrator:
Tonight on "moonshiners"...

Tim: It's not mixing.

...The accusations fly.

Something's wrong
with your machine.

Troy: Nothing's wrong
with my machine.

Something's wrong
with the operator.

Three shiners
are against the ropes.

For the first time ever,

Two purists agree
to share their secrets.

What do you think about maybe us
making a little bit of liquor?

[ grunts ]



And the plug gets pulled
in south carolina.

It's over!
I'm going home!

I'm done.

Man: This is how
we make the moonshine!

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Narrator: Across the southern
United States,

An invisible war has been raging
for generations.

Jeff: Ah!
[bleep] damn!

[ gunshots ]

And in north carolina,
one sheriff's deputy

Just tipped the balance
in favor of the law

And gave three moonshiners
the scare of their careers.

Mark: Wow. [bleep]

That's the end
of that place.



Mark, jeff, and lance
are making mash sticks

To try and calm their nerves.

They can't stop down for long.

They've got nowhere
to set up their still.

Until a new still site
is secured,

They could be losing
up to 10 grand a day.

Can he be trusted?

Oh, yeah. I mean, he won't know
nothing about it.

Even if he did find out,

I mean, it's not like
he's gonna report us.

We might have to give him
a little hush-up money, but...

Across town,
two rival shiners are proving

That slow and steady
may win the race.

[ synthesizer plays ]

Jim tom and roy
have spent the last week

Building a copper-pot still
from scratch.

And it's finally ready
for prime time.

"grey eyes"?
Mm-hmm.

Come on, betsy.

[ horn honks ]

Roy is driving jim tom's
model "a" ford,

A favorite of moonshiners
since its debut in 1927.

Its v-8 engine
was the first of its kind

And powered an unprecedented
period of criminal enterprise.

It was much more nimble

Than its four- and six-cylinder
predecessors.

And with moonshiners
in the driver's seat,

The model "a" left sheriff's
deputies trailing in the dust.

During jim tom's 50 years
in moonshining,

He's learned
that plenty of cover,

Cold, running water,
and a clear vantage point

Are necessary for a still site.

Right in here.

You like the looks
of this place?

Oh, yeah.
I'm camouflaging.

It will be right in behind
all this stuff.

Jim tom:
Well, I took roy up to the spot,

And he says
it's a very fine place --

Plenty of good, cold water,
camouflage.

We can go pretty close to it.
Nobody's never gonna see it.

Do you see me?

[ laughs ]

About camouflaged pretty good,
ain't it?

We know
where we're gonna put it.

Tomorrow,
we'll bring it in here.

Mm-hmm.

That's what we want.

Be right in their face
and they not know it.

You couldn't see a big hog
stand back in there now.

Narrator: But while one
partnership is moving forward,

Another is stumbling.

You can
waste your breath later.

Let's flip it over, get the
metal on it, and keep on going.

I got [bleep]
I got to do tonight.

After a massive failure...

What the [bleep]

...Josh and bill
began construction

On a 750-gallon
blackpot submarine still.

Right on.

But the process has them
at each other's throats.

I'm not gonna tote
the damn thing

Through the woods
in one piece.

You're being a pansy.

This thing weighs
300 pounds.

I didn't sleep yet, man.
I ain't got no rest.

I'm wore out.

Pulled in this morning, trying
to get all this stuff loaded up,

Get it out to the site.

Now josh is dragging ass
a little bit.

One thing about
you being wore out

That I feel
a lot better about,

You ain't gonna ask me
to drag this still in

In one piece, are you?

[bleep]
I don't want to drag any of it.

It's gonna be a long day,
brother.

I mean, it's so close,
we can almost taste it, man.

Got it, brother?
Yeah.

One heavy son of a gun,
I know that.

Josh:
I just ain't into it today.

I just want to go to the lake
and lay down in a lounge chair

And enjoy the sunshine
for a day or two.

I need a break,
but we're running out of time.

You about ready
to go get this thing set up?

She ain't gonna
build herself.

Bill: This takes
about every dime we got

From what we've already made
to rebuild this submarine pot,

And we still ain't made
a drop of liquor yet.

I mean, this thing's got to
turn around at some point

And start making us some money
instead of just costing us.

Cutie pie, come on.

[ clicks tongue ]
come on.

Narrator:
To stay far from the law,

Shiners choose the most remote
still sites possible.

We got this now.

Now we just got to
get it out of here.

But to make it there, they need
the right set of wheels.

Tickle: The quicker
we get it out of here,

The quicker I can get
back to virginia with it.

So tickle, chico, and tyler
have rigged a tractor

To haul out their remaining
$7,000 worth of shine.

Tickle:
That shine -- that's fixing to
go down the road to virginia,

And it's fixing to start
paying us back

For all of these problems
that we've had.

I got this pump
strapped on here.

I hope we didn't lose
none of it.

Tyler: We can get
an electric pump

And pump this stuff
out of these buckets

And get it in these barrels
so we can get it out of there.

All right.

We don't want to be up here
with buckets

Pouring in this little,
bitty hole

Or trying to put a funnel
up there and taking all day.

I got her.
Ready?

[ drill whirring ]

There we go.
There we go.

That's kind of like
pouring money in there.

Hey, fellas, I ain't gonna lie
to you, this is loud.

How full
is that damn barrel?

This one here's
about full.

Chico: It's a whole lot of
stress and a whole lot of worry

About that noise,
but look at this.

After we get done right here,

We can give this place a break,
man.

We can get out of here.

I'm gonna go in
after some more.

All right, brother.

Hey.

Yeah.

We just need to hurry up.
This is loud.

Yeah, I know it.

Tyler: I hate making
all this racket in here,

But we really ain't got
no choice.

It's the last two.
Good deal.

I'm glad we're about done
with this.

We're getting
on up there now.

We about got
two full barrels.

Man can go and buy him
a pretty nice tractor with that,

Couldn't he?

He can buy
all kinds of stuff,

But if we don't hurry up
and get out of here,

We get caught up in here,

We ain't buying nothing
but damn bail money.

[ whirring stops ]

All right.
I believe that's it, boy.

Tickle: Let's just go on ahead
and get this thing out of here.

We done been loud, and we're
fixing to crank a tractor up.

That ain't good.

What? What ain't good?

[ sighs ]

Mnh.

We done run the battery down
with that pump.

With that pump.

Tickle: We've got a lot of shine
right there.

Ready?
Yep.

Unh-unh.

If we get caught with it, it
could go right down the drain.

[ grunts ] no.

This got to get out of there.

This got to get out of there
quick.

Chico: I have my doubts
about a lot of things,

But I'm starting to think this
place is cursed.

[ grunts ]

Narrator: Coming up...

Damn. He's been gone
for a minute, ain't he?

...The team's future is riding
on tickle's shoulders.

Well...

A new partnership is tested.

Uh-oh, uh-oh!

It is challenging
working with a new person.

Spilling, spilling!
Spilling.

Aah!

And two shiners are surrounded.

What the hell was that?

Narrator: Three kentucky shiners
are flirting with disaster.

[ key rattling ]

That ain't good.

What ain't good?

We done run the battery down
with that pump.

With that pump.

Narrator:
Stuck on the side of the road

While carrying
seven grand worth of shine

Is a good way to wind up on
the wrong side of a prison wall.

Ain't no sense sitting down here
looking like a jackass

When we can go get a battery.

You all right?

Tickle:
I'll go get the battery.

You guys -- y'all stay here
with the shine.

Chico: We got to get it out
of here. It's gonna get dark.

All right.

This is at the hurry up,
wait [bleep]

Tyler: Mm-hmm.

Sitting around,
waiting on tickle.

You got that right.

[ spits ]

Tickle: They think a little bit
less of me, I guess,

Because I'm a lot smaller
than them.

But, you know,

I'm one of the toughest
son of bitches out there.

Right now I'm concerned
whether or not

He's gonna be able to pack
that damn battery in here.

All right.

[ grunts ]

Let's get this thing
on down there.

[ grunts ]

Big battery.

[ ringing ]

Woman: You have reached
the voicemail box of...

Damn, that's the sound
you want to hear

When getting distressed,
ain't it?

Well...

I hope we made the right move
of sending him out here.

Well, I sure hope so.

He talked like he would be able
to pack it out of here.

Well, the battery's bound to be
bigger than he is.

Well, it probably weighs
60 pounds at least.

Well, that's three pounds
more than he does.

Yeah.

[ grunting ]

[ sighs ]

Damn, he's been gone
for a minute, ain't he?

I hear
some bushes rustling.

Narrator: While ticket's stuck
humping gear,

His former partner, tim,
isn't in much better shape.

After an arson attempt
ran him out of kentucky,

Tim smith teamed up
with a turnkey distillery.

Troy: We've won
some gold medals.

What do you need?

I need
to make more product.

And he's not seeing eye-to-eye
with his new partner.

One boss,
one boss.

I showed up today to mix up my
first batch of climax moonshine.

And as for distilling,

Maybe some of my
backwoods technology here

Can kind of rub off onto her
a little bit.

But, then again, she's got
some high-tech equipment here,

So I'm gonna have to learn
some of what she's doing, too.

Narrator:
Tim's setting up enough mash

To make a thousand gallons
of white whiskey.

Tim,
what are you doing?

I'm making some mash.

You don't need to carry
every one

Of those 800 pounds of corn
up here.

We bought these pro boxes,
and we put all that corn,

And we lift it up, and we set
that box right on top of here.

And it's easy. We're not in
the backwoods anymore, honey.

[ laughs ] okay.

Yeah, seriously,
let's try it.

We're just gonna empty these
in there.

I'm doing what I'm thinking
is the right thing to do,

And then troy all of a sudden
comes with this idea

That we need to put the corn
over in this big, plastic --

She calls it a pro box.

I just call it a plastic tote
on a pallet.

That's it right there.
Stop.

Okay, and we're gonna
open this door.

Ready?
Troy: Okay.

It's not mixing.

You got the mix on?

Something's wrong
with your machine.

Nothing's wrong
with my machine.

Something's wrong
with the operator.

What you talking about?

It just turned to a block
of dough in that tank.

First time you're here,
something screws up.

You said
pour it in there.

I was putting it in a bag
at a time, no problem at all.

It was mixing up.

You said
dump it all in there.

Narrator: Troy's method may have
been better for tim's back,

But it did nothing
to help his moonshine.

Things went pretty good
until troy showed up.

Uh-oh, uh-oh!

It is challenging
working with a new person.

I feel like
I'm in the woods.

Such a mess.

Uh-oh.
It's spilling.

Uh-oh. Spilling.
Spilling, spilling.

Ahh! Oh!

What happened?

Troy: It was a disaster.

We'll see
how the mash turns out.

Whoo!
See? Good.

Narrator:
Many old-timers say

That in order to be
real moonshine,

Liquor needs to be both untaxed

And made outside
of a commercial distillery.

We got liquid coming out.

[ coughs ] [bleep]

Damn, I got an instant drunk.
[ laughs ]

Narrator: Celebrated moonshiner
popcorn sutton

Made traditional moonshine
in the backwoods of tennessee.

Lord, that's pretty.

He only taught his methods
to a handful of shiners.

Now one of those men

Is ready to share that knowledge
with the world.

Mark ramsey believes
traditional shine

Is the only one worth making.

Another bucket or so,
we'll be good.

Moonshine that's made legally
in the factories,

The people in the mass-produces,

They don't love the product
they're making.

It's a job.

But there's a higher standard
to be held today

For illegal moonshiners
if they're gonna survive.

Narrator:
The shiners who learned directly
from popcorn are dwindling.

Mark:
Let's light this mudpuppy.

Narrator:
But mark knows of another

Who shares his reverence
for the old ways --

His lifelong friend
digger maines.

Making liquor
gets into your blood.

Anybody that's ever made it
would say it's in their blood,

And they're not lying.

It's the smell that you've got
in your nose when it's cooking.

It's the noise that stills make.

It's really indescribable
how it makes you feel.

Mark:
Don't cut yourself on that.

That don't take much
right there.

That cap fits good.

Mark and I had been friends
for probably over 35 years.

He's somebody that I trust,
and he trusts me.

We have each other's back.

Pretty good, pretty good.

Boy, you can smell that malt,
can't you? You can taste it.

Yeah, you can taste it.
Mmm.

Narrator: Mark and digger
have a half-century

Of moonshine experience
between them,

But they haven't brewed together
in the past 10 years.

The growth
of inferior moonshine brands

Showing up on store shelves
is a call to action for mark,

So he's galled a secret meeting.

Well,
that's a little hollow.

It's knocked around.
It's got road rash bad.

It's got dents and marks.

It's gonna take a day or two,
though.

It ain't gonna be
a quick one.

It's a 200-gallon
copper-pot still --

A tennessee classic,
probably close to 50 years old.

And it looks like
it could use a little love.

Right here is the biggest
problem we've got.

If we can get this fixed,
get it hammered back into shape.

And it's got
a nice puncture wound.

Yeah, yeah.

Let me ask you
something else.

What do you think about maybe us
making a little bit of liquor?

Well...

I ain't above it, as long
as you don't tell my wife.

Digger:
I've known mark many years,

And I've never turned him down
no matter what the cost.

Narrator: When mark and digger
start shining,

The legacy of authentic
tennessee moonshine

Will carry on.

But a copper pot this damaged
will take days to repair.

All I need is
to knock more holes in it.

We're getting
a little oblong here.

Hmm.

Well, I knowed
this was gonna be a hussy.

[ vehicle approaches ]

What the hell was that?

[ engine revving ]

Coming up...
That's bull crap.

...Josh goes awol.

It's over!
I'm going home!

I'm not filming this,
y'all.

Narrator:
Two tennessee natives

Have decided
to keep tradition alive

By restoring a classic still.

Mark:
I believe it's coming.

But with the return
to traditional distilling,

So returns the danger.

[ vehicle approaches ]

What the hell was that?

[ engine revving ]

A damn motorcycle run
in the mountains.

We can't have this.

We got to get the hell out
of here.

We're gonna have to move
this thing, digger.

[bleep] we'll have to
cover it up and hide it.

I got an idea
where we can take it.

Mark: That ain't no way
to start out.

I'm big on omens,
and that's not a good one.

Get us
the hell out of here.

So much for that.

Making moonshine
ain't never been convenient.

Mark: We kind of got scared up
a little bit

Back at the chicken house.

It kind of caught us off guard.

[ sighs ] well, we'll try it
again, digger.

A good friend of mine --
he has this secluded, old barn,

And it's very safe.

A backup plan's always good.

All right.
Where you want to start?

Probably on this drain.

It can't be no good
if it don't hold slop.

Narrator:
Mark is installing a drain valve
at the bottom of the pot.

It makes removing spent mash
as easy as flipping a switch.

If we can make this work,
digger,

Our problem
will be solved.

Here in a day or two, I'll make
a couple of phone calls,

And I'll get
a couple of people

To pick me up
a couple of bags of sugar.

We'll be in business.

Law enforcement monitors
bulk sugar sales,

So moonshiners
have to use back channels

To acquire this key ingredient.

I'll get them to meet me
somewhere kind of private.

We can have
a private moment.

Well, it ain't nobody's business
what we're doing.

Well, no. I might be making one
great, big, old sugar cookie.

There's one good thing
about my daddy-in-law.

Marrying
a moonshiner's daughter,

She'll make you liquor
every night.

[ laughs ]

Just a scooch closer.

All right, digger man.
I believe you got it.

I believe
we can make that work.

If you like it,
I love it.

All right.

Over in south carolina...

[ exhales sharply ]
it's gonna be a long day, man.

...Josh and bill
are only beginning

The grueling task
of hand-carrying

The submarine-pot still
into the woods

One piece at a time.

We should have backed in here.
Yeah.

They've had a rough few days,
and it's not getting any better.

[ rumbling ]

Uh-oh.

Come on, cutie pie.

Bill: Oh, man.

Got a bunch of gear
to tote in.

Go plot us a path.

[ saw buzzing ]

Damn, bill.

You're spinning out,
kicking up all kind of [bleep]

I'm sucking it
down my damn throat.

Tell you what gets me.

You was trying to talk me
into damn dragging

This whole thing in here
at one piece.

Oh, we could have.

Shoo! Could have nothing.

We quit before we even got up
that first waterfall.

[ sighs ]

I'm gonna give out, man.

I can't even hardly walk
straight.

One side in,
one side to go.

She slipped
right out of my damn hands.

Thank you, lord.

[ sighs ]

A couple more trips.

I need something to eat.

My sugar's
fell out on me, man.

A couple more trips, then we can
get that grill set up.

Why can't we not
just eat first?

Why has it got to be
so dang aggravating?

You can't think
of a good argument, can you?

Bill:
We're behind the ball again.

I mean, there's a bunch of work
we still got to do.

We got customers
waiting on liquor

And don't even have
our new still put together yet.

Two more trips each, man.

We'll have these blocks in.

I don't see
why I got to push myself

To the point
of passing out.

That's bull crap.

I guess we can get the grill out
and get the block later.

I was, then,
wanting to build a still site,

And he was needing to build
a grill site,

We could get us
something to eat.

Man, you done getting leaves
in the creek, man.

I don't mean to sound like
a smartass,

But are we building
a beaver dam down here?

Why is it everything I do
is [bleep] wrong?

No, that's a good looking
grill site.

I wasn't
stirring nothing up.

I done asked you once

To quit picking me on me
[bleep] today.

I wasn't picking on you,
brother.

I ain't [bleep] doing this
[bleep]

I ain't filming [bleep]
like this.

Hold up, man.
Hold up, man.

Brother --

I'm going
to the [bleep] house.

Josh:
It's over! I'm going home!

I'm not filming this, y'all.

I've had a hell of a [bleep]
damn day, and I'm done!

Narrator: Coming up,
the proof is in the mash.

Oh, let's see
what it tastes like.

Narrator:
And tickle runs interference.

See what I can't do
to distract this feller.

Tickle: If he figures out
what he's hauling,

We'll all wind up in jail
that way.

Narrator: After their strongest
start ever,

A series of mishaps has pushed
josh and bill to the brink.

I done asked you once to quit
picking on me [bleep] today.

And josh is starting to break.

I wasn't picking on you,
brother.

I ain't [bleep] doing this
[bleep]

Hold up, man.
Hold up, man.

I'm going
to the [bleep] house.

It's over!
I'm going home!

Bill: I don't know.
I've been picking on him.

He's been picking on me.

But today,
he didn't want to get picked on.

He was too tired
to get picked on.

I'm not filming this,
y'all.

I'm not filming this.

I've had a hell of a [bleep]
damn day, and I'm done.

Both of us are just worn out --
I mean, worn slap out --

And tempers are easy to flare.

But we got to keep going.

I'm sorry, bill.

Hey,
I'm sorry, brother.

I wasn't meaning
to pick on you, man.

I wasn't trying
to hassle you.

It was just it was a little bit
of a trigger for me.

Josh: Bill's nitpicking
really made me angry.

But me storming off and
acting like a little kid --

That made me even more angry.

I was mad at myself.

If I could, I'd kick my own ass.

I'm sorry I turned into
betty white, man.

I'm just frustrated.
I just need some food.

It's time to eat
some burgers, man.

We got
way too much to do.

[ blows ]

Uh-oh.

I guess
that one's cutie pie's.

Damn it!

That's either cutie pie's
or mine.

You think I won't eat it?

[bleep] it's just dirt.

A little dirt don't hurt.

[ laughs ]
right on.

Bill: We got us a snack in us,
ate a cheeseburger,

And we kept on going.

Narrator:
Before they can run,

Josh and bill need to build
a foundation, finish the still,

And secure the water source.

'cause I think this is
all of them, ain't it?

One state to the north,

Tim smith is heading back
to the asheville distillery.

Troy, she called me.
She said, "the mash is ready."

We got to taste it,

See what the mash
actually looks like.

Narrator:
After a week of fermenting,

He's hoping his mash
is ready to run.

You know,
you got lots of issues,

And lots of things can happen,

And they can really
make a difference.

[ whistles ]

Troy: You're back finally, huh?
Yeah, I'm back.

So, you got the mash.

It looks good, and...

It looks so different
than my mash.

Well, I bet it does.

Little dark stuff
floating in it.

I've got rye and barley
in mine.

I think
you've just got corn.

I could just take one peek
in there, and I'd say,

"well, that's tim's mash."

Yeah.

Troy -- she's a little bit
concerned about the color of it.

But I'm worried about the taste,

'cause the taste profile
is number one.

It's about my unique flavor,
and, you know,

That's what it's all about
is making my climax moonshine.

Troy:
So, we're gonna pull a sample.

Here's what we've got.

Here we go.

See some of the grain
still floating in it.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah,
smells like my mash.

Narrator:
Once all the sugar in the mash
has been converted to alcohol,

There will be no taste
of sweetness left.

At that point,
it's ready to distill.

But that's a start.
We got a good smell.

I know our equipment
makes great whiskey.

It's just will it make
his style of whiskey.

Aw, let's see
what it tastes like.

You can drink that, now.

This is good mash.

This is ready to go in a still
and cook it.

I think it's good, you know,
just by taste and smell.

Let me taste this.

[ laughs ]
it's a pretty sour mash.

That's the good stuff.

You got to have a bitter taste,
sour taste.

So, when are we gonna
put it in the pot?

When do you want to do it?
Tomorrow?

Well, when it's ready,
it's ready.

For me it looks good, but, then,
the story's gonna be told

When we put it in a still
and we cook it.

If this distills
as good as it tastes and smells,

We're gonna make
some good moonshine.

All right.
Well, we're gonna try it.

Narrator: Tim is finally ready
to run some shine,

While down in kentucky...

Yes, sir. Let's do it.

...Tickle, chico, and tyler
are ready to ship.

Tyler: All right,
let's get these things in here.

First up,
60 gallons to virginia.

Well, look, fellers.
I got a truck lined up.

Get this stuff
back in virginia.

Well,
the sooner we do that,

The sooner we have money
in the pocket.

But, you know,
this guy don't know

He's hauling this stuff,
man.

We can't just, you know,
go to throw in quarts of shine

And gallons of shine in the back
of this guy's truck.

It's much less risk on us
if we get a patsy,

Somebody else
to transport this stuff,

That not even has any clue
what they're doing.

Need to put it in somewhere
he can't tell it is

And cover it up real good
where even if they look,

They wouldn't want
to dig through it.

If nothing else,
we can build us some boxes up,

Anything like that,
something plain as can be,

Something they ain't gonna
take a second look at.

You know, we don't want to be
bootlegging this stuff.

It's too early in the year

For us to be taking chances
like that,

And ain't none of us got
no bond money.

That right there will be
tops and bottoms for the box.

We got to build a crooked box
for a crooked activity.

We bought the reject wood.
It was cheaper.

Tickle:
So, we built us some boxes,

Something that really doesn't
look like nothing in particular

Very interesting,

And hopefully all this
is gonna work out great

And we're gonna make
a lot of money on it.

Narrator: Moonshiners have been
smuggling shine

Since the early days.

Freight trucks,
inconspicuous containers,

And even hearses
have long been part

Of the bootleggers' toolkit.

But in 2000,
authorities discovered

One black-market outfit that
went bigger than ever before.

They disguised illegal liquor
with dye

And shipped it
in massive containers

Marked
as windshield-wiper fluid,

Mouthwash, and cleaning solvent.

Look at that.
[ laughs ]

Let's get to it.

Let's see what kind of boxes
he got going here.

All right.

There's a whole lot of dollars
in one box, that's for sure.

Well, look, I want to take
and throw something

Overtop of this stuff.

That way,
if anybody is to open it up,

They'll just see some junk.

I got some old stuff.
Do you?

Chico: The worst it looks,
the better off we are.

All kind of old stuff, man,
over here.

Am I hearing vhs tapes?

That was a vhs tape, and I'll
let you hold on to that.

You might need to watch that.

[ laughs ]

Tyler: We put him on top there
to looky out for us.

Tickle:
Yeah, there you go.

Tickle:
If I was to open that box up,

I'd say it's just
a bunch of damn crap.

Let me put this on, man.

I believe
that will do it.

Well, that will work,
that will work.

Hey, somebody's coming up
the driveway now.

Yeah,
that's got to be him.

Tyler: You know, there's always
gonna be risk involved,

You know,
letting somebody we don't know

Drive this stuff to virginia,

So we're not gonna put
all our eggs in one basket.

We're just gonna send
half of it,

And hopefully we won't lose
what we send up there.

Well,
you do all the talking.

I'm gonna talk to him.

Look, I'm gonna try
to draw him away.

Y'all try
to get this stuff in there

Without him
putting his hand on it.

I'd rather he not be looking at
me and eyeballing me too much.

Tickle: I'm a little worried,
'cause who knows?

If he figures out
what he's hauling,

We'll all wind up in jail
that way.

Tyler: You just go on out there
and deal with it.

Yeah.
Let's keep it simple.

Yeah, y'all get that sled
on in there,

See what I can't do
to distract this feller.

Narrator: Coming up...

Son of a bitch.

...The uphill battle continues.

I can't do it.

And setting a still
on shaky ground.

Lance: If this place is a flop,
we're done for this season.

I'm gonna put you to dance.
How do you like this one?

[ synthesizer plays ]

[ coughs ] I don't know.

How long
have you been dancing?

[ coughs ]
about two minutes.

Narrator: In the heart
of kentucky's cave country,

Three shiners
are about to pull a fast one.

This guy don't know
he's hauling this stuff, man.

We can't just go throwing
gallons of shine

In the back
of this guy's truck.

Tickle, chico, and tyler

Will have to keep the mule
they hired in the dark.

Chico: Well,
you do all the talking.

I'm gonna talk to him. Look,
I'm gonna try to draw him away.

Y'all try
to get this stuff in there

Without him
putting his hand on it.

I'd rather him not be looking at
me and eyeballing me too much.

Yeah. You just go on out there
and deal with him.

Yeah.
Just keep it simple.

Yeah, y'all get that sled
on in there.

How's it going?

Man: Pretty good.
How about yourself?

Doing all right,
doing all right.

Look, here's cash money
for the delivery, right?

I got an address in here.
It's in virginia.

And I will be the one picking it
up in virginia myself, as well.

All right, but it's
a little hard to get to,

It's on some back roads,

But I got directions
in here, too.

They shouldn't be no problem
for you to find

Where I'm gonna be
getting to you at.

All right. Sounds good.
Sounds good.

Well, look, they pretty much
got you loaded up.

Okay.
All right?

See you in virginia.

All right. I will see you
in virginia, my man.

Thank you very much,
sir.

Narrator: By keeping
the courier uninformed,

Tickle protects
both the driver and himself.

Tyler:
Well, I guess that's it.

I need to head on back
to virginia myself,

'cause I got to get back
before he does.

Be careful.

Holler at us
when you get there.

I'll do that.

Watch out for the law
and all that good stuff.

I'm gonna always do that.

Narrator: The shine
is out of tickle's hands

Until he gets back to virginia.

But deep in the woodlands
of south carolina...

You can hand it to me
if you want.

I'll grab her.

...Josh and bill
have their hands full

Trying to build out
their submarine pot.

Bill: Well, if you're gonna be
a moonshiner,

You better be good friends
with a shovel,

'cause you're not gonna be able
to get away with the thing.

There's no way you could even
think about making liquor

Out in the woods without a pick
and a shovel and an ax

And a bunch
of backbreaking work.

I bet we do more damn digging

Than any damn moonshiners
in history.

Josh: Every day
that we're not making liquor

Is another day that we're not
gonna be able to make liquor.

The season is passing us by.

That's looking
pretty damn good.

And we got her leveled out,

And we're about ready
to start building her.

Narrator:
After josh and bill assemble

Their black-pot submarine
on leveled-out cinder blocks,

They'll attach a thump keg,
worm box,

And leave enough space to
collect and proof their shine.

In order to get cold water
to make mash

And cool the condenser coil,

Josh and bill
are going to pipe it down a hill

From a dam they built on a cold,
spring-fed mountain creek

Over 100 feet away.

Right on.

It was a long damn day,
and I am beat down.

Good to go.

Phew!
I'm glad it's over, man.

No doubt, man.

I'm telling you,
I'm about beat.

Come on, cutie pie.

Bill: Man, we've worked
ourselves stupid on this thing,

And we're getting there.

I mean, we're getting there.
But we still got a ways to go.

[ beeping ]

We got a dead battery,
brother.

[bleep]

We're gonna have to push this
bastard over that hump.

Push?

I can't do it.

Go stop it.

Put the brake on.

[ clicks ]

[bleep]

After today...

Damn her!

...This is ridiculous, man.

I don't feel like
walking home.

I can call my old lady,

Get her to bring a jump box
down here.

Hell of a day, man.

Narrator: Jeff, mark, and lance
have all the parts they need

To finish their still,

But it's on ice until
they can find a home for it.

We got to get this thing
set up.

Lance may have a solution.

Jeff: But, you know,
we got to make a decision quick,

You know, to put the still here
or find another spot.

But, you know, we don't want
to make no hasty decisions

And get ourselves caught.

I mean, you know...

Where's the water at,
lance?

The water's right here.

You just turn the spigot on,
and you got water.

If it goes good, this will be
our biggest season yet.

If it goes bad...

We're done.

Narrator:
Next time on "moonshiners"...

That's a problem.
It's ruined.

...Hard times in south carolina.

[bleep] damn it!

Tickle's exposed.

Tickle: If he figures out
what he's hauling,

He'll make it to the law.

This one has a little bit more
weight, don't it?

Oh, well, you know.

Narrator:
And the law makes its move.

Come back here
in front of my car.

Okeydoke.

No container
in the vehicle?

No liquor?

[ police radio chatter ]