Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 5, Episode 4 - Still Life - full transcript

♪♪

You know, our moonshine,

We feel is --
Is the best there is.

Big distilleries, they don't
Have access to our products.

All our products
Are -- are locally grown.

We know where our corn
Comes from.

Our water doesn't have
To be purified.

Mother nature did that for us.

We take pride in it.

We do it the traditional way,

The way we were taught
By our forefathers



In this business.

Hiding for centuries
In the shadows,

Moonshine has survived,
Spreading across this great land

And into the hearts
Of americans everywhere

From backwoods to boardrooms
And beyond.

Moonshine is here to stay.

Do you recognize me?

Hello there, jim tom.

And tonight, a whiskey legend
Goes back to the woods.

While over in north carolina...

...There's some
Uninvited visitors.

And in south carolina...

I have absolutely no idea

How I let you
Talk me into this.



...Two shiners salvage
A sleeping beast.

Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

♪ no one can hold me down ♪

♪ or make me change my ways ♪

♪ so don't waste your breath
Saying ♪

♪ crime never pays ♪

♪ we're going for a ride ♪

♪ running to survive ♪

♪ and living outside the law ♪

♪ we're living
Outside the law ♪

This is how
We make the moonshine!

Captions paid for by
Discovery communications

This is gonna be
Killer.

I'm gonna get this
In secured

And double-check
Our squares.

It's a month into shine season,

And thousands of gallons
Of handcrafted liquor

Are flowing from homemade stills
Across all of appalachia.

Little brace on this one
This way.

And deep in the dense,
Carolina woods,

Josh and bill are building
An invisible still site.

You like it, bill?

I love it.
I love it.

We're gonna make sure
We get this thing right.

Success will mean
A well-concealed,

1,100-square-foot bunker
Where they can make shine

Free from the constant threat
Of imprisonment.

I'm getting a layout
On this one.

Let's do it.

Dude, there's a guy
On a horse over there.

A -- no, sir.

I -- I'd -- I'd rather
You didn't.

Ah, no worries, sir.
Have a good afternoon.

And it scared the *bleep*
Out of me he got this close.

I couldn't -- I
Couldn't see him through the --

Through the brambles up there.

But, hell,
He was closer than 50 yards.

I wish
We hadn't a-said no.

I wish
We'd a-ran out there

And just acted like we was damn
Tromping around in the creek

And been
All nonchalant about it.

Any report to the
Police of suspicious activity

Will destroy everything
They're trying to build.

I'm -- I'm already thinking
He's gonna come back sometime

And see why we didn't
Want him down here.

Or already have
Enough suspicions

To call the law on us.

Right.

The trespasser
Adds yet another huge setback

To a season
That's failing to launch.

I mean, maybe if we'd have
Had this thing done by the time

He come up on us, you know,
Maybe we could've had this thing

Camouflaged
To where it didn't...

-stick out.
-right.

What do you want to do?

That spooked me a little bit
Too much, man.

I -- let's just wrap up
For today.

Look 'cause I -- I -- I got
To get my thoughts straight.

I -- I'm --
I -- don't --

I really thought we were
Remote enough out here.

I ain't believing this.

I don't know
That our spot is compromised,

But if it is, I sure as hell
Don't want to be caught in it.

♪♪

Watch that zip line.
Rip your head off.

It's a cautious march
Forward in louisiana

For moonshiners patti and david.

Once a run has started,
There's no turning back.

So they do a few
Last-minute security checks

Before firing up the still.

Nothing's on here but me
When I put the camera up,

So that's a good thing.

My camera was good.
What was...

Let me see.

Crazy.

I don't know who this guy
Is that's on this camera.

He might be a hunter or the law.

Next time we leave this site,

We could be in handcuffs,
Who knows?

I'm not gonna sit there and lose
My freaking kids over this.

We're not too far
From the highway.

Get out of here
As fast as we can.

I know, but...

I mean,
This is a huge risk,

Knowing that this guy
Has been caught on camera.

But, I mean, what do I do?

I have to stay where I'm at
Because in louisiana,

You can't find fresh water.

Finding a new site

Is a major undertaking
In the swampy lowland

Of louisiana
Where cold springs are a rarity.

You get my butt caught,
We in a load of *bleep*

Is what we in a load of.

Patti is part
Of a century-long legacy

Of women in the moonshine trade.

When laws
Prevented male officers

From searching the opposite sex,

Women soon ruled bootlegging,

Smuggling shine
In anything from baby carriages

To baker's bundles.

Many got in
On the male-dominated transports

As well.

One notorious bootlegger,

Willie carter sharpe
Of virginia,

Is known for
Her death-defying whiskey runs

On the mountain roads
Of franklin county.

Her feats
Of daring behind the wheel

Were so successful
That she soon became one

Of the first female millionaires
In the country.

You make money.

Uh, you're carrying on
Your tradition, your heritage.

But there's a lot of risk,

But, you know, it's a risk
That you take doing it.

Is it worth it?
To me, it is.

♪♪

I'm gonna set this up
For the time being.

We're gonna try again
And see how that goes.

In cocke county, tennessee,

After a failed run, mark
And digger need a back-up plan.

We're not happy with it at all.

We'll see how this is gonna do.

Their unconventional
Two-pot still was designed

To turn out a high-dollar
Apple rye brandy.

See what we got.

But a weak turnout
On the rye side of the equation

Made the blend unsellable.

I taste plenty of apple,

But I don't get any of the spice
From the rye.

It's just not there.

Maybe we can get some help
To help us figure it out.

Well,
I know that old feller

That used to come
Across the mountain.

They've gone over the still
With a fine-tooth comb

But have not found the culprit.

So digger's called in a friend

That's supposed to be the rye
Master in the appalachians.

Maybe he can help us isolate
The problem we're having.

Hello there, jim tom.

When you told me you was
A-coming in with a man

That knows a little something
About rye,

You didn't tell me
It was the damn rye daddy.

I can't disguise myself.
There ain't no way.

I could put on a wig right now,

Earrings, a short skirt
And boobs, they'd still recog--

That's right.

Of all the old-time
Shiners left in appalachia,

None are more famous

For their rye liquor
Than master distiller jim tom.

This legendary outlaw

Has over 50 years of experience
Building copper stills...

...And perfecting
His own distinct brand

Of white lightning.

Digger, I guess
He told you a little bit

What went wrong with it.

That's right.

Oh, I know.
You're the best.

Well, if you ain't learned
Something about it,

You're pretty thick,
Ain't you?

I mean,
It wasn't bad liquor, jim tom.

Don't get me wrong.

But it just didn't satisfy us.

Yep.

So we're gonna do this

Exactly like we did it
The other day.

And if you see what we're
Doing wrong, that's what --

That's what we'd like
For you to do for us.

We got everything to gain
And not a damn thing to lose.

All right.
Come on, you old fart.

I'm gonna show you
Some high-quality mash.

We have to have our fun,
Don't we, mark?

That's exactly right.

Coming up,

Three shiners have their eyes
On the prize.

A rescue mission
Becomes a bone of contention.

I'm lazy flat-out.
I ain't gonna lie to ya.

I don't feel like dragging
That damn behemoth

Back out of the woods.

And it's judgment time
From the rye expert.

We're gonna do this

Exactly like we did it
The other day.

♪♪

Oh, yeah.

Oh, yeah.

It's almost a month
Into shine season,

And after a run of bad luck,
Carolina shiners jeff,

Mark and lance are finally
Hitting their stride.

A destroyed still and cutthroat
Pricing by their competitors

Had their season on the ropes.

There's a truck sitting
Up here in the road.

So to stay in the game...

...Jeff, mark and lance plan
To run a handcrafted scotch.

Break time!
We'll get her.

Due to the smoking
And aging process,

Distilling scotch
Takes weeks longer

Than running
Traditional moonshine.

'cause there's so many
More different steps to it.

Today, most shiners
Use propane burners

To heat their stills,

But mark always ops
For good, old-fashioned wood

To get the job done.

This is jeff, mark and lance's
Most ambitious still site ever,

Complete with an intricate
Network of wooden troughs

That will provide
A constant flow of cold water

To the condenser barrel.

It includes a grain smoker,

A wood grill for cooking meals,

Beds to catch some shut-eye

And even a latrine fashioned
From old tires.

Finally, camouflage tarps will
Shroud the entire encampment

From weather
And any overhead surveillance.

♪♪

Well, I don't know what's
Going on with this raccoon,

But for some reason,
He likes to poop in his water.

I can't figure it out.

To the southeast,

After an intruder
Rode up on their site,

Josh and bill are lying low
In the safety of their workshop.

I mean, he's cute and all.

He's adorable.

But, uh,
He likes getting into things.

He's been stealing my tools.

He stole a couple screws
The other day.

He's just a little bit
Mischievous.

But, uh, josh loves him,
So I guess he's gonna --

Guess he's gonna
Stay around for a while.

Here, little chick, chick.
Here, little chick, chick.

Feel a little nervous
About going back to the bunker

For a few days, so we decided
That might not be a good idea.

We really don't have the time
To be laying low right now.

We really need to be making
As much shine as fast as we can,

Stockpiling it
And stacking back some cash.

Season's running out.

What we gonna do
About our still?

I was planning on buying
Some copper this week

And start building a pot.

I want to see if we can get
That big, stainless rig out.

Get that stainless rig
Out scares me a little bit.

Last year, the guys

Built a 700-gallon,
Blackpot submarine still.

This thing's huge, dude.

And it became a crucial part in
Their earning $60,000 in profit.

There she come.

Popular among
Prohibition-era shiners,

Blackpot submarine stills

Relay on waterlogged wood
To make them leak-proof,

Which means that once set up,

They're nearly impossible
To move.

That's just
Back-breaking work.

And trying to get it
Into our new site...

You know, we could drag it
3 feet a day for the next month

And eventually get
It out of there.

And I'm lazy flat-out.
I ain't gonna lie to ya.

I don't feel like dragging
That damn behemoth

Back out of the woods.

Yeah. But we got,
Like, 600, 700 bucks

In that thing.
-right.

And I'm willing to walk away
From that 700 bucks

And go spend another
700 bucks on copper

Just so I ain't got
To drag that thing

Out to the woods.

You don't even want
To go look at it

To see
If we can get it out?

I mean,
I -- we can go look at it.

I'm not quite sure
What his plans are

On how he's gonna move it.

He's seeing some sort
Of visions that I'm not seeing.

Trust me.
It'll work. Trust me.

How you doing back there,
Colonel?

You doing good?

Three men are
On a mission in tennessee.

Mark and digger
Have asked rye expert jim tom

To help figure out

Why the first batch
Of blended spirit

Was all apple and no rye.

Hey, we're here, jim tom.

We're gonna put apple
In one of these pots,

And we're gonna put the rye mash
In the other.

We're gonna do this exactly
Like we did it the other day.

We're gonna run 'em
At the same time,

Pump -- pump both of 'em

And let -- let them flavors mix
In the thumper.

Both stills going
To one thump carrier.

This is the first time
That we've ever

Done the tandem steel.

We want to experiment
A little bit.

So we're not exactly sure
If it's the burners or the pots

Or our mash.

-well, stand by over there.
-okay.

There we go.

But we'll know in a little while
When it starts producing.

Watch yourself.

I'm gonna try
To light this thing.

♪ I told the little sow
To look right here ♪

♪ she said, "Jim tom,
Bring me a beer" ♪

♪ I'm a-on my way ♪

Oh, yeah.
Yeah.

Hey. Hot dog.
That's what we're looking for.

Uh-huh.

-here you go.
-one quart?

-yep.
-yeah.

It'd be enough
To kill you.

Shiners always discard
The first few ounces of a run

Because it's mostly methanol,

A dangerous toxin
That can cause blindness

And even death.

Oh, yeah.

Once the methanol,
Also known as the foreshot,

Is discarded,
Drinkable liquor begins to flow.

Okay.

Coming up...

A team of outlaws
Plan to raise a sleeping giant.

This is ridiculous.

Let's get the steel in the spot
And start making liquor.

And the worst may be on its way
To patti and david.

Reckon them sirens
Are coming here?

♪♪

Nope.

Mark and digger

Have invited jim tom
To tennessee...

...Where he's helping
Put the bite back in their rye.

It just ain't got
The spicy rye taste.

Right.

Rye makes that, uh, spicy flavor
Come through in the whiskey

About like the first time
You kissed a girl.

That's just not there.

I don't know whether it'd be
The -- the burners or the pots.

Perfect.

Well, we ground at it.

It kind of was a little
Cantankerous on us.

-it's an old corn grinder.
-it's an old corn grinder.

Before adding rye to the mash,

It needs to be
Ground thoroughly in order

For starches and flavors
To be released.

Clogging up again?

And an old grinder
Could be to blame

For the weak rye
They're getting.

Need to loosen it up
A little.

You're right.

-it was pretty chunky.
-yeah.

Well, man,
I appreciate you coming over.

That creek's down,
Ain't it?

This thing was flowing last year
We were down here.

Across state lines
In south carolina,

Josh and bill are attempting
To raise the dead.

Last year, their submarine pot
Helped to net them over $60,000.

The *bleep* was that?

But a close call with the law

Forced them to abandon it
In the woods.

Oh, my god.
He heard that *bleep*

Once a site is busted,
Shiners like to avoid it

Because it's usually only
A matter of time

Before the law returns
To check it again.

Honestly, I really
Didn't ever consider

Getting this thing
Out of here

When we built it.

We can get it
Out of here, though.

Let's try picking it up.

Just straight up.

It's full of water.

Well, ev-- even if we
Drain the water, I mean,

I said from the get-go,

This thing has already served
Its purpose on this earth.

Uh, we made money then
That we're still living on

From last year.

There's got to be a way
To get it out to here.

I mean, I know we're
Running out of time, man,

But it's served
Its purpose.

And building -- building
A blackpot submarine...

They're --
They're made to,

Like, die where they --

Where they --
Where they -- where they lived.

It's just ridiculous!

Are you finished?

I'm finished as long
As you don't try to damn tell me

I got to move this damn thing.
-listen.

This is ridiculous.

Let's get the still
In the spot

And start making
Some liquor.

I already told you,

I'm -- I'm prepared
To come out of pocket.

It's not the money!
It's the damn time!

If we have to go back
To building a still,

It's gonna be a month
At best

Before we're ready
To make any shine.

And, uh, I'm not willing
To settle for that.

What if we just,
Like, dump --

Dump the water
Out of it and kind of,

Like,
Flip it a few times

And just manhandle it
Down into there?

There ain't no way
In hell

We're gonna get it
Down the trail.

That thing
Weighs a ton, man.

A metric *bleep* ton.

All it's got to do is go
Straight down the trail

40 yards right there,

Hang a left
Into the creek

And then go another 40 yards
Down to the road.

I know we can get it
Out of here.

Your only job
Is to build some runners,

Some sleds on the --
On the still.

And maybe we'll throw
Some runners out on the ground

For it
Just to slide across.

Some skids for it
To slide across

Might make it work
A little bit better.

Deal?

All right.
Tired of arguing about it.

Let's do it tonight.

Nighttime, them -- much less
Chance of getting caught.

And it ain't gonna be
Damn 105 degrees out here.

We're gonna build some runners
On it and make it like a sled.

We're gonna hook a pulley
To some ropes.

And then bill's job
Is to hold the still up

To keep it from flipping over
While I'm gonna work the pulley.

And, well, hopefully
We don't break any legs.

Let's do it.

♪♪

These here are driveway alarms,

And we're gonna
Use 'em as our security.

They're motion-activated,

So we'll take this
In the still site with us,

And it'll ding
Whenever somebody's up here

Like a doorbell.

In northwestern louisiana,

Moonshiner patti and her father,
David, are keeping a close watch

On the perimeter
Of their still site.

You can never let your guard
Down being a moonshiner.

You always got to
Have your alert going

From the time
You get in your vehicle

To go to your site
Till you get in your bed.

If I hear a stick crack
In the woods,

I'm looking over my shoulder.

I'm so paranoid all the time.

These alarms will give patti

And her father, david,
Just 45 seconds

To get away if anyone
Tries to interrupt their run.

This will be our first run

Since we saw the guy
On the camera

And still haven't found out
Who he is.

My site's not as isolated
As I thought it was.

I mean, you can hear
Sometimes cars going by

On the main highway.

You get people that are walking
Around the perimeter,

I want to know.

Looks pretty clear.
Think we're okay?

Yeah.

Yep.

What is it?

Mm.

Some more
Of your survival skills?

Reckon them sirens
Are coming here?

Want me
To check this side?

I'm constantly on high alert.

I mean, my whole life
Is at stake.

And I'm worried, you know, about
People ratting me out.

This guy on the trail camera
Might've seen me,

And they've turned me in.

Coming up...

Three outlaws go with the flow.

You got water yet?

And two whiskey giants
Stumble and fall.

-wait! Wait!
-whoa.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

Reckon them sirens
Are coming here?

In the louisiana lowland...

...The heat is on...

I'm constantly on high alert.

I mean, my whole life
Is at stake.

And I'm worried, you know, about
People ratting me out.

This guy on the trail camera
Might've seen me,

And they've turned me in.

-see anything?
-no.

Me either.

Fixing
To start coming out.

All right. Right there.
You see it?

Looking pretty good,
Ain't it?

Mm-hmm.

How much proof,
You think?

150.

Dang.
It ain't but 120.

Because alcohol content

Decreases throughout a run,
Most shiners

Like to start the run as close
As they can get to 150 proof.

That ain't worth a crap.

Temperature's right.

The mash looked like
It was ready to -- to run.

And I thought everything
Was okay, but apparently not.

This is very frustrating.

It's a lot of work getting
All this put together

Just to not even get
A gallon of daggum moonshine.

In the high country

Along
The tennessee-carolina line,

Jeff, mark and lance

Are making fast progress
On their still site.

Gravity-fed water systems

Like this have been
Around for centuries.

The guys will screw the edges of
Boards together at right angles

To form long troughs

And then place them
In a zig-zagging pattern

To carry water
From a higher point in the creek

Down 30 yards

Of mountain terrain
To their condenser barrel.

They'll control the flow rate

By adjusting the angle
Of each trough section.

Well, let's see
If we can get them in there.

If the troughs are too steep,
The flow will flood the site.

Too level, and there won't be
Enough cool water

To condense the scotch.

Solid.

Yeah.
Pretty tough.

Pretty good, ain't it?

Yeah.
You can just run screws down.

May have to get you
Some of the long ones.

-okay!
-you ready?

Yeah.

You got water yet?

Yep.

Yeah.
We got water.

Pretty good set-up.

We got lots of water,
And it's real cold.

That's a lot of water.

You could run
A 2,000-gallon still

Off of that much water.

We'll be ready
To make shine this week.

We got
To do something, man.

In south carolina,
It's just past midnight,

And a rescue mission
Is underway.

I have
Absolutely no idea

How I let you
Talk me into this.

At least we'll have
It out to here tonight.

I'm looking forward
To being done with it.

Short on time and money,

Josh and bill decided to try
Retrieving their 600-pound,

Blackpot still from last season.

Uh, we got a tree frog
In there.

He done camping out.

Still jittery about police
Presence from last year,

They're using the cloak of night
To pull off their mission.

But right now
What we're doing

Is we have compounding block
And tackle right here.

Boo-yah and boo-yah.

The block-and-tackle system

Employs force-multiplying
Pulleys and rope to do the work

Of moving the pot.

Which end
Is our pulling end?

Which end
Is our -- our tying end?

I'll tell ya when we get
It straightened out here.

Maybe next time
We do this,

We'll bring
A little bit longer rope.

-all right.
-all right.

This is definitely
The dirty side.

Thing weighs a ton, don't it?
-yeah, it does.

Hold a second, bro.
Hold a sec.

Let me catch up.
Let me catch up.

I mean, it's definitely
Hard to work at nighttime,

But here we are now.

Let's drag it back --

Back down the creek, through
These woods and everything else.

Yeah.

Love it.
What'd I tell ya?

Are you ever gonna learn
To trust me?

I hadn't been down
With this plan to get the still

Out of the woods
From the get-go.

But, uh, I mean, now
We're getting rolling with it.

And I think we got
The right tools.

We got the right materials.

I -- I hate to say it, man.

Josh might be right this time.

-it's gonna go right over.
-all right.

Gimme a sec.
Gimme a sec.

Easy. Easy.

Wait.
W -- wait a second.

Wait! Wait!
-whoa.

Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

Coming up...
A remote still site discovered.

-digger.
-yes, sir.

Mark lost his pecker.

Where'd you lose it at?
-I don't know.

It -- it may have
Fell out of my pocket.

Well, here.
Take that 'un.

If you find it,
You got two then.

When you're a moonshiner,

You always have a coon's pecker.

Coon pecker go
Into the spout of the worm

Where your liquor
Comes out of your still.

That liquor stream will hit it.

And then it's gonna go to
That little joint on that bone.

It'll follow that all the time
No matter how slow

That your run goes.

Well, did you hear us
Call it a coon pecker?

Digger's little boy
Said, "Daddy..."

Said,
"That can't be a pecker"

And he said,
"'cause it's got a bone in it."

He said, "Why ain't ours
Got bones in 'em?"

He said, "Boy,"
He said, "Man's been asking

Theirself that for millions
Of years."

Young digger, he uses
His like to pick his teeth with.

It's the original
Dental tool.

How in the hell did you
Ever talk me into this,

I will never,
Ever, ever know.

You want to work the rope
For a little while?

You gonna let this thing
Fall on you instead?

It ain't gonna fall.

Back in south carolina,

Josh and bill are struggling
To resurrect a giant.

All right. Gimme a sec.
Gimme a sec.

W -- wait.
Wait! Wait!

Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

*bleep*
What'd it hit?

All right. I'm getting out
From up under it.

*bleep* christmas, brother.

We can't fix it.

We can't do nothing else
With this thing.

This can't be happening.

After everything we went
Through, sweat, tears and blood,

We're back to a standstill
Again.

Summer's ticking by,
And we're not making liquor.

Nothing.

This is stupid!
But there it is!

There's a hole in it!
*bleep* frustrated!

I've worked my *bleep* ass
Off all night!

Yeah.

In the shadows
Of the dense forest canopy,

Jeff, mark and lance return

To finish building
Out their camp.

Don't let them
Come over here.

That's how you get caught --

Somebody come in on ya.

Hopefully, they don't
Give us no trouble.

They --
They rode on by.

This site -- I put so much work
And time into it.

Now, I really don't want
To tear it down and leave.

We've got several weeks
In working on it so far.

If they go home
And call the law,

Our season's probably done.

Yeah, boy.

Next time on "Moonshiners"...

A tragedy in kentucky.

Did you see that news
Where that distillery blew up?

And you was inside
When it blew up?

Yes, I was.

This business is very dangerous.

While a monsoon
In north carolina

Washes out three outlaws.

Yeah.
That's about all water.

Hey. Hey.

And unexpected guests
Put a season on the line.