Why do people still moonshine?

[MrSchulz]

I've been digging an old trash dump and im down in the late 1800's pulling some nice complete moonshine/whiskey jugs. I decided to start watching the discovery channels show "Moonshiners" and recorded it on my DVR. After going to the emergency chiropractor this afternoon after my back was so tense I could not move, I asked him about it and he had no idea either. (his family did in the 20's) So after the painful adjustment, I came home to relax and buy and sell history on Feebay. Anyway off my rant and back to the question, I have no idea other than maybe its cheaper than name brand alcohol? Ideas?

 

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[junkless]

I'm new here but plan on participating more frequently.

The moonshine question is something I've wondered also. I would actually like to try distilling my own whiskey and aging it properly. I know this is illegal however so I'll have to rethink my approach. My reasoning is I'd like the challenge, get to build a still, love making stuff from scratch, and I LOVE whiskey. I gotta imagine that it is only slightly profitable considering the ability to purchase a cheap enough booze legally.

 

[Terry Soloman]

Same reason people grow and sell marijuana - money.

 

[Jeffro]

Money is one reason yes...... another reason is doing something you're not supposed to do. "Stickin' it to The Man".

 

[kuger]

...also there is something about doin it yourself.I make wine cause my grandad did,and his grand dad did,I dont drink it,but enjoy making it.I make all kinds of Jerky...can buy it,dont sell it,but take pride in it.I put up wax peppers,olives,pick wild musrooms etc.....heritage pride thing

 

[Red James Cash]

Its not illegal Junkless until you start mass producing and selling it.I think youre allowed to make 8 gallons.As for the question some of it may have to do with making money,but, I think most of it has to do with people not liking how to be told how to live their lives.Being told what to do has become a constant now a days.I dont like it and i dont accept it.They probably dont either.

 

[releventchair]

Done right its an art. For some it is heritage. For others its a way to do people wrong with improper methods.
Nice find on the jugs. mine for wine making and bottling are second hand. During prohibition established businesses were supposed to break discarded bottles,you may have seen raised lettering saying federal law prohibits sale or reuse of this bottle on some?. Wonder if that had a hand in mason jars being used?.

 

[truckinbutch]

Don't pay a lot of attention to 'reality tv'. A lot of'whiskey' is made for sellin . There's a sizable profit margin in this method of making that depends on volume of a questionable (healthwise) product .
> There is a smaller profit margin for the craftsman that cooks a product that's made for drinkin .
> The risks are the same for both producers if they get caught selling as little as a quart .
>
>My Mother's family were all quite involved in the manufacture of illegal spirits . My Grandfather had a general store in VA in the days when sugar and Mason jar purchases had to be accounted for in a register book . He signed all such purchases out to families that voted for the political party that he opposed . He opened his store 2 hours before daybreak and closed it at dark with no reservations .
> He would , however , get up in the middle of the night to pump a tank full of Texaco high test into 14 year old Curtis Turner's car if he was transporting . That was a courtesy reserved for family .................

 

[Tnmountains]

It is against the law to distill any whiskey. You can make all the wine and beer you want that is just fermenting. You have to have a lisc to distill. People do it because it is good whiskey and it has been done forever. Go the the brewers forum or youtube and they show you how it is done. Prohibition was a good reason to make it. But it is not legal to make in any quantity.

 

[Hoppus]

Its not illegal Junkless until you start mass producing and selling it.I think youre allowed to make 8 gallons.As for the question some of it may have to do with making money,but, I think most of it has to do with people not liking how to be told how to live their lives.Being told what to do has become a constant now a days.I dont like it and i dont accept it.They probably dont either.

It is in fact illegal to distill any spirits without a license and illegal to posses any illegally distilled spirits as Tnmountains mentioned. Moral of the story - don't make it in mass quantities and don't get caught.

 

[Mackaydon]

Another reason: It's ready to drink the moment it reaches room temperature; no years in the barrel required.
Don.........

 

[dmaki1988]

to make money and make a living, prolly 80 to 90 percent of moonshines been doing it all there life's as did past family members.

 

[Lakemonster]

Some shiners actually are out there to make a quality product. Consider that unless you buy Everclear, the alcohol content of hard alcohol is 40%. Moonshine can get up to 99% alcohol. A little goes a long ways.

Good moonshine that wont leave your head pounding is harder to find. Lots of guys use coarse meal or "chops" and will run and bottle the first two fermentations off of that corn. A shiner that wants quality product will malt whole grain corn for fermenting and not bottle the first two runs as they are nothing but "skull pop", containing high levels of propanols and methanols.

There are and have been some jackasses out there using lead core radiators for condensers. There are huge differences between the "Profit only" guys and the Craftsmen of a great American practice.

 

[woof!]

I composed a long essay on this subject, copied it for F'assbook, it posted there but not here where I created it. Meanwhile F's buttbook (unblessed be its name) has deprived me of the copy function.

The world is what is . The war against the public is succeeding, whether the official line be pro-public or not.

 

[Frankn]

Well, it's been over 20 years so I can talk about it. Back in the 50's I drove what was called a tanker. As I remember it was a '53 Mercury. It had a small gas tank in the trunk and a big tank for the whiskey where the gas tank use to be. I picked it up at a parking lot in VA and drove to a street location in Baltimore. I then locked the keys inside and left. My payment was in the glove compartment. From what I understand, it went to some bars on "the block" in Balto. I never knew who owned the car or whiskey and that suited me fine. The closest I came to getting caught was when I had a flat and a State Trooper stopped and ask if I needed help changing the tire. Times have changed, even the troopers. I was a little daring in my youth, something I outgrew. Frank

 

[junkless]

Pretty sure all home distilled spirits are illegal in Wisconsin. You can distill "essence" but that's not intended for drinking.
still might try my hand at it on very small scale just to say I can do it. Of course it would be only for the "essence" of mash. Totally wouldn't drink it, nope not me!

 

[Frankn]

I am fairly sure I read an article that said you could distill whiskey in a small amount, but only for your own consumption. I have even seen ads for stills. My Brother-in-law use to drive up to PA to pick up two types of grapes, Concord and big white ones. He would ferment the crushed mixture and put it in jugs and let it sit with canvas on each jug. When the swarm of millions of nats departed, it was ready to distill. It made very good wine before distilling and very good brandy after distilling.
Frank

 

[lost]

I grew up in the south. ETN to be exact. In the 40's and into the 60's any local knew where to buy the safe/best moonshine and where to avoid the battery acid type. There were folks down there who would pass up a $100 dollar store bought bottle of legit liquor in favor of a quart jar of good local shine. Can't say I drank a lot of it but I did have a few tastes. Never could acquire a liking to any alcohol beverage. Not even beer or wine. I MD'ed an old Moonshine site once with visions of buried silver dollars running through my mind. What I found was "junk" metal. Pure junk. Not even a lousy penny or tool of any sort. Land owner said it had never been detected. I believe him based on the junk metal.

 

[YoungBlood]

I live in WV the state nobody knows about. Just about everyone wether they admit it or not has made or bought White Lighting. I think this is why we do it.
money, not suppose to, tradition, tastes good, more potent, self reliant, and because we can.

 

[GaRebel1861]

Ain't nothing wrong with a little moonshine now and again. Best I know of comes from the North Georgia Mountains.