[narrator] This time, on Moonshiners...
[Mark] My last run, for awhile anyway.
Make it last. Think about baseball.
[Mark laughs]
I'm hearing a helicopter. You want to go to jail?
I don't want to go to jail, ever.
[helicopter hovering]
[Danielle] Howdy!
-[Henry] Danielle! -Henry!
She's Dolly Parton's niece, and she's a self-made woman.
I have my own distillery, so I really want to learn
the authentic ways of moonshining.
-I can make it into a hot tub. -Hot tub.
-[Kenny] I used to have one on my back porch. -How many ladies did it hold?
-Quite a few. -[Danielle laughs]
Yeah, right.
[Richard] They're going in the barn.
[Craig] ...on those buckets.
Jerry's coming back.
[Richard] Oh, we got them, Craig.
-We found their stash spot. -We found their stash spot.
[Jerry] What you sippin' on, there?
Pawpaw liquor, brother.
These are all the same flavors
that we've done this season alone.
[Mike] They're just tweaking it a little bit, ain't they.
That's just too dad-gum fishy.
It's almost like they're reading our recipe book.
[Mike] There's gonna be hell to pay.
[man] This is how we make the moonshine!
If it wasn't for Kelly's cheap sugar, Puss,
and the fact we're using up the last of that cheap grain,
you know, we couldn't do this.
Uh-uh.
-There's no way. -Couldn't do it anyway if it wasn't for you and Beaz.
Well, we're gonna do whatever it takes
to give you a grand send-off.
I tell you, I'm pretty melancholy about it.
[Digger] Well, then, I wouldn't do it.
[chuckles]
Well, I ain't that melancholy about it.
Then I'd do it.
[Mark chuckles]
[narrator] In the hills of eastern Tennessee,
after receiving a direct threat
from Detective Robertson...
I'm gonna put you-un's ass in jail, I'm telling you.
[narrator] ...Mark has no choice but to lay low
until the heat dies down,
but to keep longtime customers happy,
he's risking one more run
to make whiskey they can distribute
at $10 a quart.
Liquor's not been $10 a jar since the '90s.
When I say "this $10 jar,"
I'm talking just our basic corn liquor,
simple as it gets.
We have some cheap corn still leftover.
[Digger] Corn. Look at that good, coarse, grit grind.
[Mark] We have the cheap sugar,
so I want to give back to my loyal customers.
There's been people have stuck with us for years,
and, uh, you know,
why shouldn't they enjoy a $10 jar of liquor?
We need 300 pounds for each tote,
and we're gonna do two totes,
so we gotta do 600 pounds of sugar.
Yeah.
There's still a few dollars in a $10 jar.
[chuckling] Not many, maybe one,
but the more you make, you save money in volume,
so in order to make this work, we've gotta have big stills.
[Digger] Well, you know, Hattie,
Beaz is a pretty good replacement,
but me and him,
we ain't got the rapport that me and you do.
Aw, hell. How can you not have rapport with him?
The upside is
he ain't got a target on his back.
[chuckling] There's that.
-So... -As he says, [imitating] "There's that."
Soccer mom.
Gentlemen!
[Digger] Blister!
Hey. "Blister," what's that about?
You show up every time the work's done.
[laughs]
-You ain't no dummy, are you. -Yeah, he's a genius. Your friend's a genius.
[Mark] Well, this is what I've got in mind.
The sugar is basically free,
and this will eat up the last of our cheap corn.
Big run, a big volume,
and then, that enables us to sell it for $10,
but one other thing here, Killer.
[Killer Beaz] Needs doing?
-It needs doing... -[Killer Beaz] Well, let me know.
...and you're gonna have to be the one that does it.
I can't, because of the law situation.
Okay.
[Mark] In order for us to make this big run,
we gotta get the stills to the new still site.
David Robertson's made it extremely clear
that he's gunning for me.
So, you want Big Sloppy moved?
And one of the Twins.
-[Killer Beaz] One of the Twins. -One of the Twins.
We just don't feel safe in doing it,
but Killer is a full partner now.
Then, the one still that's in the shed.
-You know where it's at. -[Killer Beaz] Mmm-hmm.
Uh, there's only one site that has to be broken down.
That's a lot to do. [chuckles]
-[Mark] It is. -That is a lot of--
It's not that much. Me and him done it a bunch.
I'm sitting there picturing that still site,
that's over a trip.
Probably three trips, realistically.
Do you have a time reference?
I can't get all that done today.
Well, soon.
[Digger] You get going, you'll get it done
in a quick fashion.
Gotcha. Gotcha.
-Bob's your uncle. -Bob's your uncle.
All right.
[both chuckle]
-[Henry] It's bent good, whoever bent it, isn't it? -[Kenny] I know it.
-It's a clean bend, man. -Bent it down good.
[horn honking]
This must be my girl.
Danielle!
Henry!
[Henry] You did make it, didn't you.
I did. How are you doing?
[Henry] You're right on time.
[Danielle] Right on time?
-[Henry] Good seeing you again. -[Danielle] Good to see you.
-[Henry] Oh, it's been awhile. -It has been awhile.
I met Danielle Parton down in Tennessee.
She's Dolly Parton's niece.
We were judges at Master Distiller.
It's got that little bite.
It's the internal hug I was needing. [laughs]
I mean, this girl has done
a lot of stuff in her lifetime.
Kenny, how are you doing?
I have my own distillery,
so I don't distill in the woods,
but I come from a long line of moonshining,
so I really want to learn the authentic ways
of running this liquor.
I didn't get to learn
from my grandfathers, or my great grandfathers.
They're not around to teach me
what to do, what not to do,
so I want to fill in the gaps of what I don't know.
What you been up to?
-Submarining, you know that. -Just submarining.
Submarining. We love those submarines.
[chuckling] That's awesome.
I was so fascinated with his submarine stills,
'cause it's so different from everything
that I have ever seen or worked with myself.
Best thing to do is for you to actually see one.
[Danielle] I would love to.
[Henry] We'll show you.
[Danielle] Arguably, nobody knows
more about it than they do,
so I just bugged him to death,
and he finally agreed to let me come up.
[engine starts]
[Henry] Do you realize
we've never taken a woman to one of our still sites?
-Never. -[Danielle] No wonder you've been arrested.
-[all chuckling] -[Kenny] Man!
Danielle, I'm gonna take you over here to a spot
we made liquor years and years ago.
[Danielle] Oh, good.
It's so refreshing to get someone like Danielle
that comes in here
and she truly wants to learn the art, the craft,
the way it was done in the old days,
and I appreciate people like that.
[Danielle] It just seems so different
from everything I'm used to working with.
[Henry] You're gonna love this when you see it.
Come on.
If one of those roosters gets on your butt,
-you'll know it. -[Danielle] I used to torment
my grandmother's rooster, and get it to chase me.
Those things can get pretty quick.
[Kenny]
-[Danielle] Uh-huh. -[Kenny] Had the luck enough, got it off of me.
[Danielle chuckles]
[Danielle] How much liquor you guess
has been made on this property?
-[Henry] It's a lot. -[Kenny] A lot.
[Danielle] A little graveyard out here, ain't it?
-[Kenny] Mmm-hmm. -[Henry] Yeah, it's amazing, isn't it?
-[Kenny] It is. -[Henry] This is a old place.
-[Kenny] There ain't no doubt about that. -[Danielle] Mmm-hmm.
How old do you think this stuff is that's here?
You can tell by the barrels.
Look how big the nails in them are.
-[Danielle] Mmm-hmm. -It's the '70s.
[Henry] If you look at those tops on those things...
-[Danielle] Mmm-hmm. -[Henry] ...it's called what you call a keyhole cut.
The law would come in
and cut them a couple different directions,
and then they had just picks, would pick those holes in it,
but we would come in and weld that stuff back up,
-and use it again... -[Danielle] Mmm-hmm.
...and then, they got pissed off at that,
so they started dynamiting them,
blowing them up.
-[Danielle] Aw! -Blowing them into splinters.
[Henry] Nothing you could do, then.
[narrator] During Prohibition,
when sky-high demand for illegal liquor
outstripped supply,
moonshiners in Franklin County, Virginia
swiftly responded with an innovative new still,
the submarine pot.
Named for its resemblance to a modern submarine,
these 800-gallon pots industrialized
the making of illegal 'shine,
and quickly gave liquor makers the capacity
to quench America's growing thirst.
Made on the cheap by wrapping
a metal sheet around two wooden side panels,
they could be produced at a fraction of the cost
of a traditional copper pot or turnip still.
The low price tag also meant
moonshiners could ditch their stills
without suffering a huge loss
if their site was raided by the law.
The prevailing wisdom of building a submarine pot
was that it only took one run
to cover the initial investment.
After that, it was pure profit.
A century later, it takes only a short hike
in the hills of Franklin County
before encountering
one of these relics of a bygone era.
How hard would it be to make one of these?
Now?
How long has it been since you made one?
You'd think we ever forget?
[Danielle] Well, I'd have.
It's right there.
I would love to go through the process of making them.
Mmm-hmm.
You'd be taking all that knowledge
back to Tennessee.
[inhales]
Mmm.
I won't tell nobody.
[chuckles]
That's what they all say.
[Henry] No, I'm just pulling your leg.
Draw a few things up,
see what size you're looking for.
[Danielle and Kenny chuckle]
♪ Come away that morning ♪
♪ Ain't got time to die ♪
Man, I'm telling you, we're not mashing in nothing
until we get to the bottom of this,
'cause this don't look right.
No, it doesn't, at all.
Craig and I, we were gonna mash in today,
but somebody came in,
and they tore up our still site.
Son of a--
What the hell happened here to this [bleep] ?
And where's our elbow right here?
[Richard] Damn it!
The elbow that connects
the thump keg to the cap is missing.
We went through a lot of effort
and put a lot of money into this still site.
I don't have the smoking gun yet in my hand.
I don't have the evidence
that tells me this is Mike and Jerry,
but it's time to start looking for it now.
And I can't go to the police and say, "Hey,
somebody broke in my still site."
[both chuckle]
But that little scoundrel.
You know what? We can't say "Mike and Jerry."
It's "humans" at this point.
Yeah, you're probably right, man. You're right.
But if I had to pick two humans,
it would be Mike and Jerry.
[Richard] Yep.
Look. That's Jerry's shop. It's back there.
We're gonna stake this place out.
We're gonna wait to see if they go anywhere.
We're gonna follow them, and see what they up to.
All I know is, we're looking for evidence to prove
that it was Mike and Jerry that came into the still site
and tore it up like that.
We need our elbow.
Somebody's got the elbow, but we don't.
[Craig] Check it out.
[Richard] That's Mike's truck back there.
This is what it feels like to be on a stakeout, huh?
[Craig] It's a whole lot of waiting.
[Richard] It's been a few hours.
Oh, look. That's Mike.
[Craig] Yeah, that's him. There they go. There they go.
They're getting in the truck right now.
Let's go.
-Sit down kind of low, so... -[Craig] Oh, yeah! Lay low, lay low.
Yeah, yeah, they're pulling out.
All right.
Let's go.
Look here.
[Craig] Don't lose them.
[Richard] I ain't gonna lose them.
I just don't want them to see me.
It's really important to not be seen,
not to blow our cover.
I'm gonna hang way back here.
I ain't gonna get close to them at all.
I'm gonna let cars get in between me.
I'm gonna blend in with traffic,
like I'm a tourist here.
You know what? They don't know this truck.
Last time, we was in your truck.
My truck, that's right.
[Richard] Is that him turning up there?
Look, he turning.
[Craig] Stay on him.
Go in that left lane.
We're good.
Now stay far enough behind.
[Richard] This is the back side of where we are.
We're on the other side of the mountain.
So this road, our still site is
on the other side of this mountain,
so I know they're going into the woods.
[Craig] How the hell you think they found us?
I bet you they did just what we're doing.
They followed us.
You can still see them?
-[Craig] Yeah. -[Richard] Oh, look.
-They're turning off. -Oh! Look, look.
So finally, we come around this curve
and I see Mike and Jerry turn onto this gravel driveway.
[Craig] You just passed them.
We know the general vicinity,
so we got something to work on.
[Richard] Look, you see them?
They're going down in there, Craig.
[Craig] I see them.
[Richard] We're gonna turn around, and go hide.
[Craig] Some more surveillance?
[Richard] Yeah.
So I find a good spot in the bushes.
So we're just gonna wait.
This could take hours.
Well, when they drive past that road,
they gotta come out this way.
We're just gonna sit right here,
and stake it out until Mike and Jerry leave.
And they can't see us.
No. It's a good spot right here.
It's a waiting game now.
[Digger] $10 a jar, here we come.
Well, there's the still pot.
-[Mark] He's got something going, ain't he? -[Digger] Yep.
Given the situation with us being dogged by the law
as hard as we are,
there's a really good chance
David Robertson is watching every move we make,
so Beaz was tasked
with getting all the equipment in here.
Look at the work he's done, Puss!
He's probably pitched out somewhere,
doing all this work.
[Killer Beaz] Hey, boys!
[Digger] Look, coming there is Baby Sasquatch.
[Mark] You been standing there watching us look for you
all this whole time, ain't you?
Yeah, I heard that engine going.
I'm trying to be secure, man.
I'm taking what y'all told me serious.
Let me tell you what Mark's really impressed with.
All the work that you've done.
-You've cleaned Big Sloppy out of that site... -[chuckles]
[Mark] ...you've got the totes here,
you done got water in it to mash in.
I'm proud of you.
-And let's get busy. -[Digger] Yep.
[Mark] I want to do something
really good for all of our customers
before I step away for a little while.
[Digger] Let's get some sugar going.
[grunting] There you go, buddy.
Thank you, Mr. Beazalee.
Everybody else in this business
is having to raise the prices,
and just through the grace of the moonshine gods,
we're in a position to maintain
a low price for our product,
$10 a jar.
It takes awhile to us to get
all the ingredients in here, don't it?
[Killer Beaz] Yeah, it does.
All right, that's the last of the sugar.
All right.
Lookee here.
It may be my last pour, guys, for awhile.
[Digger] Well, it's been a damn fine one.
[Killer Beaz] Go slow.
Make it last.
Think about baseball.
[Mark laughs]
All right, here it comes!
[Digger] Here it comes.
[engine whirring]
[Mark] You know, realistically,
there's almost no money to be made in a $10 jar,
but it'll keep me
in good graces with the customers,
and that's what's really important.
I want them to know
that I'm not laying low because I want to,
it's simply because I have to.
You know, as soon as the coast's clear,
I'll be back,
and I want my customers to be there when I return.
I think yeast is actually magic dust of some kind.
[Mark] It does wonders, don't it?
Now, I'm a promotions guy.
$10 a jar, I see it as a great marketing plan
to give back to people,
and that's what you do in business.
You give back, so they'll come back in.
It's like the Black Friday sale
of moonshine.
I can't wait to do this run.
You don't know how much I appreciate both of you.
-I love you, man. -I know you do.
-I'm glad to be here for this. -Me, too.
[Mark] You know, the thing about it is,
being loved by somebody ain't worth a damn
if you ain't got enough sense to know it,
-and I know you-uns love me. -Exactly.
[Mark] I'm gonna unplug this water.
-[Killer Beaz] All right, sir. -[Digger] I think we're good to go.
That's all we need.
[Danielle] This stuff's gonna become a still, eh?
I can carry some of them.
[Henry] Here, take this one.
[Kenny] Don't go doing that.
Lay it right beside that.
Now, she'll be cussing me in a minute.
I got a feeling you can handle it.
I had never even heard of a submarine still
before I met Henry.
I am so fascinated with it.
Now, these are wider.
Two of these might do it.
I'm just excited to learn
the authentic "moonshiner's" way.
Even though I have family members that moonshine,
I wasn't taught that.
The way the still operates
compared to what I've ever seen,
this is just a whole 'nother education
and a knowledge I can't get anywhere else.
It's amazing to look at this stuff
and see that it's gonna turn into a still.
-We could get both sets of sides out of it. -[Kenny] Mmm-hmm
Danielle, she's an amazing woman.
-[chuckles] -[Henry] She got her own distillery.
She flies for the military.
It's that military grip.
[Danielle] Argh!
Is that good enough?
[Kenny] That's good.
How did you get into military flying anyway?
I mean, that's a heck of a durn thing.
-I mean, whew! -Well, I've been in 17 and a half years,
and I still don't know how I got in this man's Air Force.
It started, believe it or not,
I went on and became a flight attendant,
and it didn't take me long to figure out
the flight attendants and the pilots
had the same lifestyle,
but pilots had the far better income,
so I started talking to these guys
from the Tennessee Air National Guard,
and they said, "Well,
if you're gonna ever learn to fly,
you need to go Guard.
It's the best-kept secret in the Air Force
for learning how to fly."
So, I was almost 30 at the time,
and they told me I was too old.
I was never gonna fly.
That's too old?
[Danielle] Yes,
but at the time, you could go
to Air Force pilot training without an age waiver
as long as you were there
on or before your 30th birthday.
I started pilot training on my 30th birthday.
-[chuckles] -I was older than everyone in the squadron,
and I was hired into the 105th as a pilot
on the C-5 and the C-130s,
and they sent me to pilot training.
The 130's my baby.
It will always be my favorite airplane.
Did you say you went to Iraq?
I have been to Iraq, I've been to Afghanistan,
I've been to Pakistan,
I've been to a lot of the -stans.
-And-- -Ever try to shoot you down when you was flying over them?
I have been shot at, yeah.
That's saying something.
When I was in Pakistan,
ground control on the radio would not talk to me
because I was a woman.
Different world, isn't it?
It is. It's a totally different world.
Unbelievable.
Dani, you gonna mark this other one?
[Danielle] Yes, sir.
You know, she's a self-made woman.
[chuckles]
Make it work.
[Kenny] That's exactly right.
She fell in there, grabbed a drill,
grabbed the hammers.
You know, and we're not building it for her.
We're building it with her.
That gonna make a damn nice still, man.
I've never made any liquor around a woman.
[Henry grunts]
[Danielle] It lines right up, don't it?
[Kenny] I think it looks good.
She got a awesome personality...
All right, we can do it.
...and she don't mind pitching on in
and helping you.
Tell you the truth, she do a whole lot more
than a lot of men.
I think I need a big one.
-I can make it into a hot tub. -Hot tub.
-[Danielle chuckles] -[Kenny] I used to have one on my back porch.
How many ladies did it hold?
Quite a few.
[both laugh]
Yeah, right.
Yeah, huh?
I knew I was coming up here to work with two giants
in this field of moonshine.
Kenny, Kenny, Kenny.
-Kenny, you gotta let it-- -Pull that back.
-[Henry] Yeah. -I'm just so thankful that I have
the opportunity to come
and learn the craft of making moonshine
with two dudes that have served time
in federal prison for it.
There's not anybody better.
Maybe I'll name this thing "Submariner."
[Henry] I don't know about that one.
What would your ancestors say
if you'll name a still "Submariner"?
[Danielle] They strained their eyes on me
a long time ago, for all I know. [chuckles]
The subs are completely different
from anything that I have seen.
There's so much ingenuity
and engineering that goes into it,
but there's also an awful lot
of delicate craftsmanship.
Like you said, hands-on is the way to go.
Well, let's get it down here,
and we'll just get something mashed in, then.
What kind of mash should we do?
I had been thinking about one.
Every moonshiner's got their own little recipes.
We got a surprise for her.
All right.
[Kenny] I think it's gonna make some good liquor.
-[Henry] Guaranteed. -[Danielle] Awesome.
[Mike] Oh! Ready to get some liquor running, son?
[Jerry] I am ready to do it to it, man.
[Mike] You know, today's the day
for me and Jerry to run this elderberry honey ginger run.
Elderberries, brother.
[Jerry] Smells delicious.
It's had enough time.
[Mike] Oh, yeah!
You know, I still got a lot on my mind,
wondering what Richard and Craig is thinking
since we've gave them another little "visit,"
but we're actually behind right now in sales,
so we've gotta focus on this run...
[Jerry] Let's see what this tastes like.
[Mike] ...get it out there on the market,
and we'll get back on top.
That's so pretty. Look at that color, boy.
[Jerry] Man, that honey's coming through like crazy.
Oh, my God, you can taste it!
[chuckles]
Whoo!
This stuff is perfect. It tastes delicious.
I can't wait to see it come out of this worm.
I know it's gonna be
the perfect run of alcohol here today.
-That's plenty. -[Jerry] Is that good?
[Mike] Yeah. Take her out of it.
We ain't got nothing to do
but damn wait on liquor, do we?
This is payday today,
you know, and one good thing about having a steamer still,
it's never under pressure it's free-flowing,
you mash inside the pot,
you're not gonna scorch anything,
and you ain't gotta worry about anything blowing up
with this particular type of steamer still.
Tell you what, she's hot, Mike.
Hey, good!
[Jerry] Aw hell, it's coming out over here!
[Mike] We got damn liquor!
How did we not see that? Look at that!
[Mike] Yeah, we got a half a jar!
[Jerry] I know. That's what I'm saying.
That's what happens when we're having fun.
-Little dirty, ain't it? -A little dirty, a little cloudy.
You ought to pitch that out.
We don't need to keep that around.
-We got the good nectar coming down here behind it. -[Mike whoops]
God dang.
Let's taste it.
[chuckles]
[Jerry] Oh, my God.
[exhales]
She's got a good bite to it, man.
It's got plenty of flavor.
Yow! That a lot of damn candle wick.
You can taste the ginger and the berries in it,
and the honey is there.
This stuff tastes as good as anything
that we've ever made before in our life.
[Jerry] It's a good 145, 150, I think.
The ginger's popping through, the honey is,
and a nice, little, subtle taste
of the elderberries coming through.
This is the perfect run.
Well, Jerry, it looks like that's it, brother.
Cap that joker off.
Ten good, damn gallons down, buddy.
A little elderberry honey ginger.
[Mike] I'm excited.
I can't wait to put it in our customers' mouth.
It's great liquor.
They'll be well satisfied.
We'll move on and get on to something else.
Oh, yes!
Some air-conditioning.
Ready to rock and roll.
-[Richard] Oh, look. That's them. -[Craig] There they go.
[Richard] That's them.
Told you they were doing a run.
-For real. -[Richard] It's been four and a half hours.
[Craig] Don't lose them.
That's just enough time to do a run.
They ain't gone back there
and played hopscotch for four and a half hours.
Man, I wonder where they going.
[Craig] I don't know, but we're about to find out.
[Danielle] Howdy!
[Henry] Oh, you finally made it!
Today, we're gonna mash in.
I've mashed in a gazillion times
in my distillery, but Henry would cringe
to hear that I looked up my first recipes
and my first mashes online,
and so, this is so exciting to me.
It's just a totally different ball game
of how I do it.
Check the color out on these peaches.
I mean, they are beautiful.
-Here, try a piece. -They are beautiful.,
[Henry] Our family, for generations,
we're famous for our peach brandy,
so I'm thinking a good peach mash bill
would be great for her
to run in that little solid copper still.
[all grunting]
[Kenny] Yeah.
[Henry] Easy with it, now. Gentle. She's so pretty.
You know, for years, in Franklin County,
when they first settled this area,
all they used was the extra food that they had,
and they made brandies.
That's one of the first things
Dad put me on, was peach brandy,
and our brandy is sold
before we even make it.
[vocalizing] Submariner, Submariner.
Yes sir, that thing is beautiful.
[Henry in normal voice] God dang, she's quick.
All right, y'all. Ready to rock and roll?
And all I can say,
Danielle, we do it exactly the traditional form
that you were looking for,
the same way that our father did it,
and our grandfather did it.
We don't use any power tools.
-There's a lot of work to it. -[Kenny] The beginning to the end.
I'm thrilled to see the whole process
of how this sub still is run,
'cause it's different from anything I've ever used.
I'm like a little kid in a candy store.
[Henry] Let's get this other stuff off.
[Kenny] Let's get them peaches turned into liquid.
[Henry] Don't get too many in there.
That makes it a little harder to beat up.
Here, we got you...
We got the thing for you.
Here it come, big old bopper.
You think that's the thing for me?
That's the thing for you.
-Just give him a lick. -[Kenny] Take that right down on top of all of it.
Or hit it along the sides. See that?
Uh-huh.
Let's see what you got, girl.
[Kenny] She could bust them up.
So, Kenny, wasn't moonshining kinda like a illegal activity,
like you didn't want people to know you were doing it?
'Cause this seems like it's awfully loud.
You shoulda had these peaches beat up 30 minutes ago.
If we could work as fast as your jaws,
we'd already be done.
For me, what I do in my distillery
is totally different from how they make liquor.
The distilling industry has become very efficient,
time versus money, all that good stuff,
but I think we've lost some of the art form.
It's a different ball game,
especially to do it in these conditions.
-It's what makes the alcohol amazing. - [Henry grunts]
That thing will fly everywhere if you don't hang on to it.
[motor revs]
You know, we don't weigh stuff out,
and all that crap.
You just know what it takes.
-[Henry] A double handful, a single handful. -[Danielle] Mmm-hmm.
[Kenny] One scoop, two scoops.
[Henry] I want you to mix it up real good again,
churn it real good.
Ah, what do we got here? Let me see.
[Danielle] It looks like yeast.
[Henry] It's a malt,
but we've got a blend of malts that we use.
-A blend? -I can't tell you the entire blend.
[Danielle] Secret ingredients.
[Kenny] There you go.
[Henry] Y'all, this is looking good, you know?
I think we need to just--
Let it do its thing?
Let it do its thing.
Come back in a few days, she'll be ready to run.
Hide all the stuff, like that.
Beautiful.
Well, I'll tell you what.
That damn elderberry turned out good, didn't it?
I couldn't have been more pleased if we had to.
You know, I thought it was gonna be
the elderberry I loved so much about it.
-I loved that damn ginger that's in it. -[Jerry] Oh, my God.
Well, all that being said, man,
we need to get rid of this stuff.
Well, it's time you done call your buddy, ain't you?
I think he'll move this pretty quick for us.
[cell phone ringing]
[Jason] Oh, what's going on, Jerry?
Aw, you know. Just doing what we do.
[Jason] Oh, yeah, I know that's right.
Hey, listen, I got some, man, absolutely some primo stuff.
We just got it ran off,
and, uh, we wanted to see when we could meet up.
[Jason] Oh, man, there's a...
Well, actually, it's probably gonna be a little bit, man.
I'm thinking I'm pretty much stocked up at the moment.
[Jerry] What do you mean, stocked up, man?
I mean, we ain't met up with you in a few weeks.
[Jason] I am pretty well stocked up at the moment.
Where are you getting this stuff from?
[Jason] I'd really not like to say, man,
but, uh, it'll probably be at least a couple weeks, man,
maybe a month, before I'm able
to do anything with that.
[Jerry] Oh, my God.
Well, I mean, that don't leave us no choice
but to just on it, I reckon.
[Jason] Keep in touch with me.
I'll let you know when I'm ready.
[Jerry] All right, man.
[cell phone beeps]
What in the total hell is going on?
[Mike] I know exactly what the hell is going on.
You know just as well as I do
that Jason is selling Richard's manglier tea.
Old Richard and Craig.
[Jerry] Don't really mind him being here,
don't mind him making liquor,
don't mind him selling it.
Just stay the hell away from our customers.
I mean, I don't think it's too much to ask.
No, it ain't too much to ask,
and they should have honored that.
Well, we gotta figure out what the hell's going on,
what's out there
that everybody is supposedly liking.
-We got to find a buyer, or someone just to- -[Mike] No.
We're going down to the creek party
on Friday night.
That's the way we gonna find out
what everybody's drinking.
There's this little party that goes on downtown
by the creek.
Everybody shows up
on Friday nights at this party.
Everybody shares everybody's drinks here.
It's like a moonshine tasting party, so to speak.
You know, it's a really great way
to get a read of what's popular out there,
and what's selling around the community.
[Jerry] By God, we'll be able to figure out
what it is that they're drinking.
Well, we better get this stuff stashed.
[Mike] We could unload it here,
so I think we do down there,
do a little investigating ourselves
have a little fun, and mix and mingle.
Friday night it is.
[Mike] Let's do it.
[Richard] I can't get too close to them, Craig.
[Craig] No. Stay far enough behind.
We don't want to blow our cover.
Oh, look, look, look.
Look, they're going in that barn, Craig.
I can't go in there.
[Craig] No, no. Just turn off.
Turn off, don't let them see you.
[Richard] Yep, that's where they going.
[Craig] I can see them.
They're going in the barn.
And now...
Oh! They on those buckets.
This is the stash house, right here.
[Richard] Man, I'd love that!
[Craig] It says "Visitor Information Center"
at the top.
They got some information for us in there.
[Richard] Oh, yeah.
Oh, look. Jerry's coming back.
Jerry look like he's closing up.
[Richard] Oh, we got them, Craig.
-[Craig] Yeah, they're leaving. -We got them.
We're gonna wait till it gets dark,
we're gonna come back over here,
and we're gonna see what's inside this barn.
-Oh yeah, we found their stash spot. -We found their stash spot.
-[Richard] That's they ass. -Whoa-oh!
[Richard] They won't even know what happened to them.
[Craig chuckles]
[Henry] Oh, ain't she pretty?
Looks like it's doing its thing.
[Henry] You got your hydrometer with you?
Well, here's your hydrometer.
[smacks lips]
-Is it good? -[Henry] We'll see if your hydrometer--
Ah-ah-ah-ah! Two fingers.
[Danielle] Tennessee hydrometer?
[Henry] Oh, here we go.
She's changing up on me already.
-I've about had enough of you with these fingers. -[laughs]
I see. Getting better?
-[smacks lips] -Well, today, we're gonna run off
the peach brandy that we mixed up,
and I'm super excited. Now, I get to see it all work.
Thing about these is
if you get it up on that still,
they'll sink to the bottom, and tend to burn.
-Uh-huh. -They'll leave a terrible taste,
and you won't be able to get rid of that brandy.
-[Kenny] Kinda bitter, like. -[Henry] Yeah.
-You gonna grab this hose, and I'm gonna crank the pump? -Yep.
[engine starts]
[Danielle] Henry has made water!
Danielle's worked hard through this whole project.
You know, she's never operated a submarine still before.
That's a brand-new ball game...
[Danielle] There it goes.
[Henry] ...so, to bring her in to be able to show her
some of this stuff that some of my ancestors have done,
it's been a good day.
You gotta watch your legs, and if you go
-probably pour it from over here. -I was warming up my toes.
All right, now Dani, see how far up it comes there?
-[Danielle] Yeah? -Check that.
You want it to come up that far.
-Right about your fingertips. -[Danielle] Right about your fingers? Okay.
If you don't, if you leave it mashed too low
and that fire comes up over it,
you'll what you call cake burn it,
you'll start burning on these ends.
-Oh, really? -So you don't...
A lot of people try to cut corners...
-[Danielle] Uh-huh. -...by leaving it low.
-[Danielle] Better off fill it up? -Got to fill the still up.
Okay.
What I do in my distilleries,
totally different from how they make liquor.
I don't want to go to prison, but I want to know
how to do it different from my way.
The more history you have and the more knowledge you have
of how people have done it before you,
the better off you are.
[Henry] It's amazing when you grow up and you see
your whole family going to prison,
in and out, your uncles, cousins,
your dad, in and out, in and out,
and here you come right along
and do the exact same damn thing.
I always tell people I went to college...
-That's where we all went to college. -...in West Virginia.
-Uh-huh. -I didn't say prison,
-I said I went to college. -Oh, you went to college?
-Yeah. -Kenny, he's off at college.
-Poppy's on the way too. -Henry, he gone off to get him a bachelor's degree.
Like, pop a little bit old to be in school, daddy?
And that didn't deter you at all making that decision
to go into moonshining?
-Couldn't wait. -Couldn't wait.
Couldn't wait to get into it.
[Danielle] It's touching to get to hear his family stories.
It reminds me of my own family.
You know, that was a way of life,
and they were very much outcasts because of it.
That coming over, Kenny? How does it feel?
It's been getting warm. Now it's getting kinda really hot.
[Danielle] Well, then we should have liquor soon, shouldn't we?
I smell it in the air.
-[Danielle] Oh, there we go. -[Henry] Oh, come on, baby.
-There we go. -[Kenny] Oh, yeah.
It sure does smell good.
Top of the line.
How do you know looking at the beads
exactly what ballpark you're in?
[Henry] The lower the proof, the smaller the bead.
If you could guess, if I had a hydrometer,
what would that be?
I'm guessing about 110.
That's what I'd like to say, it's between 105 and 110.
[Kenny] Well, I'll be thirsty before it gets up to you.
[all laughing]
What do y'all think?
-Cheers. -Looks good, cheers.
[Kenny] Good stuff.
-[Henry] Oh, it's mild. Isn't it? -That's fantastic.
[laughing]
It came out so smooth,
just a touch of the peach smell,
but it wasn't overpowering fruity sweet.
I think it turned out perfect,
and it's exactly what you want a brandy to be.
It can't be any better.
I asked for the authentic way that they've made it
and his father made it, grandfathers made it,
and that's exactly what I got.
I feel connected to my ancestors in this process.
I know my grandfathers would've loved it.
I feel connected to what I do,
and the greater ancestry in distilling.
It goes back forever, since the beginning of time.
[Henry] Long day.
Tennessee girl.
-[Danielle] Tennessee girl, submarina. -[Henry laughs]
[Digger] Oh, it's primed quick.
It's pumping hard over there, good deal.
[Mark] This mash is ready to run.
I'm real, real excited about it.
[Digger] All right, we're good on this one.
-[Killer Beaz] All right. -Hopefully we got enough hose to go over here.
We have the three stills that we have.
One of the twins and big sloppy,
and then the one-barrel stainless pot.
All combined, they hold a total of 550 gallons.
You excited about running that old one there, Beaz?
Yeah, that's gonna be fun, man.
It looks like we've got three different stills
from three different eras.
-Pretty much. -Doesn't it?
I mean, wow.
[Killer Beaz] This is a still site
like I've never been to in my life.
We're almost to the core.
This is like a bee hive
You tell me when you're ready.
Lay it to it.
Beaz is in charge.
[Killer Beaz] Got it.
It is absolutely an amazing feat
to have these three stills up.
All right, Mark. I'm good, buddy, thank you.
[Digger] Buddy,
I'm gonna let you burn every hair you got off today
to get to light all these stills.
[Mark] Well, thank you.
[distant helicopter hovering]
[Digger] I'm hearing helicopters, boys.
-You want to go to jail? -I don't want to go to jail ever.
[Digger] Well, he's a coming.
Yeah, I'd hold up on lighting.
[Digger] I hope he stays over on the horizon.
The law enforcement, they're permitted to use
whatever tactics they can to catch the bad guys.
This is a big part of my decision to leave for a while.
You need to know when to take a break
and when to step away.
You know, he may be looking for pot.
-Yeah, but find us by accident. -If he's looking...
Yeah, I know it, but if he's looking for pot,
he shouldn't be allowed to catch you for making liquor.
You'd think.
[Mark] It's leaving.
Maybe it's a medical helicopter.
[Digger] Well, I'mma need it.
[laughs] Wave him down.
[Digger laughing] Hey,
you gave me a heart attack, buddy.
You're supposed to be in the repair business
not causing business.
[laughing]
All right, you ready?
[Mark] You smell hair?
Don't have to shave that arm for a while.
[Digger] Moving on.
Last but not least.
There went the hair on that hand.
[Killer Beaz laughs]
[Mark] My last run for a while anyway.
[Henry] Dani's doing a pretty good job so far.
-Nice. -Gotta look good.
And if it's not, you know who I'm gonna blame it on?
-Kenny? -[Henry] Kenny.
-[both laugh] -I done it.
[Henry] We're gonna move that saw horse over here.
Put them glasses on, you need some ear plugs?
[Kenny] Now, hold on now. I don't have nothing.
[Henry] Hell if I damn do.
Kenny, I got backup glasses here.
Thank you.
Kenny forgot his glasses.
Oh, yeah. This is a lot better.
And I don't know if he ever figured out
that they were covered in rhinestones.
-[laughing] -Holy hell, where did you get those things?
-Are those real diamonds. -Here, here, I'll tell you what you do.
-[Henry] I want to see about the diamonds. -[Kenny] So,
-you saw it. -I can't saw that thing.
[Kenny] You're welcome to take charge any time you want.
-[Henry] Put your glasses on. -[Danielle] Y'all quit arguing while you got saws out.
Stick it up your ass.
-Mine or his? -His.
I was like, easy now, what did I do to you?
-[Kenny] No, no, no. -Jesus!
I didn't mean that.
[laughing]
I figured they'll get done arguing here in a minute,
we'll come up with a plan.
[Mark] Sloppy, come on old girl.
Let's do it one more time.
You know, I think by doing this $10 jar,
we'll produce something really good for all of our customers
before I step away for a little while.
Good job, Beaz.
-[Killer Beaz] Yeah. -How's the old girl working out for you?
This is not temperamental.
I wondered if it was gonna be fix this, fix that,
run, run, run,
but it has been mellow and just...
...nice.
Well, boys, it ain't like we didn't expect it,
but I got liquor.
[Killer Beaz laughing] Good for you, man.
[Mark] That's just a given, ain't it?
Yeah, little bitty things like that...
I'm used to working with little things.
[Killer Beaz laughs]
[Mark] Lot of camaraderie going on here.
Lot of good times being made right now.
Some of the best times in my life
have been around the liquor still in the woods
with Digger and other friends.
[Killer Beaz] All right, guys, I got liquor going!
Second place.
[Mark] That's about $30 worth right there, ain't it?
Yeah, in my pennies, probably $200.
'Cause that's a more meaningful run of liquor than I've ever done.
Hey, fellas, lookey here.
[Killer Beaz] Oh, there you go.
-[Digger] That a boy. -[Killer Beaz] Congratulations.
[Digger] I had all the faith in the world in you.
I think that big sloppy was the perfect choice for Mark to run
because that's the big daddy of the stills,
and Mark is like a big daddy to us, you know.
Hey, I'm tossing my heads, guys.
-[laughs] -[Digger] Damn, had a bunch.
He throwed mine, yours, his,
and two other people's heads off.
Oh, yeah. Look at that.
[Killer Beaz laughing] Wow.
Well, you get the first swallow.
[Killer Beaz] And we did that.
Wow, mother.
[Digger] Then Beaz can have the second.
Dad jim.
Oh, my.
Oh, man, that's fine liquor.
You was just lying about Beaz having that second one,
wasn't you? I knowed you was.
[laughing]
-[Killer Beaz] Whew. -[Digger] That's a damn fine run right there, boys.
What do you think?
Wow, that's fantastic.
-That's... -[Digger] Cover.
[Mark] Time we catch what's left here
and temper it,
we're probably gonna have 75 gallons of liquor.
I'm really pleased at the way it tastes.
Liquor's not been $10 a jar since the early 90s,
and I just think it's the right thing to do.
Beaz,
thank you again for taking over for me.
It's not gonna be the same without you, brother.
[Mark] I'm more emotional than I thought I would be,
but I'm okay with where I'm at.
Digger's in good hands,
he's got good hands, you're in good hands.
I'll be back, this is not a goodbye.
I'm just simply taking the action
that any smart person in my position would.
[Digger] Here we go, slow but steady.
And you know, I'm just so thankful and grateful
to have friends like Digger and Killer Beaz.
[Digger] Boys, it's been one fine run today.
-[Killer Beaz] Wow. -[Mark] Yeah, it has.
I couldn't be happier.
[Mike] We'll get down here to the creek party.
See what everybody's doing, won't we?
Well, more importantly, we'll see what everybody's drinking.
[Mike] Yeah.
Since moonshining's such an important part
of the culture here in Maggie Valley,
this is almost like a swap meet.
People share what they've been drinking.
It kind of offers a snapshot of what's hot and what's not.
Let's go figure out what, see what they're sipping on.
-What do you think? -[Jerry] That's what I'm talking about.
We're gonna go in here, just kinda hang out with everybody,
talk to them, we gotta see what they're drinking.
-How y'all doing? -[Mike] Hey, brother.
What's going on, buddy?
-[partygoer] Doing all right. -[Mike] I'm good, son.
[Jerry] How you been? What kind of shine you drinking?
[partygoer] Mimosa watermelon.
-[Jerry] Mimosa watermelon. -[Mike] Mimosa watermelon?
-[Jerry] I think I'll take a sip. -Yeah?
[partygoer] All right.
[Jerry] That's not bad.
I tell you what, when Mike come up with this idea
of making mimosa liquor,
I had never heard of such thing.
I didn't know where it even came from.
I mean, for somebody to run mimosa liquor here in Maggie Valley
at the same time we did, that's just too dad gum fishy.
It's almost like they're reading our recipe book.
...sip of it, okay?
-We're buddies, ain't we? -Oh, yeah.
[Jerry] What does that taste like?
[Mike] Pretty good, man.
[partygoer] A little bit of cantaloupe, grape.
[Mike] Good to see y'all, all right.
I tell you what, when you're doing your own investigation,
it's pretty hard to keep your cool and hold your tongue.
Oh, we're just seeing what all y'all drinking over there.
But if you want to find out information,
you catch more damn flies with honey than you do vinegar.
[Jerry] What you sipping on there?
We're sipping on some pawpaw liquor, brother.
-[Jerry] Some pawpaw liquor? -Yes, sir.
[Jerry] These are all the same flavors that we've done this season alone.
Not seasons in the past, but this season.
That tells me about what I needed to know.
[Mike] Cantaloupe, grape, they're just tweaking it a little bit, ain't they.
[Jerry] Changing just a little bit of it.
Quite frankly, I'm pissed off
that I'm having to hold my damn tongue.
[Jerry] Yeah, I don't think I can hang out here much longer.
[Mike] No.
I'm wanting to get to the bottom of it
and fix it once and for good.
You know, it sure seems that the rules of the backwoods
work for every damn body except for me.
Whoever's making the liquor in the jars at this party
deliberately broke the code of moonshiners.
You know, and this turf here in Maggie Valley is mine,
I earned it, and I aim to keep it
by any means necessary.
There's gonna be hell to pay for, man, bet you.
We're gonna pull up straight up to that barn
like we belong there.
I know they was taking some buckets in there.
We're doing some detective work right now.
I need to find out what Mike and Jerry got going on.
We're looking for the elbow that connects our cap
to our thump keg.
Our plan is to sneak in real quick
under the cover of darkness so no one can see us.
-[Craig] It's a barn. -[Richard] Lo and behold.