Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 7, Episode 5 - Second Chances - full transcript
Mark and Digger seek redemption on their 3-pot still. Tim enlists Tickle as JT's moonshine mentor. Patti and David build a second still in hopes of doubling their production, and Lance tries to regain Jeff's trust running solo.
♪♪
My dad taught me
How to moonshine.
I was about 5 years old.
Kindergarten was coming along,
And my dad said
If I could help him moonshine,
Then I could skip kindergarten.
Well, today,
J.T. Is coming of age,
And I can see myself every day
Being my dad.
It's starting all over again.
Real moonshiners,
They understand
Carrying on the heritage.
Well, they may die,
Their soul may go,
But moonshining
Is not going anywhere.
Moonshining
Is a lineage tradition
Painstakingly passed
From one generation to the next.
Family is the lifeblood
That keeps the craft alive.
Those who can pass down
A true sense of craftsmanship
Cement their legacy forever.
A son looks for redemption
In north carolina.
It's real important for me
To earn his respect back.
Well, what
Do you think?
Man, I know you just
Got out of jail today,
But I'm just trying to
Give you an opportunity.
In virginia,
A moonshiner returns
With a little help
From his friends.
I want to stay out of trouble.
I don't want to wind up
Back in jail.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
And in tennessee,
One sip will define a season.
My future
In the liquor business,
It lays right here.
Son of a bitch.
♪ no one can hold me down ♪
♪ or make me change my ways ♪
♪ so don't waste your breath
Sayin' ♪
♪ crime never pays ♪
♪ goin' for a ride ♪
♪ runnin' to survive ♪
♪ when you're livin'
Outside the law ♪
♪ we're livin'
Outside the law ♪
This is how
We make the moonshine!
Captions paid for by
Discovery communications
♪♪
Glad to
Be out of jail?
Man, you ain't
Never lied, man.
Been a while since you had
Some good food, I bet.
Well, you know, I ate
Pretty good up in there.
You know, they made me
The baker up in there.
Believe me, of all
The people in the jail
To give yeast and sugar to,
They give it to me.
Well, they figured you was
The best one for it.
In virginia,
A reunion is underway.
Tim and j.T. Are taking
Tickle out for his first meal
As a free man in nearly a year.
Well, I mean, you know,
And everybody in there
Was wanting me to make
A little bit of something,
But I was like, "No.
I'm just ready to get
The hell out of here."
What they want you
To make, alcohol?
Yeah,
'course they did.
I'm tired of being
In there, you know?
You get told
Where you got to go,
Where you got to be,
When you got to be there.
And, I mean, you know,
I'm just trying
To stay out of trouble.
What are y'all doing?
I got this idea
That we go on this road trip,
And I'll show j.T.
Some different people
Making moonshine,
Different ways
Of making moonshine.
I think now
He's just watching me.
Even though I'm legal,
It's real important that
J.T. Understands
Where he came from.
Trying to give him
Some ideas.
I mean, he's got something
Up there in his head,
But I don't know.
Well, I mean, he's got it
In him. He's your son.
Well,
I know he's got it.
He just don't know
How to use it yet.
-yeah.
-you know?
Go down by this
Tree line here.
With inspiration as the goal,
Tim has taken j.T. On the road
To introduce him
To moonshining's inner sanctum.
Alright.
I'll be there.
Alright,
We got to turn around.
But the trip
Took a detour
When tim's former
Partner in crime, tickle,
Was released from jail.
I'll be glad
To see the sun.
I ain't seen it
In a long time.
I know.
♪♪
So, since you don't have
Nothing to do,
Why don't you come
And help us out?
I know you just
Got out of jail today.
I'm just trying
To give you an opportunity.
Well, I tell you...
This way, you can
Still be in the business
But not being illegal.
I want to
Stay out of trouble.
I don't want to wind up
Back in jail.
Would it be easy for me to want
To go back out in the woods?
Yes.
But I can't.
I think we can
Make this work.
Yeah, y'all got to help
Each other now.
Still be able to make
Moonshine and stay out
Of trouble doing it?
Still make moonshine.
Well, j.T. Is real anxious
About starting his own recipe
And everything,
But I want him to slow down.
Making moonshine,
You can't rush.
You know, shining with tickle
Gonna slow him down
A little bit.
You can't get that knowledge
Out of a book.
You can't get that
Off the internet.
I like what he's doing
With j.T.,
But if he follows his dad,
He'll just be
A carbon copy of tim.
I believe the way
I can benefit him the most --
There's a million mistakes you
Can make while making moonshine,
And I've already
Made most of them.
But you got to come up
To culpeper.
I guess while y'all are
On y'all's road trip,
I'll be talking
To my p.O.
About leaving
And going to culpeper.
-yeah.
-all right.
Tickle is still
Under state supervision
And can't leave the county
Without permission.
I really care about tickle,
And tickle's a good guy,
But, you know,
He's let me down in the past.
If tickle messes this one up,
You know, it's gonna be me,
The brand, and my son, too.
I think that's the first time
I've ever seen anybody
Eat chicken tenders
With a knife and a fork.
You got to
Be proper.
♪♪
♪♪
We got everything
To mash in?
Yeah. Let's go
Check out a spring.
In louisiana's
Red river country,
Patti and david's season
Depends on their ability
To find clean springwater among
The area's abundant swamps.
I hope this
Thing's cleared up.
Daddy, we got
To get mashed in today.
I want to start
Making some money.
I'm getting impatient because
I'm getting a lot of calls
From down south wanting shine,
And I don't have anything made.
We ain't gonna
Be able to mash in today.
The father/daughter duo
Can't get up and running
Until the small spring
Runs clear.
Gravel's gonna filter out
The sand and stuff in it.
So david devised
A backwoods filtration system
That should provide them
With a constant flow.
Without clean water,
There's no moonshine.
This sure needs
To start working.
We're gonna start
Losing customers
If we don't
Start producing.
♪♪
Ha ha ha!
Looky there.
Pretty, ain't it?Yeah, it's pretty.
That's crystal-clear
Water there, buddy.
Good?
That's the best-tasting water
I've tasted in years.
Okay, let's mash in.Let's go.
Now you
A happy camper?
I'm happy now.
Now that they've secured
Their water source,
Patti and david
Can start executing
Their plan for the season.
We're gonna run two
Of our most popular moonshines
From last season,
Which was mayhaw and pear.
What I want to do
Is get just a big stockpile
Of 120 gallons
Of this premium shine
And then do one big haul
Down south
Just right on the gulf there.
We're gonna get $150 a gallon.
I don't want to be on the road
Back and forth,
Taking a chance
Of us getting caught.
There. Burn all the hair
Off your arm.
I ain't never hardly had
No hair on my arm.
Nothing but sugar water
And mayhaws.
They ought to make
Some good shine.
A mayhaw is kind of, like,
In a cherry, crab-apple family.
You don't find mayhaws, like,
In the mountains or anything.
It's usually
In the southern states.
Yes, ma'am.
Pretty color there,
Baby.
Now let's go back
And get the pears.
I'm getting
All those calls
From those gulf fishermen
Down south.
You know how those cajuns --
They like to drink.
♪♪
We're gonna be running
Pear and mayhaw.
There's no way we can do
One at a time,
Or we're gonna be
Working around the clock.
Well, I ain't gonna
Be in here 24/7, now.
Well, I don't want to,
Either.
If you don't,
You gonna lose money.
That's true on that.
At the end of the season
Last year, we were maxed out,
And we were worn out, too.
I mean, we were having to run
Around the clock.
If we get
Two stills going,
I think that's
Gonna open us up.
What about a thump keg?
We're gonna be running two
Different kinds of moonshine.
Just adding another still
Will help us out,
Get two stills going,
Double the money...
Half the time....Half the time.
You took the words
Right out of my mouth.
♪♪
This is kind of
A dishearted day.
Yep.
Yeah, we did.
You settled down?
A tiny bit.
Over in the volunteer state,
Mark, digger, and j.B. Rader
Are trying to recover
From a rookie mistake.
We know the manifold
Is the problem.
I'm gonna get it out of there,
Get it took apart,
And we'll get right into
Cleaning the hell out of it.
You know, we ruined
This delicious batch of liquor
By not paying attention
To what we're doing.
How about
That there, jacob b.?
After weeks of frustration
Building an oversized third pot
For their still,
They finally fired it up
But failed miserably.
No, no, no, no!
And ruined it.
It's that
Damn manifold.
Back to damn
Square one.
Flux is a substance that helps
Bond soldered metal seams.
Any flux residue in a still
Will foul the liquor.
In the hustle and bustle
Of this big, giant build
Getting mashed in
And ready to run,
We didn't clean the flux residue
Out of this manifold.
Well, I'm a-gettin'
Our ketchup opened up
To clean that behemoth
Over there.
Stand her up here, and I'll pour
A little of this...
It's nasty in there, boys....Cleaner gravy in there.
The best way to remove
Stubborn flux residue
Is with a simple mixture
Of salt, vinegar,
And good old-fashioned ketchup.
Just apply, then wipe away.
You can look
Right here
And see what this will do
To that canker.
That green stuff
Right there,
And just like this right here,
It's all over the inside.
You give that ketchup
A few minutes,
It'll make that look
Like a brand-new penny.
♪♪
You can bet
Your bottom dollar
We won't forget to clean it
Again, will we, j.B.?
Hell no.
After we leave this
On here
Four or five minutes,
You can look.
It makes that copper
Shiny as new.
We got to make our
Second attempt at this run
To make good liquor this time.
We've got our mash
Ready to run.
We're gonna scrub the hell
Out of this rascal.
We've got to make
This next run work.
We fail again,
Then our season's lost.
Coming up...
I'm gonna take you
For a trip.
...Blind faith in virginia...
If he takes off,
We have no idea where we are.
...And the pressure is on
In louisiana.
You think that thing's
Gonna blow?
♪♪
In graham county,
North carolina,
Lance is on the road
To redemption.
First leg of the journey --
Mash in and make up
For the batch that he wasted.
So, at the beginning
Of the season,
You kind of have to get back
In the swing of things,
And dad told me "No more
Hiccups, no more mistakes,"
And I've not found
My rhythm yet.
It seems like
This season's fighting me
A lot harder than
Any other season I been through,
So I can't fail again.
Jeff and lance stumbled
Out of the gate this season
When lance failed to properly
Protect their mash barrels.
The cost of lance's blunder --
100 gallons of mash
And his father's
Hard-earned trust.
Kind of up
Against the gun here.
We gotto get
Some liquor flowing.
Now lance needs
To make things right
To get back
In his father's good graces.
That's the way malt corn's
Supposed to look, right there.
Stone-ground malt corn
That's been germinated,
Dried, and finely ground
Contains natural yeast.
Got to make sure
I ain't got no clumps.
If we add the malt corn
Too fast,
You just get big clumps,
And it's hard to bust up.
Grain and sugar, the staple
Ingredients of moonshine,
Have not always been
Readily available.
During world war ii,
National stores of sugar, corn,
And other grains
Were sent to the front lines
To feed the allied troops.
When the raw materials
Were no longer available,
The price of moonshine
Skyrocketed.
Opportunistic shiners
Began to make liquor
From previously discarded items,
Such as pea shells,
Beet stalks, and turnip greens.
Those talented enough
To produce quality hooch
During the lean times
Could ask up to $40 per gallon,
The equivalent
Of nearly $700 today.
Yeah, this is something
I really can't fail at.
I need to redeem myself
With dad.
♪♪
It should be done
In about seven days.
Get this business going again.
♪♪
♪♪
Yep.
I'm kind of glad we're doing
Just another 30-gallon.
You get them big stills,
They hard to handle sometime.
Down on the bayou,
Patti and david
Need to build another still
If they want to hit
Their season goal.
Ugh!
Dang it, boy,
It's burning!
♪♪
Now what?
Daddy, he's always been the type
Where he just does his thing,
And I have to just learn
By watching.
Alright, that was good
Right there.
When he's working, best for me
Really just to be quiet,
Because I'm not gonna get
No response from him.
When patti's around me, she
Worries about things too much.
I don't like to be
Rushed on nothing.
It's kind of hard
To build a still.
Not just everybody can do it.
It looks good.
I think
That's got it.
Go find a thumper?
I've got an idea.
I'll be back.
Is that a threat
Or a promise?
A threat!
♪♪
Beer keg?
Phew.
It's heavy, daddy.
What you think?
Think that'll work?
It's really the perfect size
To make a thumper out of.
Moonshining,
You try to do something
The cheapest way you can.
I think it's gonna do
A good job.
Patti, she used
That old brain again.
Now, how you gonna get
The beer out there?
I don't have
To empty this.
Smells like we having
A keg party in here.
If the new still and thump keg
Function properly,
Patti and david
Should be able to run
60 gallons of mash at a time.
Let me see it.
Ow! *bleep*
That's hot!
Darn right it's hot.Well, how are you holding it?
I'm down here.
Crazy.
Perfect.That's it right there.
Final touch --
Put the valve on.
That's it.
I guess tomorrow now, we'll get
This hauled into the site.
Ow! Gosh!
Why you got to be
So mean?
♪♪
Man, this road's getting
Mighty dark up in here.
How much farther up this road
We got to go to?
I don't know. I haven't been
Up here in so many years.
See, if you start
Seeing a mailbox,
You know we
Getting close.
In southern virginia,
Tim and j.T.
Are back on the road,
Searching for the true heart
Of outlaw moonshine.
Yeah, that'll be it
Right in there somewhere.
Listen.
I hear something.
Rodney brown.
Alright,
Let's see.
There's a whole lot about
Rodney brown you don't know.
Rodney brown's probably
The biggest moonshining bootleg
In franklin county.
I didn't say anything to j.T.,
But rodney is blind.
Oh, yeah,
I hear some music.
Yeah.
They got, like,
A whole band up in there.
-hey!
-hey, rodney!
Hey!
Who is that?
Hey!
That sound like tim.
It istim.
Oh, man.
Who's that with you
Right there -- j.T.?
Man, I ain't seen you
Since you was a little kid.
What are y'all doing
In this neck of the woods, man?
Oh, we was
Riding around.
Riding around?Yeah, riding around.
-right on.
-yeah.
Are you thirsty?
Well, yeah,
We thirsty.
That's probably about
Why we come to see you.
oh!
Well,
I tell you what now,
You come
To the right place.
-you know that.
-yeah.
And he says, "Well, hell,
He's in there playing music."
I said, "Well, there's
A whole lot of things
You don't know about
Rodney brown."
Exactly true.
They call me the ghost
Of franklin county, man.
That's it.
That's it.
Rodney is not
Handicapped whatsoever,
Which I hope
Just stands out for j.T.
Because rodney don't give up.
He uses all those senses
That normally we don't use.
He's feeling it.
He's smelling it.
It's like a sense.
It's like superpowers here.
Y'all want to go down
And take a little taste?
Where we got to go?
Well, the bog
Is back there.
We got to go just
Right down in the woods.
Down in the woods?
Blind man gonna take us
Down in the woods?
I don't see nothing good
Coming out of this.
Bit like the blind
Leading the blind, ain't it?
Oh, we gonna follow
Rodney brown,
Biggest moonshining bootleg
In franklin county.
Well, I hope he knows
Where he's going.
What you doing?
You got us some lanterns?
Yes, sir.
I got you light.
Y'all take these things.
I don't need them.
Yeah, there you go.
Y'all, I'm gonna
Take you for a trip.
You're gonna have
To keep up with me, man.
Trying to follow rodney
Through the woods,
And he's negotiating around
Just like he's got
Night-vision goggles on.
If he takes off,
We have no idea where were are.
I got a lantern,
And I can't see where I'm going.
Where we going
Here, man?
Coming up,
In north carolina,
It's every shiner
For himself.
Y'all take these things.
I don't need them.
Yeah, there you go.
Alright.
Back in virginia,
Tim and j.T.'s quest for a taste
Of franklin county's best
Has them following
A blind man into the darkness.
I don't know how you know how
To get through here.
Be careful over here.
There's a tree right there.
Yeah, that's a tree
Right there.
And there's one
Right here.
Yeah.You know where I'm at.
There's some
Back through here.
Here's your path
Right here.
And so we just go up
This way right here.
-over here.
-okay.
Alright,
Come on around.
On up here. Right here
At this tree right here.
-what tree?
-right there.
-this one.
-this tree?
This tree
Right here.
Oh, that tree
Down there.
that one right here.
Y'all want to take
A little taste of it?
Yeah.
Now, this right here
Is some rye.
It's about a year old.
Mmm. It smells good.
That's some good corn liquor
Right there.
-oh, yeah.
-yes, sir.
That's some
Rodney brown liquor.
Yeah, that's right.
That's right.
It's smooth.
Oh, that's got
A nice taste.
Making moonshine,
Most people can't even do it
With a perfect set of eyes.
It's just so amazing that
He's able to do this blind.
♪♪
That's some...It even smellssmooth.
'cause it's
Made right.
Oh, yeah.
And it takes time
To make good liquor.
I been trying to tell j.T.
That for a long time.
I keep telling him
He got to slow down.
You ever heard that song
"Simple man" by lynyrd skynyrd?
"Take your time.
Don't live too fast.
Troubles come,
Then they pass."
That's the way
Moonshine is
If you don't
Get anxious.
Learn all you can.Alright.
And do all you can
And watch the feds.
Rodney brown is a moonshiner,
And I'm talking about
He makes goodmoonshine,
And this is what's
So special about him,
Because he doesn't
Let anything stop him.
Just grab the world
By its tail, you know?
Just go ahead and swing it.
Make it happen, you know?
And j.T., I think,
Was absorbing that.
That's a legend
Right there.
I mean, that's a legend
Right there.
He just keeps on going.
♪♪
♪♪
Them horseflies
Are terrible this year.
Oh, I know it.
Let's see where we're
Gonna set this other
Still real quick.
Deep in the wetlands
Of northern louisiana,
Patti and david are making
Their first tandem run
Of mayhaw and pear moonshines.
Us running this new still, we
Got this beer keg as a thumper.
It's adding a lot of stress
Because we've never ran
Nothing like this before.
I'm worried that
It's not gonna work.
When you're running
Any kind of fruit mash,
You got to be real careful,
'cause it's not like corn.
You can let it sit
There two or three days.
But with fruit, you need
To get it done right then.
That's good stuff.
It's ready.
Check this mayhaw,
See if it's ready.
That's good.
It's ready, too.
I love a taste of that.
Yeah, it's ready.
♪♪
Got mine lit.
Got them both running.
Now we'll see how they do.
Kind of like
This idea.
You have your still,
And I have mine.
Hey!
Unh-unh, buddy!
You've got
Your own still!
Stealing my junk.
This is mystill,
And that's yours.
Yep, mine's getting
Warm right here.
Oh! I'm running.
Smells like mayhaw.
You smell it?
Yep.
Dump these heads out
Real quick.
Put some cheesecloth
Down here
And put some mayhaws
In it.
When that liquor run
Through the mayhaw,
Maybe it'll give it
A more mayhaw taste.
This stuff smells good,
Don't it, daddy?
Want to try it?
You think that thing's
Gonna blow?
No, it ain't
Gonna blow.
Well,
It's making a noise.
I don't like
That thing, daddy.
Oh, yeah.
It good?
Good high-proof, too.Heck yeah
That thumper's working,
Ain't it?
Yeah, it's holding
In there.
I wonder what kind of proof
It's starting off at.
140 proof.
Right on the dot, too.
That's just how
I like my shine.
♪♪
Hoo!
It is140 proof.
That's some
Good stuff, though.
When you run your first shine
Of the season,
You're always wanting
To get that taste,
And that first drink
Of the mayhaw was wonderful.
That's my last one
Right there.
Mm-hmm.
Mine, too.
Boy, that mayhaw
Tastes good. Taste that.
Patti and david's first
Successful run of the season
Yielded a total of 6 gallons
Of mayhaw and pear moonshines,
Worth $900.
Well, that still
Did good.
Oh, yeah,
It done good.
Aw! That's the only
Time I get a hug
Is out in the woods.
♪♪
It's the moment of truth
In north carolina.
Let's see what
It looks like.
The mash is fermented
And ready to run.
I'm feeling a lot more
Pressure on me now,
Which is gonna make sure that
I get this season going right.
Worry about the right corn,
The right sugars.
I want to make sure
That we don't fail again.
Man, I believe
That's ready.
With all the setbacks
We've had,
I want to run this tonight,
Get it done.
That way, we've got finished,
Ready-to-go product.
It's extremely tough running
Liquor all night like this,
But I'm gonna make sure
I get everything right
From this point on.
Oh, perfect.
I'm ready to go.
Big whoosh.
Now it's just
A big waiting game.
This right here is
The best office in the world.
♪♪
Yeah, I hope that having
A successful run
Is really gonna show dad
That I can handle myself,
And it's real important for me
To earn his respect back
And to get him
To where he trusts me again.
Not so long ago now,
I would've been hammered
By this point.
I really like to sample
My own product.
I took it to excess.
That's why
I don't drink anymore.
When I quit drinking,
That give me the drive
To making sure that you have
A way of making a living.
There's not many opportunities
For somebody
Dropped out of high school.
It's real important for me
To be a moonshiner
'cause this is how
I take care of our family.
Coming up...
Talking about somebody
Was putting out
2,000 or 3,000
Gallons a week.
Looking for a legend...
Is that him
Down there?
Looking for amos law.
♪♪
♪♪
Under the carolina moonlight,
Lance is well into
His first run of the season.
I believe that got it.
Oh, we're hot
Into our thump keg.
We will have alcohol
Anytime now.
I'm gonna go ahead
And dial my heat back,
Make sure that I don't scorch
The bottom of it.
Oh, yeah.
We got alcohol.
♪♪
That's good-smelling alcohol.
♪♪
This is the alcohol
That everybody's asking for.
It's getting us back on track
To where we need to be,
So I'm tickled to death
That it's running.
That jar is full.
That's mighty good liquor.
Ooh!
I got a long night ahead of me,
But that sure makes it worth it
Right there.
♪♪
Ugh.
Are you tired
This morning?
I'm tired.
I hope you're
Well-rested.
I'm pretty-good
Rested.
♪♪
Well, what do you think?
Well, thank you.
Same right back
To you.
Our customers
Is coming back.
That was a huge weight
Off my shoulders
When he told me that
That was good liquor --
Made it all worth it
Right there,
Staying out here all night.
When the run is finished,
They'll have
$500 worth of corn liquor,
But the bigger payoff for lance
Is regaining his father's trust.
Lance, we got to go
Get us a load of sugar
And get this mash
Back a-workin'.
Not before I get
Some sleep, we ain't.
Yeah.
♪♪
♪♪
That one there
Smelling right?
Cap on this one.
This one's ready to run.
J.B., what's that
Taste like to you?
Like it needs
A waffle dipped in it.
Yep.
In the smoky mountains,
Mark, digger, and j.B.
Are ready to distill
The vanilla-maple mash
That remained when they cut
Their last attempt short.
This is our second attempt
On this three-pot still.
So far, we've not got
A drinkable drop out of it.
Now you go.
Hold up.There we go.
It don't have to be
Perfect straight.
It's gonna pump steam
Either way.
We're ready to fire
These sumbitches up.
okay.
You want to be
That close, or you...
Oh, it's okay,
I think.
It's blowing itself out.
It's gonna blow the side
Out of that thing.
Moonshining will either
Teach you patience
Or it'll rid you of any
That you did have.
I believe
It's burning now!
- I don't want to fail anymore.
- Everything stems on this run.
It's gonna be success
Or failure from this point on.
Suck it up, buttercup.
Be positive.
♪♪
Ol' big sloppy,
She's settling herself in.
Yep.
We need to be
On the lookout for leaks.
- We've cleaned the manifold.
- We've tweaked the burners.
We've did everything
That we know to do
To make this a successful run.
I can feel the heat
Right up here.
Told you it was
A-thumpin'.
Any minute now,
We ought to get it.
Yeah, was that
A drop or two I seen?
Yeah, the condenser arm
Is getting hot, too.
Looky here.
Looky here.
Damn. Look there.
What a stream.
As hot as that thing was,
I knew we was gonna have liquor.
You better get you
A catch jug there.
Yes, I should.
Let me put this little filter
Down in there,
And we cram it full
Of white-oak charcoal,
And then they absorb
Fusel oil.
It gives your liquor
A nice, smooth flavor.
It's high-octane pudding
Right there.
God, it's way too high-proof
To drink right now.
We're in the high-shot stages,
And it's too fiery
To tell about any flavor profile
At this point.
It's gonna be
Five minutes a jug.
-ready?
-yep.
Now we're getting back
On there again.
There we go.
I'm just anxious to run down
About 30, 40 jugs
Before we can get the middlings.
We'll see if all these flavors
Carried through.
Well, boys, we got
A long night's work ahead of us.
Because the different types
Of alcohol
And chemical compounds
In mash
Cook off
At different temperatures,
A run goes through
Distinct phases,
Which moonshiners
Refer to as cuts.
On a 10-gallon distillation run,
The first vapors to boil off
Are called the foreshots,
Which contain poisonous methanol
And is discarded.
The next 12 or so ounces to
Boil off are called the heads,
Which contain
Harsh-tasting aldehydes.
These are also discarded.
The next cut
Is called the hearts.
The hearts are pure ethanol.
They taste smooth, rich,
And are the part reserved
For drinking.
The end of the run,
Also known as tails,
Are low in alcohol
And contain water
And other by-products,
Like fusel oils.
These are bitter-tasting
And cannot be sold as moonshine.
♪♪
That's running us to death.
We're about 80.
Let's taste
Some of it.
Since our first run was
So miserably unsuccessful,
This whole three-pot system,
We don't know
If we did it right or not.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
This'll just make or break
Our season
And maybe our damn careers.
My future
In the liquor business,
It lays right here.
♪♪
Son of a bitch.
That's real nice.
It's pretty warm
Under here, though.
Yeah, I'd say it is.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
This'll just make or break
Our season
And maybe our damn careers.
Back in tennessee,
The fate of mark, digger,
And j.B.'s entire season
Rests in a single jug.
♪♪
Son of a bitch.
♪♪
I can take that
A couple of different ways.
Yeah. Probably can.
♪♪
That "Son of a bitch"
Means...
Looks like I'm gonna
Come back to work.
You scared the hell
Out of me.
Taste the liquor in your mouth,
And then that maple syrup,
It's kind of like
3:00 in the morning
At the waffle house,
Ain't it?
Sassy,
Yet unpretentious.
Nutty,
But not overpowering.
Tickles the olfactory.
Yeah, it does.
It's the palate.
Yeah, it did.
You're so
Full of *bleep*.
This successful run,
It's kind of turned a corner
For me, if you will.
We're back in the wheelhouse,
And we're ready to go forward
And make a lot
Of liquor right now.
Boys, I believe we're onto
A little something here.
I'm gonna
Tell you what, cuz.
We ain't gonna make
Any corn liquor this year.
We're gonna
Stick to this.
Well,
We got to see what
John q. Liquor-buyer public
Thinks about it.
We can't
Sell this cheap.
This batch
Of vanilla-maple moonshine
Will net them $12,000.
I'm back
In my game, baby.
-yes!
-whoo!
Pow!
I'm gonna tell you,
I'm gonna sleep
Like a naked baby
Tonight.
Give me love.
We've been rejuvenated,
And, hell,
We're ready to go hell west
And crooked forward
Into this season,
And we gonna make
A lot of liquor.
J.B. Rader,
I'm glad to have you
Back in this game, brother.
You look like a damn
Ostrich with polio.
♪♪
I like when you drive.
I can look around.
When idrive and look around,
I run off the road.
In the commonwealth of virginia,
Tim and j.T.'s journey
Continues.
It's a trip that tim hopes
Will inspire his son,
As well as reveal
His own outlaw past.
Want to go back up there
In franklin county mountain,
This is where
We're gonna go.
You in the moonshine capital
Of the whole world here.
Go in this neck of the woods,
It's always somebody around here
That knows something
About moonshine.
Back in the day when
I was doing this illegally,
J.T. Was too young,
And he couldn't
Really understand,
You know, and right now,
All he knows is the legal way,
But I want him to get
The feel of what it was like.
♪♪
You got somebody else in mind
That we gonna go see?
One of the biggest kingpins
Probably on the east coast.
Him and your papa, my dad,
They pulled time in richmond.
Back then,
You got some serious time,
And you got federal time.
It wasn't like today, just going
Into the local jail.
You was going "Down the road,"
Is what they called it.
Now j.T.'s gonna get
To meet this guy
That was working
With my dad back in the day.
He would have five or six
Different teams set up.
Talking about somebody
That was putting out
2,000 or 3,000
Gallons a week.
We can't even do that
At the legal distillery
In culpeper.
Nope.
Amos law,
One of the most legendary,
Most famous moonshiners
In all of franklin county --
Maybe even the whole
United states --
Controlling millions of dollars.
He was the big al capone
Of moonshining.
These were really rough guys
Back in the day.
Some of them died,
Some of them got shot,
And amos survived.
Right down this road.
It's right in here
Somewhere in this cornfield.
You know you
In moonshine country
When you's got corn
On both sides of the road.
I only met him
One time.
I was a little kid
When I met him then.
He might not
Even know who I am.
We are taking
A little bit of risk,
And this is why we decided
To go in the daytime.
I don't want him to, like,
Pull out the gun or nothing.
Better be careful
Of somebody coming
Around that curve,
Because we don't want
To get trapped.
Yeah, just stop
Right here.
I'd say so.
I ain't seen him
In 45 years.
Looking for
Amos law.
Next time on "Moonshiners"...
Boy, have I got
A surprise for you.
...The scientific method
In tennessee.
If that gadget right there
Helps our liquor production,
I'll be the first one
To pat you on the back.
Left high and dry
On the blue ridge...
Maybe you might come
And help me a little bit.
Yeah.
I just, I been busy.
If we gonna make
A 1,200-gallon goal,
Mike is gonna have
To be here to help me.
Ugh.
It's good for production
To have high-proof.
And the heat is on in kentucky.
Wow.
My dad taught me
How to moonshine.
I was about 5 years old.
Kindergarten was coming along,
And my dad said
If I could help him moonshine,
Then I could skip kindergarten.
Well, today,
J.T. Is coming of age,
And I can see myself every day
Being my dad.
It's starting all over again.
Real moonshiners,
They understand
Carrying on the heritage.
Well, they may die,
Their soul may go,
But moonshining
Is not going anywhere.
Moonshining
Is a lineage tradition
Painstakingly passed
From one generation to the next.
Family is the lifeblood
That keeps the craft alive.
Those who can pass down
A true sense of craftsmanship
Cement their legacy forever.
A son looks for redemption
In north carolina.
It's real important for me
To earn his respect back.
Well, what
Do you think?
Man, I know you just
Got out of jail today,
But I'm just trying to
Give you an opportunity.
In virginia,
A moonshiner returns
With a little help
From his friends.
I want to stay out of trouble.
I don't want to wind up
Back in jail.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
And in tennessee,
One sip will define a season.
My future
In the liquor business,
It lays right here.
Son of a bitch.
♪ no one can hold me down ♪
♪ or make me change my ways ♪
♪ so don't waste your breath
Sayin' ♪
♪ crime never pays ♪
♪ goin' for a ride ♪
♪ runnin' to survive ♪
♪ when you're livin'
Outside the law ♪
♪ we're livin'
Outside the law ♪
This is how
We make the moonshine!
Captions paid for by
Discovery communications
♪♪
Glad to
Be out of jail?
Man, you ain't
Never lied, man.
Been a while since you had
Some good food, I bet.
Well, you know, I ate
Pretty good up in there.
You know, they made me
The baker up in there.
Believe me, of all
The people in the jail
To give yeast and sugar to,
They give it to me.
Well, they figured you was
The best one for it.
In virginia,
A reunion is underway.
Tim and j.T. Are taking
Tickle out for his first meal
As a free man in nearly a year.
Well, I mean, you know,
And everybody in there
Was wanting me to make
A little bit of something,
But I was like, "No.
I'm just ready to get
The hell out of here."
What they want you
To make, alcohol?
Yeah,
'course they did.
I'm tired of being
In there, you know?
You get told
Where you got to go,
Where you got to be,
When you got to be there.
And, I mean, you know,
I'm just trying
To stay out of trouble.
What are y'all doing?
I got this idea
That we go on this road trip,
And I'll show j.T.
Some different people
Making moonshine,
Different ways
Of making moonshine.
I think now
He's just watching me.
Even though I'm legal,
It's real important that
J.T. Understands
Where he came from.
Trying to give him
Some ideas.
I mean, he's got something
Up there in his head,
But I don't know.
Well, I mean, he's got it
In him. He's your son.
Well,
I know he's got it.
He just don't know
How to use it yet.
-yeah.
-you know?
Go down by this
Tree line here.
With inspiration as the goal,
Tim has taken j.T. On the road
To introduce him
To moonshining's inner sanctum.
Alright.
I'll be there.
Alright,
We got to turn around.
But the trip
Took a detour
When tim's former
Partner in crime, tickle,
Was released from jail.
I'll be glad
To see the sun.
I ain't seen it
In a long time.
I know.
♪♪
So, since you don't have
Nothing to do,
Why don't you come
And help us out?
I know you just
Got out of jail today.
I'm just trying
To give you an opportunity.
Well, I tell you...
This way, you can
Still be in the business
But not being illegal.
I want to
Stay out of trouble.
I don't want to wind up
Back in jail.
Would it be easy for me to want
To go back out in the woods?
Yes.
But I can't.
I think we can
Make this work.
Yeah, y'all got to help
Each other now.
Still be able to make
Moonshine and stay out
Of trouble doing it?
Still make moonshine.
Well, j.T. Is real anxious
About starting his own recipe
And everything,
But I want him to slow down.
Making moonshine,
You can't rush.
You know, shining with tickle
Gonna slow him down
A little bit.
You can't get that knowledge
Out of a book.
You can't get that
Off the internet.
I like what he's doing
With j.T.,
But if he follows his dad,
He'll just be
A carbon copy of tim.
I believe the way
I can benefit him the most --
There's a million mistakes you
Can make while making moonshine,
And I've already
Made most of them.
But you got to come up
To culpeper.
I guess while y'all are
On y'all's road trip,
I'll be talking
To my p.O.
About leaving
And going to culpeper.
-yeah.
-all right.
Tickle is still
Under state supervision
And can't leave the county
Without permission.
I really care about tickle,
And tickle's a good guy,
But, you know,
He's let me down in the past.
If tickle messes this one up,
You know, it's gonna be me,
The brand, and my son, too.
I think that's the first time
I've ever seen anybody
Eat chicken tenders
With a knife and a fork.
You got to
Be proper.
♪♪
♪♪
We got everything
To mash in?
Yeah. Let's go
Check out a spring.
In louisiana's
Red river country,
Patti and david's season
Depends on their ability
To find clean springwater among
The area's abundant swamps.
I hope this
Thing's cleared up.
Daddy, we got
To get mashed in today.
I want to start
Making some money.
I'm getting impatient because
I'm getting a lot of calls
From down south wanting shine,
And I don't have anything made.
We ain't gonna
Be able to mash in today.
The father/daughter duo
Can't get up and running
Until the small spring
Runs clear.
Gravel's gonna filter out
The sand and stuff in it.
So david devised
A backwoods filtration system
That should provide them
With a constant flow.
Without clean water,
There's no moonshine.
This sure needs
To start working.
We're gonna start
Losing customers
If we don't
Start producing.
♪♪
Ha ha ha!
Looky there.
Pretty, ain't it?Yeah, it's pretty.
That's crystal-clear
Water there, buddy.
Good?
That's the best-tasting water
I've tasted in years.
Okay, let's mash in.Let's go.
Now you
A happy camper?
I'm happy now.
Now that they've secured
Their water source,
Patti and david
Can start executing
Their plan for the season.
We're gonna run two
Of our most popular moonshines
From last season,
Which was mayhaw and pear.
What I want to do
Is get just a big stockpile
Of 120 gallons
Of this premium shine
And then do one big haul
Down south
Just right on the gulf there.
We're gonna get $150 a gallon.
I don't want to be on the road
Back and forth,
Taking a chance
Of us getting caught.
There. Burn all the hair
Off your arm.
I ain't never hardly had
No hair on my arm.
Nothing but sugar water
And mayhaws.
They ought to make
Some good shine.
A mayhaw is kind of, like,
In a cherry, crab-apple family.
You don't find mayhaws, like,
In the mountains or anything.
It's usually
In the southern states.
Yes, ma'am.
Pretty color there,
Baby.
Now let's go back
And get the pears.
I'm getting
All those calls
From those gulf fishermen
Down south.
You know how those cajuns --
They like to drink.
♪♪
We're gonna be running
Pear and mayhaw.
There's no way we can do
One at a time,
Or we're gonna be
Working around the clock.
Well, I ain't gonna
Be in here 24/7, now.
Well, I don't want to,
Either.
If you don't,
You gonna lose money.
That's true on that.
At the end of the season
Last year, we were maxed out,
And we were worn out, too.
I mean, we were having to run
Around the clock.
If we get
Two stills going,
I think that's
Gonna open us up.
What about a thump keg?
We're gonna be running two
Different kinds of moonshine.
Just adding another still
Will help us out,
Get two stills going,
Double the money...
Half the time....Half the time.
You took the words
Right out of my mouth.
♪♪
This is kind of
A dishearted day.
Yep.
Yeah, we did.
You settled down?
A tiny bit.
Over in the volunteer state,
Mark, digger, and j.B. Rader
Are trying to recover
From a rookie mistake.
We know the manifold
Is the problem.
I'm gonna get it out of there,
Get it took apart,
And we'll get right into
Cleaning the hell out of it.
You know, we ruined
This delicious batch of liquor
By not paying attention
To what we're doing.
How about
That there, jacob b.?
After weeks of frustration
Building an oversized third pot
For their still,
They finally fired it up
But failed miserably.
No, no, no, no!
And ruined it.
It's that
Damn manifold.
Back to damn
Square one.
Flux is a substance that helps
Bond soldered metal seams.
Any flux residue in a still
Will foul the liquor.
In the hustle and bustle
Of this big, giant build
Getting mashed in
And ready to run,
We didn't clean the flux residue
Out of this manifold.
Well, I'm a-gettin'
Our ketchup opened up
To clean that behemoth
Over there.
Stand her up here, and I'll pour
A little of this...
It's nasty in there, boys....Cleaner gravy in there.
The best way to remove
Stubborn flux residue
Is with a simple mixture
Of salt, vinegar,
And good old-fashioned ketchup.
Just apply, then wipe away.
You can look
Right here
And see what this will do
To that canker.
That green stuff
Right there,
And just like this right here,
It's all over the inside.
You give that ketchup
A few minutes,
It'll make that look
Like a brand-new penny.
♪♪
You can bet
Your bottom dollar
We won't forget to clean it
Again, will we, j.B.?
Hell no.
After we leave this
On here
Four or five minutes,
You can look.
It makes that copper
Shiny as new.
We got to make our
Second attempt at this run
To make good liquor this time.
We've got our mash
Ready to run.
We're gonna scrub the hell
Out of this rascal.
We've got to make
This next run work.
We fail again,
Then our season's lost.
Coming up...
I'm gonna take you
For a trip.
...Blind faith in virginia...
If he takes off,
We have no idea where we are.
...And the pressure is on
In louisiana.
You think that thing's
Gonna blow?
♪♪
In graham county,
North carolina,
Lance is on the road
To redemption.
First leg of the journey --
Mash in and make up
For the batch that he wasted.
So, at the beginning
Of the season,
You kind of have to get back
In the swing of things,
And dad told me "No more
Hiccups, no more mistakes,"
And I've not found
My rhythm yet.
It seems like
This season's fighting me
A lot harder than
Any other season I been through,
So I can't fail again.
Jeff and lance stumbled
Out of the gate this season
When lance failed to properly
Protect their mash barrels.
The cost of lance's blunder --
100 gallons of mash
And his father's
Hard-earned trust.
Kind of up
Against the gun here.
We gotto get
Some liquor flowing.
Now lance needs
To make things right
To get back
In his father's good graces.
That's the way malt corn's
Supposed to look, right there.
Stone-ground malt corn
That's been germinated,
Dried, and finely ground
Contains natural yeast.
Got to make sure
I ain't got no clumps.
If we add the malt corn
Too fast,
You just get big clumps,
And it's hard to bust up.
Grain and sugar, the staple
Ingredients of moonshine,
Have not always been
Readily available.
During world war ii,
National stores of sugar, corn,
And other grains
Were sent to the front lines
To feed the allied troops.
When the raw materials
Were no longer available,
The price of moonshine
Skyrocketed.
Opportunistic shiners
Began to make liquor
From previously discarded items,
Such as pea shells,
Beet stalks, and turnip greens.
Those talented enough
To produce quality hooch
During the lean times
Could ask up to $40 per gallon,
The equivalent
Of nearly $700 today.
Yeah, this is something
I really can't fail at.
I need to redeem myself
With dad.
♪♪
It should be done
In about seven days.
Get this business going again.
♪♪
♪♪
Yep.
I'm kind of glad we're doing
Just another 30-gallon.
You get them big stills,
They hard to handle sometime.
Down on the bayou,
Patti and david
Need to build another still
If they want to hit
Their season goal.
Ugh!
Dang it, boy,
It's burning!
♪♪
Now what?
Daddy, he's always been the type
Where he just does his thing,
And I have to just learn
By watching.
Alright, that was good
Right there.
When he's working, best for me
Really just to be quiet,
Because I'm not gonna get
No response from him.
When patti's around me, she
Worries about things too much.
I don't like to be
Rushed on nothing.
It's kind of hard
To build a still.
Not just everybody can do it.
It looks good.
I think
That's got it.
Go find a thumper?
I've got an idea.
I'll be back.
Is that a threat
Or a promise?
A threat!
♪♪
Beer keg?
Phew.
It's heavy, daddy.
What you think?
Think that'll work?
It's really the perfect size
To make a thumper out of.
Moonshining,
You try to do something
The cheapest way you can.
I think it's gonna do
A good job.
Patti, she used
That old brain again.
Now, how you gonna get
The beer out there?
I don't have
To empty this.
Smells like we having
A keg party in here.
If the new still and thump keg
Function properly,
Patti and david
Should be able to run
60 gallons of mash at a time.
Let me see it.
Ow! *bleep*
That's hot!
Darn right it's hot.Well, how are you holding it?
I'm down here.
Crazy.
Perfect.That's it right there.
Final touch --
Put the valve on.
That's it.
I guess tomorrow now, we'll get
This hauled into the site.
Ow! Gosh!
Why you got to be
So mean?
♪♪
Man, this road's getting
Mighty dark up in here.
How much farther up this road
We got to go to?
I don't know. I haven't been
Up here in so many years.
See, if you start
Seeing a mailbox,
You know we
Getting close.
In southern virginia,
Tim and j.T.
Are back on the road,
Searching for the true heart
Of outlaw moonshine.
Yeah, that'll be it
Right in there somewhere.
Listen.
I hear something.
Rodney brown.
Alright,
Let's see.
There's a whole lot about
Rodney brown you don't know.
Rodney brown's probably
The biggest moonshining bootleg
In franklin county.
I didn't say anything to j.T.,
But rodney is blind.
Oh, yeah,
I hear some music.
Yeah.
They got, like,
A whole band up in there.
-hey!
-hey, rodney!
Hey!
Who is that?
Hey!
That sound like tim.
It istim.
Oh, man.
Who's that with you
Right there -- j.T.?
Man, I ain't seen you
Since you was a little kid.
What are y'all doing
In this neck of the woods, man?
Oh, we was
Riding around.
Riding around?Yeah, riding around.
-right on.
-yeah.
Are you thirsty?
Well, yeah,
We thirsty.
That's probably about
Why we come to see you.
oh!
Well,
I tell you what now,
You come
To the right place.
-you know that.
-yeah.
And he says, "Well, hell,
He's in there playing music."
I said, "Well, there's
A whole lot of things
You don't know about
Rodney brown."
Exactly true.
They call me the ghost
Of franklin county, man.
That's it.
That's it.
Rodney is not
Handicapped whatsoever,
Which I hope
Just stands out for j.T.
Because rodney don't give up.
He uses all those senses
That normally we don't use.
He's feeling it.
He's smelling it.
It's like a sense.
It's like superpowers here.
Y'all want to go down
And take a little taste?
Where we got to go?
Well, the bog
Is back there.
We got to go just
Right down in the woods.
Down in the woods?
Blind man gonna take us
Down in the woods?
I don't see nothing good
Coming out of this.
Bit like the blind
Leading the blind, ain't it?
Oh, we gonna follow
Rodney brown,
Biggest moonshining bootleg
In franklin county.
Well, I hope he knows
Where he's going.
What you doing?
You got us some lanterns?
Yes, sir.
I got you light.
Y'all take these things.
I don't need them.
Yeah, there you go.
Y'all, I'm gonna
Take you for a trip.
You're gonna have
To keep up with me, man.
Trying to follow rodney
Through the woods,
And he's negotiating around
Just like he's got
Night-vision goggles on.
If he takes off,
We have no idea where were are.
I got a lantern,
And I can't see where I'm going.
Where we going
Here, man?
Coming up,
In north carolina,
It's every shiner
For himself.
Y'all take these things.
I don't need them.
Yeah, there you go.
Alright.
Back in virginia,
Tim and j.T.'s quest for a taste
Of franklin county's best
Has them following
A blind man into the darkness.
I don't know how you know how
To get through here.
Be careful over here.
There's a tree right there.
Yeah, that's a tree
Right there.
And there's one
Right here.
Yeah.You know where I'm at.
There's some
Back through here.
Here's your path
Right here.
And so we just go up
This way right here.
-over here.
-okay.
Alright,
Come on around.
On up here. Right here
At this tree right here.
-what tree?
-right there.
-this one.
-this tree?
This tree
Right here.
Oh, that tree
Down there.
that one right here.
Y'all want to take
A little taste of it?
Yeah.
Now, this right here
Is some rye.
It's about a year old.
Mmm. It smells good.
That's some good corn liquor
Right there.
-oh, yeah.
-yes, sir.
That's some
Rodney brown liquor.
Yeah, that's right.
That's right.
It's smooth.
Oh, that's got
A nice taste.
Making moonshine,
Most people can't even do it
With a perfect set of eyes.
It's just so amazing that
He's able to do this blind.
♪♪
That's some...It even smellssmooth.
'cause it's
Made right.
Oh, yeah.
And it takes time
To make good liquor.
I been trying to tell j.T.
That for a long time.
I keep telling him
He got to slow down.
You ever heard that song
"Simple man" by lynyrd skynyrd?
"Take your time.
Don't live too fast.
Troubles come,
Then they pass."
That's the way
Moonshine is
If you don't
Get anxious.
Learn all you can.Alright.
And do all you can
And watch the feds.
Rodney brown is a moonshiner,
And I'm talking about
He makes goodmoonshine,
And this is what's
So special about him,
Because he doesn't
Let anything stop him.
Just grab the world
By its tail, you know?
Just go ahead and swing it.
Make it happen, you know?
And j.T., I think,
Was absorbing that.
That's a legend
Right there.
I mean, that's a legend
Right there.
He just keeps on going.
♪♪
♪♪
Them horseflies
Are terrible this year.
Oh, I know it.
Let's see where we're
Gonna set this other
Still real quick.
Deep in the wetlands
Of northern louisiana,
Patti and david are making
Their first tandem run
Of mayhaw and pear moonshines.
Us running this new still, we
Got this beer keg as a thumper.
It's adding a lot of stress
Because we've never ran
Nothing like this before.
I'm worried that
It's not gonna work.
When you're running
Any kind of fruit mash,
You got to be real careful,
'cause it's not like corn.
You can let it sit
There two or three days.
But with fruit, you need
To get it done right then.
That's good stuff.
It's ready.
Check this mayhaw,
See if it's ready.
That's good.
It's ready, too.
I love a taste of that.
Yeah, it's ready.
♪♪
Got mine lit.
Got them both running.
Now we'll see how they do.
Kind of like
This idea.
You have your still,
And I have mine.
Hey!
Unh-unh, buddy!
You've got
Your own still!
Stealing my junk.
This is mystill,
And that's yours.
Yep, mine's getting
Warm right here.
Oh! I'm running.
Smells like mayhaw.
You smell it?
Yep.
Dump these heads out
Real quick.
Put some cheesecloth
Down here
And put some mayhaws
In it.
When that liquor run
Through the mayhaw,
Maybe it'll give it
A more mayhaw taste.
This stuff smells good,
Don't it, daddy?
Want to try it?
You think that thing's
Gonna blow?
No, it ain't
Gonna blow.
Well,
It's making a noise.
I don't like
That thing, daddy.
Oh, yeah.
It good?
Good high-proof, too.Heck yeah
That thumper's working,
Ain't it?
Yeah, it's holding
In there.
I wonder what kind of proof
It's starting off at.
140 proof.
Right on the dot, too.
That's just how
I like my shine.
♪♪
Hoo!
It is140 proof.
That's some
Good stuff, though.
When you run your first shine
Of the season,
You're always wanting
To get that taste,
And that first drink
Of the mayhaw was wonderful.
That's my last one
Right there.
Mm-hmm.
Mine, too.
Boy, that mayhaw
Tastes good. Taste that.
Patti and david's first
Successful run of the season
Yielded a total of 6 gallons
Of mayhaw and pear moonshines,
Worth $900.
Well, that still
Did good.
Oh, yeah,
It done good.
Aw! That's the only
Time I get a hug
Is out in the woods.
♪♪
It's the moment of truth
In north carolina.
Let's see what
It looks like.
The mash is fermented
And ready to run.
I'm feeling a lot more
Pressure on me now,
Which is gonna make sure that
I get this season going right.
Worry about the right corn,
The right sugars.
I want to make sure
That we don't fail again.
Man, I believe
That's ready.
With all the setbacks
We've had,
I want to run this tonight,
Get it done.
That way, we've got finished,
Ready-to-go product.
It's extremely tough running
Liquor all night like this,
But I'm gonna make sure
I get everything right
From this point on.
Oh, perfect.
I'm ready to go.
Big whoosh.
Now it's just
A big waiting game.
This right here is
The best office in the world.
♪♪
Yeah, I hope that having
A successful run
Is really gonna show dad
That I can handle myself,
And it's real important for me
To earn his respect back
And to get him
To where he trusts me again.
Not so long ago now,
I would've been hammered
By this point.
I really like to sample
My own product.
I took it to excess.
That's why
I don't drink anymore.
When I quit drinking,
That give me the drive
To making sure that you have
A way of making a living.
There's not many opportunities
For somebody
Dropped out of high school.
It's real important for me
To be a moonshiner
'cause this is how
I take care of our family.
Coming up...
Talking about somebody
Was putting out
2,000 or 3,000
Gallons a week.
Looking for a legend...
Is that him
Down there?
Looking for amos law.
♪♪
♪♪
Under the carolina moonlight,
Lance is well into
His first run of the season.
I believe that got it.
Oh, we're hot
Into our thump keg.
We will have alcohol
Anytime now.
I'm gonna go ahead
And dial my heat back,
Make sure that I don't scorch
The bottom of it.
Oh, yeah.
We got alcohol.
♪♪
That's good-smelling alcohol.
♪♪
This is the alcohol
That everybody's asking for.
It's getting us back on track
To where we need to be,
So I'm tickled to death
That it's running.
That jar is full.
That's mighty good liquor.
Ooh!
I got a long night ahead of me,
But that sure makes it worth it
Right there.
♪♪
Ugh.
Are you tired
This morning?
I'm tired.
I hope you're
Well-rested.
I'm pretty-good
Rested.
♪♪
Well, what do you think?
Well, thank you.
Same right back
To you.
Our customers
Is coming back.
That was a huge weight
Off my shoulders
When he told me that
That was good liquor --
Made it all worth it
Right there,
Staying out here all night.
When the run is finished,
They'll have
$500 worth of corn liquor,
But the bigger payoff for lance
Is regaining his father's trust.
Lance, we got to go
Get us a load of sugar
And get this mash
Back a-workin'.
Not before I get
Some sleep, we ain't.
Yeah.
♪♪
♪♪
That one there
Smelling right?
Cap on this one.
This one's ready to run.
J.B., what's that
Taste like to you?
Like it needs
A waffle dipped in it.
Yep.
In the smoky mountains,
Mark, digger, and j.B.
Are ready to distill
The vanilla-maple mash
That remained when they cut
Their last attempt short.
This is our second attempt
On this three-pot still.
So far, we've not got
A drinkable drop out of it.
Now you go.
Hold up.There we go.
It don't have to be
Perfect straight.
It's gonna pump steam
Either way.
We're ready to fire
These sumbitches up.
okay.
You want to be
That close, or you...
Oh, it's okay,
I think.
It's blowing itself out.
It's gonna blow the side
Out of that thing.
Moonshining will either
Teach you patience
Or it'll rid you of any
That you did have.
I believe
It's burning now!
- I don't want to fail anymore.
- Everything stems on this run.
It's gonna be success
Or failure from this point on.
Suck it up, buttercup.
Be positive.
♪♪
Ol' big sloppy,
She's settling herself in.
Yep.
We need to be
On the lookout for leaks.
- We've cleaned the manifold.
- We've tweaked the burners.
We've did everything
That we know to do
To make this a successful run.
I can feel the heat
Right up here.
Told you it was
A-thumpin'.
Any minute now,
We ought to get it.
Yeah, was that
A drop or two I seen?
Yeah, the condenser arm
Is getting hot, too.
Looky here.
Looky here.
Damn. Look there.
What a stream.
As hot as that thing was,
I knew we was gonna have liquor.
You better get you
A catch jug there.
Yes, I should.
Let me put this little filter
Down in there,
And we cram it full
Of white-oak charcoal,
And then they absorb
Fusel oil.
It gives your liquor
A nice, smooth flavor.
It's high-octane pudding
Right there.
God, it's way too high-proof
To drink right now.
We're in the high-shot stages,
And it's too fiery
To tell about any flavor profile
At this point.
It's gonna be
Five minutes a jug.
-ready?
-yep.
Now we're getting back
On there again.
There we go.
I'm just anxious to run down
About 30, 40 jugs
Before we can get the middlings.
We'll see if all these flavors
Carried through.
Well, boys, we got
A long night's work ahead of us.
Because the different types
Of alcohol
And chemical compounds
In mash
Cook off
At different temperatures,
A run goes through
Distinct phases,
Which moonshiners
Refer to as cuts.
On a 10-gallon distillation run,
The first vapors to boil off
Are called the foreshots,
Which contain poisonous methanol
And is discarded.
The next 12 or so ounces to
Boil off are called the heads,
Which contain
Harsh-tasting aldehydes.
These are also discarded.
The next cut
Is called the hearts.
The hearts are pure ethanol.
They taste smooth, rich,
And are the part reserved
For drinking.
The end of the run,
Also known as tails,
Are low in alcohol
And contain water
And other by-products,
Like fusel oils.
These are bitter-tasting
And cannot be sold as moonshine.
♪♪
That's running us to death.
We're about 80.
Let's taste
Some of it.
Since our first run was
So miserably unsuccessful,
This whole three-pot system,
We don't know
If we did it right or not.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
This'll just make or break
Our season
And maybe our damn careers.
My future
In the liquor business,
It lays right here.
♪♪
Son of a bitch.
That's real nice.
It's pretty warm
Under here, though.
Yeah, I'd say it is.
Moment of truth
Here, boys.
This'll just make or break
Our season
And maybe our damn careers.
Back in tennessee,
The fate of mark, digger,
And j.B.'s entire season
Rests in a single jug.
♪♪
Son of a bitch.
♪♪
I can take that
A couple of different ways.
Yeah. Probably can.
♪♪
That "Son of a bitch"
Means...
Looks like I'm gonna
Come back to work.
You scared the hell
Out of me.
Taste the liquor in your mouth,
And then that maple syrup,
It's kind of like
3:00 in the morning
At the waffle house,
Ain't it?
Sassy,
Yet unpretentious.
Nutty,
But not overpowering.
Tickles the olfactory.
Yeah, it does.
It's the palate.
Yeah, it did.
You're so
Full of *bleep*.
This successful run,
It's kind of turned a corner
For me, if you will.
We're back in the wheelhouse,
And we're ready to go forward
And make a lot
Of liquor right now.
Boys, I believe we're onto
A little something here.
I'm gonna
Tell you what, cuz.
We ain't gonna make
Any corn liquor this year.
We're gonna
Stick to this.
Well,
We got to see what
John q. Liquor-buyer public
Thinks about it.
We can't
Sell this cheap.
This batch
Of vanilla-maple moonshine
Will net them $12,000.
I'm back
In my game, baby.
-yes!
-whoo!
Pow!
I'm gonna tell you,
I'm gonna sleep
Like a naked baby
Tonight.
Give me love.
We've been rejuvenated,
And, hell,
We're ready to go hell west
And crooked forward
Into this season,
And we gonna make
A lot of liquor.
J.B. Rader,
I'm glad to have you
Back in this game, brother.
You look like a damn
Ostrich with polio.
♪♪
I like when you drive.
I can look around.
When idrive and look around,
I run off the road.
In the commonwealth of virginia,
Tim and j.T.'s journey
Continues.
It's a trip that tim hopes
Will inspire his son,
As well as reveal
His own outlaw past.
Want to go back up there
In franklin county mountain,
This is where
We're gonna go.
You in the moonshine capital
Of the whole world here.
Go in this neck of the woods,
It's always somebody around here
That knows something
About moonshine.
Back in the day when
I was doing this illegally,
J.T. Was too young,
And he couldn't
Really understand,
You know, and right now,
All he knows is the legal way,
But I want him to get
The feel of what it was like.
♪♪
You got somebody else in mind
That we gonna go see?
One of the biggest kingpins
Probably on the east coast.
Him and your papa, my dad,
They pulled time in richmond.
Back then,
You got some serious time,
And you got federal time.
It wasn't like today, just going
Into the local jail.
You was going "Down the road,"
Is what they called it.
Now j.T.'s gonna get
To meet this guy
That was working
With my dad back in the day.
He would have five or six
Different teams set up.
Talking about somebody
That was putting out
2,000 or 3,000
Gallons a week.
We can't even do that
At the legal distillery
In culpeper.
Nope.
Amos law,
One of the most legendary,
Most famous moonshiners
In all of franklin county --
Maybe even the whole
United states --
Controlling millions of dollars.
He was the big al capone
Of moonshining.
These were really rough guys
Back in the day.
Some of them died,
Some of them got shot,
And amos survived.
Right down this road.
It's right in here
Somewhere in this cornfield.
You know you
In moonshine country
When you's got corn
On both sides of the road.
I only met him
One time.
I was a little kid
When I met him then.
He might not
Even know who I am.
We are taking
A little bit of risk,
And this is why we decided
To go in the daytime.
I don't want him to, like,
Pull out the gun or nothing.
Better be careful
Of somebody coming
Around that curve,
Because we don't want
To get trapped.
Yeah, just stop
Right here.
I'd say so.
I ain't seen him
In 45 years.
Looking for
Amos law.
Next time on "Moonshiners"...
Boy, have I got
A surprise for you.
...The scientific method
In tennessee.
If that gadget right there
Helps our liquor production,
I'll be the first one
To pat you on the back.
Left high and dry
On the blue ridge...
Maybe you might come
And help me a little bit.
Yeah.
I just, I been busy.
If we gonna make
A 1,200-gallon goal,
Mike is gonna have
To be here to help me.
Ugh.
It's good for production
To have high-proof.
And the heat is on in kentucky.
Wow.