A Moonshine Still Can Have Many Different Uses

By Donna Bell


People who love to drink coffee and tea will often get excited trying new varieties of beans and leaves. They have their own coffee grinders and loose tea strainers. Individuals who enjoy the taste of wine and beer sometimes get intrigued about making their own alcoholic beverages, bottling and labeling them, and sharing them with adult family and friends. They might even go a step farther and want to try their hands at distilling whiskey in a moonshine still.

For some, moonshine connotes hillbillies in the mountains brewing their illegal beverage in homemade stills. In fact, the product came to the forefront of society when Prohibition laws went into effect in the nineteen twenties. Once Congress passed legislation banning the sale and consumption of liquor, bootleggers went into action. They knew there would be a huge market for the illegal substance. Also known as hooch, white lightning, and shine, the outlawed drink eventually became a source of great wealth for some famous Americans.

Today, purchasing stills is becoming more mainstream than ever. You can find them for sale online either new or used. Even the most popular auction websites have bidding going on for the equipment all the time. You can choose plans or kits if you want to make one yourself. The actual stills are not extremely expensive. They seem to range from three hundred to seven hundred dollars for a small one.

You don't even have to be interested in making alcohol to be intrigued by the equipment. Most are made of copper, and the best are nothing short of works of art. Many people shop for antique stills to decorate rooms in their homes. They are certainly great conversation pieces.

Individuals interested in producing moonshine usually do some research, end up knowing something about the liquor, and try to impress their drinking buddies with interesting facts. They may explain that it became popular with rural Americans because it was cheap and easy to make. Most of the ingredients needed they already had on the farm, like corn and hog feed mash. It was also potent, about one hundred sixty proof when ready to drink.

The connection between NASCAR and "hooch" is real. During the early years of the twentieth century, moonshiners outran the law in cars that were designed for speed. At some point, it was decided that it would be fun to run these cars on tracks and sell tickets to the public. This was the birth of stock car racing.

The biggest question about this activity concerns the legality of it. The fact is that, in most states, it not legal to produce moonshine for personal consumption. In certain states, the commercial production of this whiskey is permitted, but only after purchasing all applicable licenses. The government can raid the homes of private citizens suspected of illegal activity and confiscate all equipment it finds.

Making alcohol for personal use can be a really fun hobby. If you decide to venture into the world of moonshine production, just be careful the "revenuers" don't find out.




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