Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 4, Episode 8 - Liquid Assets - full transcript

I never did tell you about that
game warden catching me, did I?

I had a bucketful of fish up
the creek here a little piece.

I probably had 20 or 30 trout
in there.

He rolled up, and he said,

"you're a little over the limit
there, buddy."

I said,
"no, you don't get it."

I said,
"these are my pet fish."

He said, "pet fish?"
I said, "yeah.

I keep them at the house
in an aquarium."

I said, "I bring them to the
creek every once in a while,

Take them for a swim."



He said, "well, prove it."
I said, "all right,"

And I took that bucket,
dumped it in the creek.

He stood there a second.
He said, "okay."

He said, "call them back."
I said, "call what back?"

Narrator:
Tonight on "moonshiners"...

Crossing the thin blue line...

If y'all messing
with the moonshine,

I'd advise you different.

Out of sight, out of pocket....

There could probably be
a thousand blue volkswagens

Down here, as far as I know.

I know I got shine in one.

Narrator:
...Old ways die hard....

Damn, popcorn.



What have you got us into?

...And a north carolina
takedown.

[ siren wailing ]

How we doing there, guys?

Man: This is how
we make the moonshine!

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Narrator: The heat is on
in shine country,

As the late summer's
cooling temperatures

Have moonshiners scrambling
to run their stills

Before the season burns away.

And in a secluded barn
in north carolina...

Man: It takes a long time
running that much liquor, boy.

Narrator: ...The largest
moonshine still

In the smoky mountains is over
22 hours into an epic run,

And the burner is still firing.

[ man laughs ]

Jeff, mark, and lance's
750-gallon behemoth

Has produced almost $10,000
worth of premium white lightning

In a single run.

But it's cost them
a sleepless night.

Man: I ain't never sit up
this long on a still.

I'm gonna sit up here
and watch for leaks.

Is that one about full?

Yep.

I'm gonna fill her up
a little bit more.

You can go ahead and get another
one ready, if you want to.

Hey, jeff...

Yeah?

There's a fire.

Narrator: If this fire had raged
out of control,

It would have only been
the latest

In a long history of disasters

Dating back to the early days
of moonshining.

In 1922, eight stills
in a brooklyn home detonated,

Causing multiple injuries
and killing one fireman.

And in 1928,

A 250-gallon moonshine still
exploded in the basement

Of a pool hall
in ronald, washington.

The ensuing fire burned the
entire town to its foundation,

Leaving 136 people homeless.

[ sighs ]

Yep.

Close call right there.

What would have happened
if, you know,

If we'd have been dozing when
this fire happened, you know?

It'd have been three less
moonshiners here.

Narrator: 100 gallons of whiskey
is a major haul,

But with over 20 grand
sunk into their operation,

It's gonna take at least
one more all-nighter

Before they break even.

And as the sun rises
in kentucky,

Two shiners are trying to sneak
a still into the woods

Before the county wakes up.

I'm trying to take it easy
on chico.

He's back there holding on
to everything.

Aah!

You trying to kill me
or something?!

Narrator: Chico and tyler

Are part of a growing
multi-state bootlegging empire.

They're struggling
to meet their quota.

Tyler: We got a lot of irons
in the fire,

With what we sent to tickle,

And we got a little bit
of that left.

We just got to keep
the ball rolling

And keep pushing forward.

Narrator:
With their partner tickle,

They produced nearly 100 gallons
of shine in a hidden cavern.

Man: God thing.

We're about to get me out of
here without breaking my neck.

Narrator: But moving their
whiskey out of the remote site

Cost them serious time
and money.

That ain't good.

[ grunts ]

So they've abandoned the cave
and gone back to their roots,

Heading to a backwoods location

A couple miles
from tyler's farm.

[ grunts ]

Man: Ow!

Chico: This is one of the worst
parts about making liquor,

Is you got to move
all this stuff.

You got to work harder
to make more money,

That's for damn sure.

Oh, yeah.

How clean is it?

Oh, it's coming out
of that spring up there.

It's good and clean.

That joker's tall
on them blocks.

It ain't easy to do.

If we get 10 gallon
out of this run,

I'm confident we'll at least
get 10 gallons.

We run this off,

That's another thousand dollars
right there -- boom.

That's pretty good money,
cash. No taxes.

Well, we growing.
I know that.

We growing, but I still ain't
put no money in my pocket.

You know, I've called
a couple times,

And I ain't got no response,

And that kind of makes me worry
a little bit

About what his intentions are.

All right.

Teamwork.

We got fire now.

[ groans ]

I got to go, man.

He's in bad shape.

You better get farther away
than that.

Chico: My daddy always
told me -- he said,

"when mother nature calls,

You got to answer the phone,

'cause you ain't gonna like

What she leaves
on the answering machine."

You talk about relief.

Rinse your hands off
real good.

Get you a good hand wash.

How long it's still
running out here?

It's a-bubbling.
It's fixing to come out here.

Narrator: Combined
with their cave shine,

They should soon have $6,000

Worth of tax-free spirits
ready to ship.

I can smell it.

Yeah, I've been smelling it
for a minute now.

It's on its way out.

Oh, yeah.

There it comes.

It's about time, brother.

She's pouring
out of there now.

You know, this is an art form.

Let me see you light her.

I'm dying
to see something burn.

If I'm a painter,
if I'm a singer,

I do whatever I do to learn
my craft and make it better.

Ooh! [ laughs ]

That's still burning right
there. You can't even see it.

One of these days,
we gonna catch on fire.

Narrator: But with 500 miles
between their still

And tickle's customers,

Their big payday
is starting to look

Further and further
down the road.

In a sleepy town
in south carolina...

[ man laughs ]

Narrator:
...It's the day of reckoning

For two longtime shiners.

You sure you don't want
a hot dog?

Eat maybe two
of them burgers.

That'd be plenty for me.

[ siren chirps ]

It's stopping
behind your truck.

Josh: Yes, sir?

How's it going, officer?

Hey, how are you doing?

Officer clark.
Campobello police department.

I was noticing this tag

As I was driving through
the parking lot here.

We had a bolo out for a vehicle
matching this description

For trespassing
on some property.

We ain't been doing
no trespassing.

And a busted taillight.

Everything matches
the same description.

You don't know anything
about it?

No, sir.

What you doing with
this metal back here?

I had --
I had a roofing job.

I had to do a roofing job
earlier this week.

With copper?

Yeah, yeah.
It was a copper roof.

That metal
sure doesn't look...

A little bit like something
you'd do for a roof.

It looks like
some of the makings

Of what would go
for a moonshine still.

You got us crossed up
with somebody else.

You all got any I.D.S
on you?

Yes, sir.

You mind if stay on this
for a second?

What you do for a living?

I'm a carpenter.

A carpenter?
Yes, sir.

I do tree work, grading,
landscaping.

Hang tight.
Stand over there for me.

This is what I done.

I just wrote you
a public contact.

What's a public contact?

It's about
your taillight there

And your tag
being crooked.

All right.
Y'all have a good afternoon.

If y'all messing
with the moonshine,

I'd advise you different.

All right?

I'll see you all later.

Have a good afternoon, sir.

[bleep]

While the hell
y'all over there eating,

We're over here getting
harassed by the law.

Bill:
If they knew where our spot was,
we'd be busted already.

But then the other side
of my brain says,

"maybe they already know
where our spot is

"and they're just waiting for us
to have some liquor

Coming out of the worm
before they rush in."

And if we get popped
with a hot still

With liquor coming out
of the worm,

I mean, that's game over.

Josh: We really got to watch out
what we're doing.

Narrator: Coming up...

Tickle:
Just a maze of cars.

Narrator: ...Tickle can't
hold on to his liquor...

There can probably be a thousand
blue volkswagens down here,

As far as I know.
I know I got shine in one.

Narrator: ...Back in the saddle
in tennessee...

I hope that little goody
in there works.

...And a sugar run
ends on a sour note.

[ siren wails ]

How we doing there, guys?

Narrator:
In modern appalachia,

As industrial distilleries
conquer the market,

300 years of
traditional moonshining

Is faced with extinction.

But in east tennessee,

Two shiners are showing
the world

That traditional
backwoods-brewed moonshine

Is still king.

After rescuing and restoring
a 50-year-old copper still,

Mark and digger are ready
to put it through its paces.

My old pappy used to say
that 'round here,

It's just you and the lord,

And half the time, he ain't
there in these big curves.

[ chuckles ]

Mark:
Me and digger today,

We're gonna try to get a run and
run off on our little piss pot.

Narrator:
It's been 10 years

Since these former partners
of popcorn sutton

Made whiskey in the backwoods.

Lighting the burner today
marks the return

Of heritage whiskey
to the tennessee foothills.

I don't know why you always
give me the heavy stuff.

It gives you new respect
for them old-timers.

Boy, don't it, though?

Hell, they didn't get
to ride in a truck.

They had to ride a mule.

In an effort to increase
their output,

Mark has put a new twist on
their old-fashioned still --

The deflamator.

I hope that little goody
in there works.

It looks pretty in there.

I don't know if it'll work
or not.

Yeah,
it looks good on paper.

I'm feeling pretty nostalgic
about this situation.

It brings back good memories
of popcorn

And all the boys
that hung around.

We always had a good time.

We'd build a fire.

We'd sit around and have
a cold adult beverage

And carry on the tales,
listen to a little bluegrass,

And just have a good time
doing it all.

Let's get over here
and get this pump water, mark.

Mark: Digger -- he came through
on our site location.

I'll run back down
to crank up our power plant.

I'd never been to this site,

And I think he's made
an outstanding choice.

Ah, there's water.

We'll hook this
into the deflamator.

Narrator: If it works,

Mark's deflamator
could dramatically increase

The proof and quantity
of their liquor.

All right.

There we go.

Look at that.

Yeah, how about that
[bleep] buckwheat?

After popcorn's death,

His two former comrades swore to
put their days of booze making

And bootlegging behind them.

But once the fire is lit,
they're outlaws again,

And there's no turning back.

Digger: There's always a certain
element of nervousness

That comes into this.

You're always leery, you know,
when you hear something

Crunching through the woods
or if you hear a car pulling up.

Narrator: Shiners use
burned cooking charcoal

Wrapped in cloth
as a homespun filter

To remove fusel oils --

A hazardous by-product
of alcohol distillation.

Digger...

Yonder it comes.

Come on, baby.

That's just perfect.

It's running good, digger.

It's cooking
where we want it.

The old-timers always said,

"if it comes out fast,
your liquor's fiery as hell."

Let's see what we got there.

Look at them frog eyes.

Oh, that's high,
high proof.

Now...

Whew!

Narrator: After a decade
on the straight and narrow,

These two pros are back
to their old tricks.

Here's to you, old man.

Damn, popcorn,
what have you got us into?

Soon, heritage whiskey
will be flowing again

Throughout east tennessee.

But in southern virginia,
it's already come to market.

Everybody's done heard
tim's recipe is back in town,

And everybody is wanting it.

Narrator: After selling half
of his first shipment of shine,

Tickle has returned to collect
the remaining 30 gallons

He's hidden in
his buddy levi's junkyard.

You'd think levi would pave
this place.

Put this stuff in a whole lot
of different places.

This place is just a --
it's a maze.

You get down in here,
and everything looks alike.

I put it in so many
different places, too.

It's hard to tell
where it's all at.

Let's see.

Hmm.

[ door hinges creak ]

Well, I hope it won't in there.

I'm pretty damn sure I put shine
in a blue volkswagen.

Blue bug.

There could probably be
a thousand blue volkswagens

Down here, as far as I know.
I know I got shine in one.

It's just a maze of cars.

I don't know how the hell
levi finds his way around here.

All right.

Well, here's some of it.

All right.

It's only nine gallons
right here.

Narrator:
If tickle can't locate

His missing 21 gallons of shine,

He could find himself
in hot water

With his kentucky partners
chico and tyler.

I found enough shine to fill
this order that I got right now.

Chico and tyler -- I don't think
neither one of them

Would be happy
that shine may be lost.

So I'm gonna do my best
to find it

And just keep this to myself.

Narrator:
Back in south carolina,

Two shiners have regrouped

After their biggest scare
of the season.

So, you got
the game cameras?

Yeah.

Put them up, see if anybody's
snooping around.

Narrator: With someone
tipping off the local law,

Their still site
might be exposed,

So josh and bill
are playing defense,

Rigging the woods
with game cameras

Before they start brewing.

Josh: Today, the cops got us
on record.

They accused us
of making moonshine.

They accused us of trespassing.

I'd say they pretty much
got our number.

It's not mickey mouse
[bleep] anymore.

This is --
this is the real deal.

You get caught, you go to jail.

We cannot afford to have anybody
anywhere near us.

Narrator: Once fired up,

The submarine still can produce

Over 100 gallons
of shine per run.

But getting caught
with that much liquor

Comes with harsher penalties.

Getting caught with a couple
gallons of shine --

That's one thing.

But getting caught with a couple
hundred gallons of shine --

We're gonna get locked up.

Josh:
Since we got all that now,

Let's talk about, how are we
gonna hide this much liquor?

What are we gonna do
with all that shine, right?

So, I've been toying
with this idea --

We're gonna put that tank
in the ground.

You want to tote it somewhere,
bury it?

Yeah, like a stash house.

Narrator:
To keep their shine concealed,

Josh plans to bury two
300-gallon plastic containers

In an 8-foot-by-4-foot pit.

The pit will be covered
with plywood, dirt, and grass

And accessed
via a hidden compartment

Where they can unload
their shine.

When the containers are filled,

The guys can turn on
a battery-powered pump

And push the liquor
through a pipe

Connected to a nearby spigot.

Retrieving hundreds of gallons
of stored shine

Should be as easy
as turning on a hose.

The only time you got
to uncover the tank is --

When we're refilling.
When we run out.

300 gallons at a time.

So that'd be two runs right
there we could stockpile.

Right on.

Yep, we'll get us a list.
We'll get us a plan.

Come back,
we'll get this thing.

Get it where we need to be.

Bill: Once this submarine pot
starts cranking out,

I mean, we're gonna be sitting
on 130, 140 gallons a pop.

We can get it put in the ground

And just access it
as we need it.

Just we'd have a place
to store it.

It could be like a 401(k) plan.

Narrator: Coming up...

...Jim tom and roy
stir up trouble.

...And communications
break down.

What, are you having some
problems on your end down there?

It really didn't sit right
with me.

Something just ain't right.

Narrator: Even as a younger
generation of moonshiners

Takes over the illegal trade,

Some still fear the old ways
are dying out.

In the forests outside
robbinsville, north carolina,

Two shiners are keeping
the original craft alive...

...And hoping to make a killing
in the process.

Yeah.

Jim tom and roy have returned
to their still site

And to an overflowing tank
of clean mountain water.

I'm gonna say
she'll be 180 proof.

Now the still is ready.
The water is flowing.

It's time to mash in.

Boiling water sterilizes
the mixture

And creates the stable medium
needed to ferment the mash.

Yeah.

It's going to town.

I'm gonna put my crack corn
in there.

I'll mix it up.

Man:
It's just as easy or easier

To make good whiskey
as it is bad whiskey.

Narrator: Traditionalists
often use malt corn

In place of packaged yeast,

Claiming it yields a better
flavor with no hangovers.

Nyah!

Well...

Now...

Narrator:
Across appalachia,

Shiners are starting to cash in.

But in kentucky,
one shiner has yet to get paid.

Well, I'm headed up here
to the post office.

I got an unlisted p.O. Box
up here.

I got a certified letter

Saying that I've got something
in this one.

Hopefully it's the money
from tickle.

You know, it could be anything,

But I'm gonna drive down here
and check it out.

We'll see what's going on.

Right on.

That's all I needed to make
my day go so much better.

I got bills to get paid.

My kid's starting school,
need clothes. [bleep]

Me and tyler split that up.

Next step, send more up there.

[ tool whirs ]

How you doing, bubba?

I'm gonna need the last bit of
these tickle boxes lined up.

Well, here.
Tickle that.

What do you got there?

A little change?
If you want to call it a little.

Ain't nothing wrong
with that.

That'll pay a bill,
won't it?

I'm all about making more
of that.

Narrator: Chico and tyler have
made almost four grand so far.

I bet you'd like to have
some of that, too.

That'll buy a lot of dog treats,
wouldn't it?

If they can keep up their
60-gallon-per-week shipments,

They could net over 40 grand
for the season, tax free.

So, we got somebody lined up,
come get these?

Yeah.
Got another truck coming.

It's about 60 gallon.

They're gonna send
another round,

But let's just keep
whooping it out.

Moving forward, we're just gonna
have to fire these stills up

And make as much as we can
and double up, you know?

We're gonna keep sending
that stuff to virginia,

And that's the goal here.

We want to have money coming in
left and right.

We got mash ready, don't we?

We can go ahead
and run that stuff off.

We can run it tonight.

We'll make as much
as we can.

We just need
to run and run.

The more, the better.

Ain't no such thing
as halfway crooks.

[ laughs ]

[ ringing ]

What's up, bubba?

We got a little present
in the mailbox today.

Yeah, we got it.
We got a little --

Got a little bit to spend.

Yeah.

But now we got 60 gallons,
I reckon, coming your way.

You ready for it,
ain't you?

60.

What, are you having some
problems on your end down there?

Yeah. Well, you just keep doing
what you're doing.

We're gonna keep sending it
to you.

When it ends, it ends.

We'll holler back at you
in a little while.

All right.
See you.

Bye.

Tyler: I don't know.
He sounded kind of hesitant,

And he really didn't sit right
with me.

He didn't sound very confident

That he had moved
much of this moonshine,

And I don't know what to think
about it.

Something just ain't right.

Narrator: Coming up...

I believe
we can get it, man.

...Handing off white mule
to a shine mule.

He wants to know
what was in them boxes.

Narrator:
And in north carolina,

It's time to call
in the reserves.

Narrator:
There's an arms race on
in southern appalachia,

As moonshiners
piece together

Bigger, badder stills to bury
the competition.

And in a barn outside
robbinsvile, north carolina,

Shiners jeff and lance
are setting up

Their 750-gallon mega still
for a second run.

Fill that barrel up
and we'll go to cooking.

The word is out
that their shine is flowing,

And they've already gotten their
first major order of the season.

If they can deliver 100 gallons
within the next week,

They'll be looking
at a $10,000 pay day.

Jeff: I've got a connection
in tennessee this year

To buy about 90% of our alcohol.

Basically,
he'll take what we can make.

Looking good,
starting to get hot.

It won't be long

Till we'll have
some juice a-flowin'.

Lance.

Look at that alcohol.

You watch this
and swap your buckets.

What that'n gets full,
I'm checking for leaks.

Okay.

Narrator: To keep their massive
beast of a still cooking,

The guys have to constantly
make more mash.

And their supplies
are already dwindling.

That's the last one.

As evening falls,

Nearly 60 gallons of shine
have come out of the still.

We're looking pretty good
so far, lance.

But they're only about halfway
through the run.

We've been here a while.

I want to see what this stuff's
actually a-doin'.

To help relieve
the exhausted team,

Jeff has called in
a few trusted still workers

For the graveyard shift.

Jeff: You know,
they're trustworthy.

I've knowed them
for years and years.

They're good ol' boys.

How big is that arm
up there?

That's eight inches.

Keep an eye on my baby, there.
That's my season.

We'll do it.

Narrator:
Jeff and lance head out,

Hoping they'll find
an intact still

And 100 gallons of whiskey
in the morning.

But over in virginia,

Tickle would be happy

If he could just find
his missing 21 gallons.

Trying to head down
to levi's today

Because I got shine down there
in the junkyard,

And I don't know
where the hell it's at.

Narrator: Tickle has to sell
the remaining shine

And mail the proceeds
back to kentucky

Before chico and tyler get wise
to his screw-up.

But the first step
is finding it.

I don't think
they'll even notice

If I do lose a little bit,

But I got to be able to know
where all this shine's at.

There's the gate.

Bus.

There's a great big ol' "x"
right there.

All right.

Narrator:
Tickle has no choice

But to survey
the entire junkyard,

Checking each car
until he finds all the shine.

[ sighs ] [bleep]

Reckon I need to go up that way.

[ sighs ]

[bleep]

I know I had something
down here.

There's more shine in this area.

Oh, yeah. 10 gallons
up in that son of a bitch.

So then I go from the caprice.

I'm not a great drawer,

But at least I understand
my own chicken scratch enough

To know where I'm supposed
to be able to go.

There's one down here
in the valiant.

I can remember that.
That's no problem.

That's an iconic car.

And that's the one good thing

About my map drawing abilities.

Nobody else would ever be able
to look at my map

And find my shine.

Hell, yeah.

Curves on around this direction.

It's like I encoded it
with my own lack of ability.

Narrator: Tickle's recovered
his shine just in time,

Because his partners are busy
sending more his way.

Chico: We're handing
a whole lot of money --

A whole lot of money --
to somebody we don't know.

Chico and tyler are about to
smuggle another 60 gallons

Across state lines

Using a new driver who they hope
won't ask too many questions.

You here to pick up some boxes,
ain't you?

Uh, yeah.

What's going on, bubba?

We just figured
we'd save you some trouble

Of coming all the way out
to the house.

[ grunts ]

I believe
we can get it, man.

[ grunts ]

Chico: He was nosy enough.
I'll give him that.

He wanted to know
what was in them boxes.

He don't need to know
what's going on.

[ grunts ]

I got it, bubba.

Oh, yeah.
Come on.

All right, man.
Have a safe trip.

All right. Thank you.

Narrator: The shine should move
quickly once it's in virginia,

But tickle's slow payments
back to kentucky

Could spell the end
of this partnership.

Chico: It worked once.

We'll run it again,
see what happens, you know?

At the end of the day, anything
can friggin' happen, man.

I don't even like handing it to
tickle and waiting on my money.

Narrator: Coming up...

A little bit of that loose stuff
on that side and we're golden.

...Josh and bill dig deep.

Money in the ground, baby.

And a shopping run ends
with the blue-light special.

[ siren wails ]

When you're in moonshine,

If you're doing it
only for the money,

You're in it
for the wrong reasons.

Normally, I would never deliver
a gallon of liquor to somebody,

But this older gentleman,

He was a good customer
of tim's daddy's,

And now he's gonna be
a customer of mine.

How's it going [bleep]

I believe I got what
you was looking for here.

Uh, I hope so.

See if that reminds you
of anybody's liquor.

Take you a drink.
See what you think.

That's it.

That's it, ain't it?

Yep, that's tim's recipe.

You used to buy it
from his daddy, didn't you?

Yeah, I sure did.

Thank you.

You need any more,
you know who to call.

Okay.

Don't drink all of that
at one time, now.

Oh, I won't.

It does me good to bring
a little bit of joy

To an old timer like that.

Maybe put a little pep
back into his step,

'cause he can feel just a little
bit more like a young man again.

Narrator:
In south carolina,

Josh and bill
are getting themselves

Out of the hole by digging one.

Five, six.

They're building
a subterranean stash house

In the middle
of a deserted scrub land.

By us digging a hole
and putting this thing

In the ground
and covering it up,

That means nobody can see it
from the air,

Nobody can see it
from the ground.

It's the perfect hiding place.

Narrator: And they've enlisted
a trusted friend

To dig out the 8-foot-deep pit
they'll need.

You see bill over there?

Bill: Josh knows a man
that can come out here

And help us out
and dig this hole.

It's gonna be
a little bit of risk

Bringing somebody else in
to help us out on this,

But we got no other options.

Ain't no way we're gonna be able
to dig that hole by hand.

A little bit of that loose stuff
on this side,

And we're golden.

Josh:
So, we're gonna have 600 gallons
of moonshine in the ground.

It's pretty damn genius.

I'll get the rest
with the shovel.

And it's right there,
convenient to get to,

But completely hid.

They can come and raid me,
tear me apart.

Unless they catch me,

They have no idea
where my moonshine's at.

That's a lot of damn dirt.

Yep.

Josh:
We got our hole dug.

We're taking two
300-gallon tanks.

We've inserted them
into the ground.

We're gonna pop them together.

I'm gonna put
a 15-per-gallon minute pump

On the top of one of the tanks.

It'll suck the moonshine
out of both tanks.

Hell, yeah.

We're gonna run a pipe behind
some bushes and some trees

And stuff where we could flip
a switch on the pipe.

It's got a spigot on it.

Turn that spigot on,
flip the switch,

Have a five-gallon bucket
under it,

Fill up five-gallon buckets
all day long

Till 600 gallons run out.

Money in the ground, baby.

This is gonna be awesome
right here.

Hit it, bill.

It ain't doing nothing.

Bill:
I got all my wiring together.

I felt, like, pretty good.

Went to flip the switch
and, like, nothing. Nothing.

The pump's stuck.

Well, our pump's been setting

Since our tank got shot
last year,

And it hadn't been used.

So it locked up on us.

Box hanging up?

Yeah, I can feel it clicking
and popping.

Got to take the thing off,
take it back to the shop,

Take it apart,

Get it back to working

Before we get back to moving
forward again.

We'll drag the pump
back to the house,

See if we can
get the thing unstuck.

We'll hit her first thing
in the morning,

When it's a couple
degrees cooler,

'cause I'm about beat, man.

Narrator:
With the law on alert,

Josh and bill won't feel safe
making a drop of shine

Until their underground storage
is finished.

Let's go to the house, then.

Yep, yep. [ sighs ]

And with the broken pump
putting the project in limbo,

Their big comeback is falling
apart at the seams.

[ sighs ]

If it ain't one thing,
it's 10 more.

But while josh and bill
are stuck in neutral...

In the north carolina smokies,

Mark, jeff, and lance

Are keeping their still
running strong.

This makes me nervous,

To have to go to a big store
like this to get our supplies.

They've got extra hands
to run the still,

But the monster size pod

Has eaten through
their stock of sugar,

A vital ingredient in mash.

I like to do it
at the little mom-and-pops

Or just a wired house where
there's not a lot of people,

You know,
that ask questions.

If the law sees us,

They'll probably know
what we're doing.

So, we got to get it
to the truck

And get it loaded
as fast as we can.

Let's go get us
a load of sugar.

By buying large quantities of
sugar in moonshine territory,

Jeff risks drawing attention
from the local authorities.

Jeff: Yep.

[ engine turns over ]

Jeff:
I believe we made it.

That's a lot of sugar,
ain't it?

Yeah,
that sounds good to me.

[bleep]

¶ oh, me, oh, my, oh ¶

Jeff: Them sons of bitches
is everywhere!

[ siren wails ]

Uh-oh.

[bleep]

How you doing, big guy?

Narrator:
Next time on "moonshiners"...

They broke into the place
and tried to burn it up!

...Tim's dark past
comes to light.

Is this for real?
Yeah!

How come you never
told me this?

[bleep]

Narrator:
It's high noon in tennessee.

That's the sheriff.
Y'all get out of here!

Get out of here like your ass
is on fire.

Man: [ distorted voice ]
sure looks good.

Oh, yeah.

That'll work.

Narrator:
And a crossroads double-cross.

Man: Oh, man.
No [bleep] way, man.

Get in, man!