The name moonshine was taken from the term “moonlighter”, used by the English to describe the nighttime runners that smuggled brandy from France. Read more about the history of moonshine, and learn about how it’s made.
Moonshine is a common term for home distilled alcohol; especially in places were the production is illegal.
The illegal production of moonshine is usually associated with the Southern United States and Appalachia.
Since my grandparents had a farm in the Appalachian Mountain Range, I am familiar with the making of moonshine. Not that I ever made any, I was just a child in the 1960’s, but I had kinfolks (as we call them in the south) who did make it.
Now, I am not telling anyone to make moonshine. It is illegal and dangerous. Sloppily produced moonshine can be contaminated with toxins, mainly from the materials used in the construction of the still. Some folks use old car radiators for a condenser in their stills. The lead used to solder radiators and in some cases the glycol products from antifreeze are poisonous and potentially deadly. My family had a friend that was in a coma and suffered kidney damage after drinking contaminated moonshine. Thankfully, he lived but it could have easily gone the other direction.
Moonshine is made from fermented corn mash distilled in a cooker. The name moonshine was taken from the term “moonlighter” used by the English to describe the nighttime runners that smuggled brandy from France. After World War I, the agricultural prices dropped so during Prohibition, many American farmers turned to making moonshine as a way to support their families.
Cosby, Tennessee was known as the “Moonshine Capital of the World”. In the 1960’s it was claimed there were over 200 stills operating on any given day, each averaging 20 gallons a day. It was also locally claimed that they ran moonshine to Atlanta, Knoxville, Chattanooga and Asheville, as well as some unnamed northern cities.
The first thing you need before you can make moonshine is a still. A typical mountain still uses a ston