[Digger] There you go!
[exclaims]
Oh, [bleep].
[narrator] This time on a special Master Distiller...
[Brendan Gaughan] Don't go too fast.
[narrator] ...it's a race to the finish
between team Petty and team Gaughan.
This over here's like asphalt.
This is dirt track.
-Yeah. -This the real deal right here.
[narrator] As expert shiners, Tim Smith and Mark Ramsey
battle it out on the track...
I want that first pick at the still house.
[Mark Ramsey] Won't let you down, boss.
-All right, well, let's do it. -[Mark] I'm gonna do this thing!
[Brendan] Gas, gas, gas, gas, gas, gas!
Stay on it, stay on it!
[exclaims]
[narrator] ...racing legend, Richard Petty,
and his grandson, Thad Moffitt...
Oh, we made a mess.
[narrator] ...face off against rival racer,
Brendan Gaughan on the still...
[Brendan] We've gotta beat the Pettys.
[narrator] ...in an all or nothing
moonshining competition...
Brendan at this point, you're a lap down, I believe.
I am a lap down right now.
[narrator] ...to honor stock car racing's bootlegging origins...
That one's got a little more racing octane.
[narrator] ...and turn a winning driver
into an honorary Master Distiller.
Brendan, you're going down.
That's coming back to Vegas with me.
-[Thad Moffitt] No, that's going back to Level Cross. -Uh-uh.
All right, boys, we all know why we're here.
We're here to settle this the old fashioned way.
We're here to settle it on the track.
Here we are back at the track.
-How you doing, boss? -Y'all ready to ride?
[Mark] We do need a ride, King.
And we might need a little teacher.
Me and Mark, we're team Petty...
Come on, Hattie boy.
All right, you're doing good. Keep working your way into it, man.
...while Tim over there is team Gaughan.
Real consistent laps, bud. Nice job.
They taught Mark and Tim how to drive,
and we taught them all how to shine.
The big trouble is...
All right, Brendan, 104 is your proof.
Thad's jar, 104.
...the first competition ended up in a tie.
Forget all this, let's go to the race track and settle it.
You know, in the moonshine world,
I can't think of a better way to break a tie
than on a dirt track.
Mark, Digger, Tim, you guys are always talking about
there's no bigger honor than winning Master Distillers.
The King is here.
I can't think of any day that it would matter any more than today.
I'm gonna be up there in the freaking flag stand keeping time.
When I drop that green flag, it's hammer time.
You guys got 10 laps, right?
And whoever's got the fastest lap out of 10
gets to pick at the still house.
And believe me, boys, you want to win.
Stakes are high, is everybody ready?
-We are. -Ready, yeah.
Tim, it's go time.
-All right? -All right, guys.
-[Josh Owen] Kick some butt. -You got this, Hattie boy.
-Go for it. -Ready?
-[Tim Smith] I'm ready, man. -[Brendan] All right.
Me and Tim, we're us against the world, it feels like.
I got Mark, Digger, Richard,
Thad, they got the whole world over there coaching them.
I want that first pick at the still house, Tim.
Get me that first pick at the still house.
-Yeah. -[Brendan] This is my shot to beat the Pettys.
Not everybody gets a shot to beat the Pettys.
I've been beat by Pettys on a racetrack since I started racing.
I'm here to win.
-Help me out. -Now I'm part of the game.
-There we go. -You're gonna pull me into this.
[Brendan] Hey, take care of it, let's go get it.
[laughing] All right, well, help me get in this car here.
I gotta run this thing as fast as possible,
and I gotta beat Mark.
[Brendan] I'm gonna stand on the side of the track.
I'm gonna give you a thumb way up in the air if you're faster.
-[Tim] Okay. -[Brendan] Thumb down if you're not.
-[Tim] Slow. -You should know...
-[Tim] Okay. -...when you've been faster or not.
[Tim] I hope so.
-Just don't blow that cushion. -That's it.
-Easy on that throttle. -Don't hit the wall.
Don't hit the wall, straighten that straightaway out.
I had my practice run.
I think I did pretty good.
I'm a little bit nervous,
but I'm also a little bit excited too.
[Brendan] You know what the most important thing is?
-[Tim] What? -[Brendan] Have fun.
[Tim] All right!
I bet you Tim has run some moonshine
and tried to outrun some people before.
So I know he likes to go fast.
This is where we see what he's got.
[Brendan] Oh!
Right out the gate, Tim comes out,
and he stalls it on his main race run.
Going the wrong way, Tim!
[Brendan] Ah, don't show that part.
[Digger] Well, that's a good start!
Yeah.
-You're gonna do better than that, right? -Well, I hope so.
I'm not gonna tell you I didn't stall a car in my life.
But I don't let that bother me.
Hopefully, Tim doesn't let that bother him.
-[Tim] Now! -[Brendan] Now.
There we go.
-He's got it now. -Man.
There we go.
Oh, yeah.
Ah, get down.
Yeah, he's cutting out of it way too early.
These corners where you're gonna beat him, Hattie.
[Mark] Well, that's what I hope.
[Tim] I don't know if I'm doing good or not.
I'm not even thinking about how fast I'm going.
I'm just trying to keep control of this car
and go as fast as I can.
There we go.
Man, he is smooth on that throttle.
He's looking good so far.
Come on, baby.
I think we got this.
He's doing good, he's picking it up.
Oh, fastest lap, that's better.
Every lap, he's getting a little bit faster.
[Mark] Tim's nailing it,
you know, he's getting that car around this track really good.
Here we go.
This is the last lap.
I'm beginning to get a little bit concerned.
[Brendan] Turn it, turn it! Gas!
Gas, gas, gas, gas, gas, gas!
Nail it, nail it!
Come on!
[exclaims]
[Digger] 16:42 was his fastest lap.
If you get a 15 second lap, you're the daddy.
We'll dub him the baby King, won't we?
[all laughing]
[Thad laughing] We'll dub him the baby King.
Yeah, let's get a lap first.
-[Tim] Oh! -[Brendan] Nice job!
What do you think, dude?
[Tim] That was all right, whew-wee!
That's hot.
[Brendan] Great job, dude.
-Great job. -Outstanding.
Hey, I did my run, I did as best as I could.
[Brendan] You did great, man.
[Tim] I hope I did all right.
[Brendan] Come on, get out here, let's do it.
-[grunts] -[Tim] I ran a fast lap, I know I did.
But right now, we'll find out what the official says.
Thanks for bringing the car back in one piece.
-You seem to have-- -Yes, it still has
the same paint on it as when I got it.
[Josh] Good job, Tim.
Fastest lap being 16:42.
-Nice. -That's what I'm talking about.
-Good job. -[Josh] All right, Mr. Mark, now it's your turn.
-[Mark] Yes it is, I can't wait. -All right.
Let's see what you're made of.
Hey, you know what, I really think
I've got a really good shot of winning this thing
if I can get in the car.
We got a solution for getting him in the car, don't we?
I don't know if I like this.
We're gonna grease him up with STP and slide him in.
[all laughing]
Like I said, that suit may not be pretty,
but it damn sure is full.
-[Tim] Good luck, Mark. -[Mark] All right, thanks, Tim.
[Brendan] Good luck, sir.
You don't really mean it though, do you?
-[all laughing] -[Brendan] Absolutely.
[Mark] Tim was going mighty fast,
you know, I'm a little concerned at this point
Remember everything you learned last time.
We're gonna drive a little deeper into turn three,
and we're gonna keep it up,
drag down, we're gunning for a 16:42.
Remember that's what Tim ran.
-We gotta beat that now. -Yes, sir, we gotta beat that.
Remember what we're racing for,
a pick at still parts,
and I believe in you.
I ain't gonna let you down, boss.
-All right, well, let's do it. -I'm gonna do this thing!
I mean, I think it'll be a close competition...
That's half the battle, we got him in the cockpit.
[Thad] ...but Brendan's in the liquor world,
he's got his own distillery,
which is a huge advantage.
So I'd really want to win first pick of the still parts to get us an edge.
You know, we don't want to blow them away,
but we still want to win.
But that much is a win, okay?
-[Brendan] Here we go. -He got it, ain't he, boss?
That's right, buddy.
[Mark] You know, this is an incredibly big deal to me.
I hope you're gonna like that second trip in the still house.
I'm real nervous, I don't want to disappoint Mr. Petty.
[Digger] Shake and bake, baby.
You ain't first, your last.
Oh, yeah.
He got out better than you did.
Well, I showed him what to do.
[Digger] Easy, there you go!
That was a good exit.
[Tim] Mark's into it. I mean, he is really going.
I mean, he's looking like he's gonna, like,
break a record on the track.
[Digger] There you go!
Easy, easy, easy!
[exclaims]
Oh, [bleep].
[Mark] You know, I'm in the car,
going around the track.
I had the momentum going with me.
Now he's getting at it!
[Mark] I was running the best lap
that I'd ever run on my third lap.
I come out of turn four.
Easy, easy, easy!
[exclaims]
Oh, [bleep].
I got it a little sideways.
That's not a parking spot.
[Mark] That ain't what I wanted!
-You okay? -[Mark] Oh, yeah.
-How does your head feel? -[Mark] Yeah.
It wasn't too bad of a wreck.
-You hit the wall a little harder than that. -[laughs]
[Thad] He was just trying real hard!
-I'm good, I didn't hit my head. -All right.
I'm fine, the car's not hurt,
I bent a little of the sheet metal up on it.
[Thad] All right, let's try this again.
You ready?
I've got seven laps left to go.
I'm gonna finish it, you know,
I've got seven more chances to beat Tim.
He has seven laps to go.
[Digger] Get it!
[Thad] All right, come on, Mark!
Now he's scared.
Look, you spin a car, it's gonna spook you, period.
Marked definitely got spooked,
he slowed down on my watch
from what he was doing earlier.
[Mark] I've got to win,
I've got to beat Tim.
He needs to get them jitters out of him.
I gotta get faster.
Now he's getting at it.
[Thad] He slows down just a little bit,
and then he picks it back up.
[Richard Petty] What we got?
17:18.
He's getting close.
[Richard] I think he got his confidence back up,
every lap he run was a little bit better.
[Thad] He's driving it hard. Oh, yeah.
[Brendan] Oh, damn. He is on it.
We could be in trouble.
[Thad] Checkered flag right here.
[Brendan] Oh! Oh!
-He's going, he's going! -[Digger] Get it, get it
get it, get it, get!
Oh, I think we got it.
I tell you, he went pretty dad gum fast.
It's gonna be pretty close.
-It's gonna be close. -Well, yeah.
All right, Mark, that was awesome, man,
you nailed everything I told you to do,
and I think we got a good shot at this.
You didn't quite practice me up for the spinout.
Nah, but that was some extra style points in my book.
You know, the thing about it is,
in moonshining, there's always obstacles.
So in stock car racing, there's obstacles.
You know, I'm not the only person to ever spinout.
I sure did hate to do it in front of The King.
-All right, man. -I liked it though, it looked good.
-[Brendan] I think he looked good. -[Tim] I liked it.
-Hey, low and slow. -Yeah, I liked it.
-Low and slow, like I said. -I really hate
that I probably let you down, Mr. P.
You ain't never spun out, have you.
[all laughing]
All right, Mark.
I know that Tim did a 16:42,
and, uh, I got my fingers crossed.
16:40.
-That means you beat Tim by... -[Brendan] What?
-2/1,000ths of a second. -[Brendan] Unbelievable!
-Yeah! -[Tim] Come on, man!
[all exclaiming]
[indistinct shouting]
-[Digger] I told you you was a mad man! -[Brendan] That's wrong!
-[Digger] There weren't no doubt in my mind. -[Brendan] No way!
Mark beat me by, like, 2/100ths of a second.
I mean, 2/100ths of a second on a dirt track.
Brendan, thanks for the advice,
low and slow.
[all laughing]
Well, listen, you can't win them all, right?
Okay, so I got beat by a Petty at the race track,
nothing new for me.
He's an official Petty now 'cause he's won.
[laughs]
Doesn't make any difference how close the race was,
we won.
-All right, here we go. -Uh-oh.
-Who got this? -Oh, looky here.
Volunteer speedway
-trophy for that amazing time... -[all cheering]
...and that donut over there.
-And that ain't no bull. -Yeah.
[all laughing]
That sure is.
His first racing trophy, right?
Well, probably be my last one too.
[all laughing]
You know what we gotta do now, don't you, guys?
-[Thad] Yes, sir. -Team Petty, Moffit, Ramsey
gets first pick of still parts!
-Oh, yeah. -Boo!
-Yeah! -[cheering]
Now, now the pressure's on you guys.
It's a whole new challenge now.
Hey, Hattie, you'll forgive us
if we don't carry you out on our shoulders, won't you?
-I will. -[all laughing]
Come on, let's make a little liquor, Thad.
-Hattie, boy... -[Mark sighs]
...couldn't be any prouder of you.
It don't matter if it was one hour
or 1/1,000ths of a second, you're the winner.
2/1,000ths of a second.
100ths, don't make it sound closer than it was.
[all laughing]
Well, guys, we've had enough winner's humor here and a little jocularity,
it's time to move on to bigger and better things.
We've gotta make a run of liquor.
Your signature run, this is for all the money.
[Tim] You went to moonshine school,
we taught you everything that we know,
and hopefully you learned something
'cause now's the time to prove it.
You gotta build your still first,
and then all of you are gonna have the same corn mash to run.
I'm just an old retired race car driver
that happens to own
a legal distillery in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I don't do all the distilling at my distillery.
So I don't want to look like a fool
when it comes to putting stills together
and when it comes to what heads and hearts are going.
We gotta get you men some still parts.
So...
-Tickle! -Whoa, whoa.
You don't want me to call Tickle?
Tickle's in no shape to even walk,
let alone get these still parts in here.
-That's right. -Kelly!
Yep, there we go!
[Tim] It looks like he's been hanging around with Tickle
'cause he got a whole lot of copper.
I got all kinds of copper, boys.
What in the world?
Boys, I hear that, uh, you're looking for some still parts.
I also hear that you boys had to do a little racing
to get everything done.
Yeah, dirt track racing too.
I guess they cheated you, didn't they, Tim?
-[laughing] -And you knew?
'Cause Mark won, and I've seen him drive.
[all laughing]
Whether it was 1/1,000ths of a second
or 2/100ths, it's still
Thad goes into the still parts first.
Don't take my parts.
I'm gonna take all of them.
A pot a thump and a condenser,
that's what I practiced on, that's what I know.
All right, Thad, you got three minutes to get your still
starting now.
You ready?
Look here, I don't know what you gotta have,
but I know that every race driver
wants some of this nitrous oxide.
You can [sniffs]
sniff this to make you fast.
-[laughing] -[Thad] Yes, sir.
We have the first pick in the still pick now,
which is a huge advantage for us.
I don't know a whole lot about making liquor,
but I know that your still's important.
Just like in racing, your equipment's important,
and then liquor making's the same way.
You gotta get on this.
Brendan says he wants a thump keg,
but I think I'm gonna take it from him before he can get it.
Take everything you think you're gonna need.
Don't take anything that your partner's
gonna have to have, your sidekick.
-Don't forget your clamps... -You...
-...gauges... -...dirty.
I don't know if he has a plan B
-if we take his plan A away from him. -[laughing]
All your seals.
I mean, not all of the seals,
-but some of them. -[laughing]
Yeah, he's never really been a plan B guy, has he?
No, he's always plan one
and the heck with what happens after that.
Does he get to wind up with everything that's left.
Yeah.
-[Richard] Ooh. -You can't take...
-Hey! -...the whole wagon, Richard, I know what you're thinking.
[Brendan] I was gonna say, he's gonna go in there
and just grab a handful on me right now.
-[Richard] Look... -Take control of him.
We're coming down.
Five,
four...
-[Thad] I can't get it out of there. -[Kelly] ...three...
-We got a bunch in hand. -...two,
one.
I think we have everything that...
That we needed to put it together.
All right, Brendan, so it looks like
your standing there looking at stuff,
so you've got a good chance here of seeing what you need.
Three minutes starting now.
[Brendan] My whole thing in my head now is
[pops lips] it's gone.
I wanted that thump keg.
So I think I got a new idea.
I'm just gonna take everything left.
You know, a good mechanic
always has lots of tools,
and since they decided to empty the kitchen sink...
...I'm even gonna take...
-...your nitrous oxide. -All right.
I'm gonna empty the cart, Richard,
you took everything else on me.
-[Richard] Well... -I'm gonna make sure I take the rest.
[Kelly] I believe you're gonna clean my wagon out!
Don't you worry, Kelly.
Thinking that I can build the still I want
and make something out of nothing.
Make sure I have enough.
-I'll go extra... -Whoa, whoa, whoa, hey!
Uh-huh?
Petty secrets right there in the middle of my time.
[laughing]
All right, guys, looks like my cart is empty,
So it's up to you guys from here on out.
Good luck, guys.
All right, boys, you got 30 minutes to build your stills.
Do your best and good luck.
Your all's time starts
now, good luck and get with it, guys.
I'm putting this piece on 'cause we know where it goes.
[Richard] What... Where do we put...
Yeah, so put that...
A lot of the stuff we use putting the still together
is something we use every day in the shop.
Like the channel locks
-or just our fingers twisting the nuts... -Yeah.
...or just whether it's the little clamps,
we got some similar type deals that we use on racecars.
So everything that we need to know
to put it together, I think we've already learned.
You figure out which way they need to go.
Nope.
[Thad] No? This way?
There'll be what is called a thump post over there somewhere.
You just look and see what you need to go from where to where.
I don't have a... I got one.
What I know is what we use at my distillery, right?
That's kind of the only thing I've seen.
I cannot physically hook it up unless I go...
Not doing that, not doing that, not doing that. Ooh.
My distiller was a backwoods guy
So I'm used to seeing one style,
pot, thump, condenser.
So, I'm hoping I could build the still I want
with the ancillary parts that I got.
-Do you got a shorter piece? -I do have a shorter piece.
[Richard] Right there.
Here's one different. There's a short one.
Try this.
Thank you, sir.
So, you guys look like you got... You're all set up.
I don't have a doubler. You guys took the doubler.
They're there.
Pull this thing out.
What do I have that chokes down?
I can't believe you're letting your partner
just struggle like that over there, Tim.
What stuff do I have that I really know nothing about?
[Richard chuckles]
But I'm trying to figure out
what I gotta do to get from here
with the pieces I got.
I got all these pieces, now.
I gotta figure out how to build a still now
on the fly. I'm... I'm struggling right now.
All right. Well, I think that'll do it, now.
-Sure, take my pieces to finish. -[chuckles]
Brendan, at this point, you're a lap down, I believe.
I am a lap down right now.
I mean, all that he's gotta do is put a cap on his still,
connect the cap to the condenser,
and that's it. He's done.
Not using that cap, he's not going to.
[Tim] All right, Brendan.
Looks like you need a little bit
of help over here.
The only thing I can't find, Mr. Smith, sir...
-Mmm-hmm. -...is anything that goes from my one-inch pipe...
-[Tim] You don't have no worm. -...to my half-inch.
[Tim] I'll tell you what.
Will this right here work on anything you got in here?
Uh, I've got no way to close those off,
-is the problem. -I ain't worrying about that.
That's where the water goes in.
-Okay. -How about this thing right here?
Will that fit on...
Will that fit on that?
Does that screw on that?
Yeah. That goes there.
Screw it on there.
That goes there.
All right, take that cap off, right there.
I'll take the dome off.
We're gonna do some retrofitting, here.
That's what we getting ready to do.
They might need to use this cap.
-[Richard] We got a cap. -Will this get you anywhere?
[Brendan] Mr. Petty bringing us gifts.
Oh, okay.
Well, there's a cap, right there.
Are you gonna use this condenser?
Or do you want that condenser?
That's a condenser?
That's the fastest, straightest condenser ever made.
And it just go right there. Bam. You're done.
I may have a big, fancy distillery,
that I wanted my thump keg, and I wanted all these things,
I'm going full backwoods now.
This piece looks, like, old-school.
Grandpa, you're helping the wrong team, now.
[chuckles]
I think Mr. Petty just brought you
-a Christmas gift. -He brought me a gift.
He took a few parts from me,
so I'll accept his early Christmas present.
He just gave you a Christmas gift.
[Brendan] I'm gonna have to put him
on my Christmas ham list, is what you're saying?
Uh-huh.
Whoo!
-Yeah, you could do it like that. -Bingo.
I like it.
I was struggling on that one.
Well, it looks like you got
everything you need over there.
That's a real nice setup.
Thank you. We appreciate it.
-[chuckles] -Yeah, that's real nice.
Well, you're gonna need it.
Yep.
Well, we got a full setup over here,
with a thumper and a condenser,
-and we just got a still, and a cap, and a condenser. -It's going fast.
We're gonna be the low dog in the race here,
but we're gonna come out in front at the end.
I went from wanting the doubler
to the most simple still I've ever seen, so...
-That's it. That's it. -...you gotta...
You make it work when you're in the woods, right?
You gotta figure out how to do it.
-You gotta work with what you got. -I'll take it.
Good luck.
This, right here, definitely has to run slow.
[chuckles]
What's going on?
-Good job. -Yeah.
Is this all we think we need for today?
This is the best setup you can have.
You just gotta remember, we just need one jar, guys.
I got all the faith in the world in you.
All right. Good luck, guys.
-Thank you. -All right. Thanks, bud.
[Digger] All right, guys. Here we are.
I think it's pretty obvious
these two listened to their coaches.
It's time to see what you all learned
from your liquor making coaches.
Now, guys, bear in mind this is the real run.
No more practice laps. This is the race.
Whoever wins gets their ultimate bragging rights,
plus, they get this pretty little trophy
to remind 'em of them bragging rights.
Brendan, you're going down.
That's coming back to Vegas with me.
No, that's coming back to Level Cross...
-Uh-uh. -...where it belongs.
Thad, you helped me achieve the dream of a lifetime.
I'll never forget you for that.
I just hope that I can coach you
to make that liquor, run that liquor still
as well as you coached me to drive that stock car.
If I can do that, I see Team Petty winning this race.
I'm with you, buddy.
-Now, Brendan, you know... -[exhales]
...we just came within a hair
right behind Team Petty on the track,
but now it's time to beat the Pettys.
Now, I'm your crew chief. I'm in your corner.
You just listen to me.
I'm gonna talk you through this run,
and we're gonna come across
that finish line now, in front.
I'll take the help.
I appreciate you putting it together for me. Let's go.
Now, you got three hours to turn us in a jar
of your finest 100 proof corn whiskey,
and don't worry, y'all.
It's gonna be a blind tasting. It's gonna be fair.
[Digger] Your time starts
now. Good luck.
-Keep with it, guys. -[Josh] Good luck.
[Richard] There you go.
Yeah, you got it.
Thad's remembering everything I told him.
Make sure that bucket's clean enough,
or it's gonna foul up the flavor of that mash.
Go in slow,
so you don't stir all that sediment up.
We're gonna put ours in the thump can over there.
We only have three hours,
so we gotta get going pretty quick,
and get some liquor made.
Oh, we made a mess.
I've never even done this,
and I've got very minimal training.
How many does it take?
[Thad] About six.
I guess it's kind of,
you just figure it out as you go type of deal,
kind of like Mark did with the car, you know.
We kind of told him what to do here and there,
and he figured most of it out for himself.
Brendan, he's putting his liquor in the still.
[Brendan] I don't do the distilling
at my distillery,
so this will be the first time I've ever run my own liquor.
Tim, you want to look over here, and touch this thing?
-Yeah. -Just so you'll know...
-Yeah. -...what your partner's missing out on.
Slide it over here,
and let me look at it a little bit.
That's about as close as you're ever gonna get to one.
[laughs]
[Tim] There you go.
Crank it up, boss.
It's so difficult, as a race car driver,
to turn that flame to a little bitty blue flame,
that big, and say,
"Let it just drizzle out of that pipe,"
because my nature is go-go-go-go-go.
Now, we've got our liquor we made last summer.
We're gonna dump it straight in here.
Well, I think our setup looks more like
a liquor making setup than Brendan's does.
I mean, he's got that cute little still over there,
but I think that we'll be pretty good
with what we've got.
I'm gonna get a fire going.
It's looking good.
[Digger] There we go.
Yeah, he knows to crank it up
big as he wants to at this point,
then dial it back down.
[Richard] Turning blue?
Yeah, it's blue.
Well, they both got fire going.
We're gonna make sure these are tight, and then,
we're gonna sit back and wait.
I think Thad's listened to us.
He's double-checking everything.
You can tell he's a good kid.
His papa would kick his hind end if he ain't.
[Digger] Exactly.
Take his racing car away.
-[Tim chuckles] -I don't think he'd be that cruel. [chuckles]
-Nothing but a waiting game. -Yep.
Whoo! Ooh.
Oh, yeah.
Brendan, what you looking like over there?
Well, she's hotter faster than I was expecting.
Let it run right now. Let it warm up.
-[Brendan] Okay. -It's just like your engine in your car.
You know, let it get up to operating temperature,
and then we'll tune it in.
Right now, you're running an open header setup.
-[laughs] -[Tim] You don't have
anything complicated, like these guys.
These guys over here at Petty, they got mufflers,
-they got catalytic converters. -[laughs]
This is no sponsorship, and this is a full ride.
[all laughing]
[Tim] That's exactly what it is!
Thad, now you did have an extra piece to work with
that you didn't have in your last run.
-Your thump keg. -Yep.
The thump keg is actually gonna be really beneficial
to what we're trying to do, because it's gonna make
our liquor taste smoother, and better.
Sir, we're watching the temperature,
making sure where we get up to temperature,
then we'll tone it back down a little bit.
It'll be fine.
You're doing it right. Your fire looks great.
Hour and a half down, a hour and a half left, guys.
[Josh] He's dripping, man.
-[Tim] Ooh. -[Brendan] Yeah. Oh, it's...
I can't believe it started that fast.
Liquor coming out of there that soon is gonna be fiery.
It's gonna be hot.
[Josh] He's dripping, man.
-[Tim] Ooh. -[Brendan] Yeah. Oh, it's...
I can't believe it started that fast.
Liquor coming out of there that soon is gonna be fiery.
It's gonna be hot.
Just building the still that I got to build today,
there's just not a lot of condenser there,
so I gotta go super slow
or I'm gonna end up with fire coming out of that pipe.
[Thad] We've got some liquor now.
We just want to stay slow and low, right?
-Right. -And get the job done.
We're never really at a slow pace at all,
and so this is completely different for us.
Yeah. Everything we do is quick.
Definitely nerve-wracking.
[Thad] It looks like I've got
a little bit more liquor already made than you do.
We're working towards getting 100 proof, right?
And at your rate,
we've already burned up half of our time,
and you have one jar gone?
Just like Mark.
Go fast, and crash after you go into turn one.
Ah, it's okay.
I guess we'll find out
at the end of three hours, won't we?
One hour, guys.
It's still high,
but coming down.
Once I got through my heads,
now my goal is to get my hearts.
Low and slow.
Well, I'll tell you something, R.P.
You be proud of old Thad.
He's a-doing a good job for us.
How are we doing, Thad?
We'll, we're still pretty hot.
Bubbles are big, and they go away real quick.
But you're making good liquor, and that's what counts.
Brendan, how are you feeling, man?
Thad's starting to bust off some jars.
This thing is supposed to be running faster,
and you only got one jar run, so, like,
and you're over halfway burned up your time here.
[Brendan] There's just not of condenser there,
so I gotta go super slow,
slower than I was already expecting
to make sure I get my flavor profile right.
I'm trying to get it nice and slow.
I want to get to them tails,
and I think I'll get to tails just in time
to blend me a 100 proof jar,
and I'm gonna nail it on the button again.
Whoever wins this is gonna have
some bragging rights, I mean.
Gotta beat the Pettys.
Well, I hope it works out for you. Good luck.
-Thanks, Josh. -[Josh] Yes, sir.
Don't go too fast. Don't go too fast.
[Josh] My boy, Thad.
Josh, what's going on, man?
-Doing all right. -Good to see you. Yes, sir.
You got some strategy here?
What's your thought process
on how you're gonna pull this off?
So, I got him...
I got it pretty hot to get the heads
and the first couple jars out of the way,
and then hopefully, I can slow it down
by the time I get to the third,
maybe third, fourth jar, and I think one of these,
either the fourth or fifth, I'm gonna shake this one,
and test the bead on it when I get done,
-and then we'll see... -I hear you.
-...what we need to do from there. -You're a quick learner.
-Good job. -In racing, they don't give you
-a whole lot of time to learn stuff, you know? -No doubt.
-[chuckles] -No, that's the facts.
They just make you go 200--
-It's over, just like that, too. [snaps fingers] -Yeah.
They make you go 200 mile an hour,
and you figure it out for yourself,
so I guess it's something I've learned over the years.
-I hear you, man. -Yes, sir.
-[Josh] Awesome. Good job. -All right.
You all have 30 minutes left, gentlemen.
What's going on, Brendan?
How are you doing, buddy? What jar are you on?
[exhales] I'm just starting my fifth right there, Thad.
I'm about three-quarter of a way through number seven.
You find one you think you like yet?
Well, I guess it really don't matter if I like it.
It matters if the judges like it.
-Right? -[Brendan] Ah, but remember what they said.
If you don't like it,
they're probably not gonna like it.
[Thad] Well, I like all of them, then,
so I can name myself the winner. [chuckles]
[all laughing]
Brendan, tell me about what you got over there.
I'm on my sixth jar, right there.
I feel like I'm still a little too high a proof,
and so I'm...
It's coming down to the wire, here.
It's the last few laps of the race,
so I'm gonna try to turn it up just a little bit,
see if I can't blend a couple together, and...
-Yeah? -...you know, get it to come down
a few degrees in this last jar.
Yeah, the time is running up on you, here,
Thad, you know, we've asked for a 100 proof jar.
Proof is good,
but taste always trumps proof.
Five minutes, men.
That's about like that final lap.
You know, he's been over here checking each one or two,
and I'm thinking he's gonna kind of mix it up,
so you gotta watch him.
I'm gonna try to blend me that perfect 100 proof jar.
A little bit of flavor,
still a little bit of heat,
I think I got what I like, Thad.
What do you say we go turn these things in?
-You ready? -Let's do it, man.
Cross the finish line together.
-[chuckles] -Let's do it.
Well, I think I've got a pretty good jar here
of 100 proof, good tasting corn liquor.
and, uh, I hope that this is a winner.
Photo finish.
Didn't work well for Ford in the '60s.
[chuckles]
All right, guys.
Well, y'all can go back and sit down at your station,
and we're gonna go taste a little liquor.
It's gonna be a blind tasting.
It's gonna be fair.
-Yes, sir. -[Digger] Whoever comes up the winner
is gonna get the unlimited bragging rights,
and then, the ultimate reminder
of them bragging rights.
-Good luck. -Good luck, guys.
[Tim] The moonshine trophy.
-Good luck. -[Digger] Here we go!
-Win or lose, we had a lot of fun either way. -Yeah.
You know, Tim got out of that race car,
and you could see, he was [exhales] ,
you know, he had that excitement,
and Mark spinning the car,
-you know... -[chuckles]
All right, we've spun a lot of cars.
You know, in the end, we kind of go, "Oh, dang it!"
You know he wasn't doing "Oh, dang it."
He was [exhales] .
-Spinning a race car, it'll spook people, right? -Yeah.
I mean, you put that thing backwards,
and you don't know where it's going.
You got walls,
you got all these things, you got your...
It's an intense feeling, especially the first time.
That was the first time he ever spun one out,
so I'm sure he would have had
a pucker factor of 10 going on.
[all laughing]
We had one legend sitting there with us,
and I feel pretty certain that we coached
another legend that's up-and-coming.
I'd say that he'll be just as good as his grandpa.
At racing, and making moonshine.
Well, he's proved he can do this, for sure.
He's got it made.
Now, if he made
the number one jar is yet to be seen.
You made it difficult for me. I wanted my doublers.
With my little condenser here, I'm nervous.
I don't know why.
I saw you mixing back and forth, the jars.
I'm hoping my flavor
-makes the judges happy. -There's no alternative, right.
Well, I think I made mine to where we got to 100 proof
-just from doing the process. -[Brendan] From straight across?
Yeah, from straight across, and then,
I hope it has a good flavor.
I mean, these guys will like the way it tastes, right?
-I mean, if it's corn liquor, it's corn liquor. [chuckles] -[Richard chuckles]
All right. Jar Number 1.
-Nice, pretty, clear jar. -[Josh] Very clear.
[Tim] Let's see what we got.
-That's definitely alcohol in there. -It is.
Maybe 90 proof.
-Maybe, yeah. -Good.
-It is. -Good drinking corn liquor.
[Mark] That's okay.
[Tim] Let's see what it tastes like.
[Josh] Mmm-hmm.
Man, that is really good.
I don't know who put that jar out there,
but they done a fine, fine, job.
It's good sipping whiskey, isn't it?
It tastes good, and it looks good,
-but I'd really like to have a little bit higher proof. -[Josh] I'm with you.
-You know? -I'm with you.
You know, I'm afraid if it was any higher proof,
we might lose that good flavor.
-[Josh] It'd be hot. -[Digger] Yeah.
All right. Jar Number 2 here.
See what it looks like.
[Josh] It's clear, too.
Gin clear.
-We're working with two clear, fine jars, ain't we? -[Digger] Yep.
-[Mark] Well, there you go. -[Josh] Look there. It's got a better bead.
Big bubbles there.
-That's high proof, right there. -[Tim] Mmm-hmm.
It got some high octane to it.
[Mark] That's a little north of 100.
Yeah.
-[Digger] Yeah. -[Josh] Yeah.
Well, the only way we're gonna know
-is tasting it. -[Josh] All right. I'm ready.
[Digger] Here we go.
-Got a good nose. -[Tim] It's a little bit lighter on the nose...
-A little, yeah. -[Tim] ...than that Number 1 jar.
You know, honestly, I think it's a real good, smooth drink
for the proof it is.
That one's got a little bit more octane.
-Yeah. -A lot more.
If you want to call it, you know...
-[Mark] It's kind of... -...racing octane.
I'm ready. I'm tuned up.
I'm the designated driver.
-[Brendan] I'm riding with you, sir. -Okay.
-[Richard chuckles] -But you're gonna need to make a detour,
'cause you're gonna have to take me home
with the trophy to Vegas.
You can't get that thing on the plane,
so I have to take it home with me.
I'll make it fit. Don't you worry.
[Richard and Thad chuckle]
This one tastes better. It's a little easier to drink.
But this one's got more proof.
-It's got a little bit harsher flavor on the end. -[Digger] Yeah.
I'm in a corner here.
[Tim] All of these guys had the same mash.
Taste trumps proof any day.
-Every time. -It does.
But I don't hate the taste here.
-[Mark] No, no, no. -[Josh] I don't either.
-[Mark] No. -It's not bad.
No. Both of them taste really good.
-But, it just don't have the... -[Mark] Finish.
-...the sweetest finish... -[Mark] No.
-...that this one did. -[Mark] Yes.
-The Number 1 jar makes me want to drink more. -[Josh] Yeah.
-You got that right. -At the end of the day, I'm riding with you.
But who is Number 1?
-[Mark] Let's do it, guys. -[Digger] Let's hit it.
All right, gentlemen. Here we are.
Just so y'all know, our stillhouse crew,
they took the jars when we took them outside,
they put tape on them and marked them
according to the way you all marked them,
so that made the playing field level.
Now that that's out of the way,
let's get to the chase.
The Number 1 jar,
great flavor.
A little lighter on the proof, but that's not a deal killer.
Good mouth feel, good, sweet finish.
It flowed across your tongue very well.
What corn liquor should be.
Now, the Number 2 jar
had a good, good liquor bite to it.
Uh, a little higher proof than I think we set the benchmark
in our world, at 100 proof,
but there again, not a deal killer.
Jar Number 2, I liked it.
It had a little bite up front that I really enjoyed.
It kind of felt a little dry on the back end,
didn't have quite the sweet finish
that the Number 1 jar did,
but that's still two really fine jars
of corn liquor right here on the table.
Both jars are outstanding, in my opinion.
Good job, guys.
I would say, uh, official race car drivers,
you are official distillers in my mind.
Whoo-hoo!
-[Tim] Yes. -I'll take it.
-[Tim] You are. -[Richard chuckles]
[Tim] You can put another feather
-in your hat there, Mr. Petty. -[all chuckling]
[Tim] You know?
To be honest, we had to split hairs
to come up with a winner. That's how close it was.
[Tim] It was almost
a two one-hundredths of a second.
[all laughing]
We're both still in the dark,
and we're as eager to learn who won as you all are.
This wasn't on my bucket list...
-[Mark chuckles] -...but I'm glad
-I got to do it anyway, okay? -[all chuckling]
-[Mark] Yes, sir. -We're glad to have you with us.
[all applauding]
Y'all ready?
We gotta know.
Let's get to the chase.
The Number 1 jar gets the bragging rights,
plus this trophy.
Rip the Band-Aid off.
[Josh] All right, let's see who it is.
It looks like Brendan, you are the next Master Distiller.
Yes! All right!
-[Richard] Aw! -[Thad] Good job, man.
[Brendan laughs]
Well, you was already in the liquor business.
-Yeah. -Weren't you?
-[Brendan] I finally beat the Pettys, though.
Yeah, but we won our racing stuff, okay?
-[all laughing] -Yeah, we won the racing.
He's in the liquor business.
-We won our department. -I'll take the W.
Brendan, the Pettys still rule on the track,
[chuckling] but now you rule in the liquor business.
I'm bringing back the Master Distillers trophy
back to Vegas. This is awesome.
I'm a Vegas boy. I'm not from the South.
This is so cool. I can't believe this happened.
I'm so happy.
To come here, and make moonshine,
and to win Master Distiller for, with, you know,
against a Petty.
I mean, this is big
for a little boy from Las Vegas,
so thank you, guys.
So honored. Super excited.
-Good job. -Outstanding.
[Digger] All right, we congratulate you,
but don't let your head swell up too much,
'cause it wasn't by much that you won.
-[Mark] This young man's coming for you. -[Brendan] He's coming.
Well, Brendan and Tim brought their A game today,
you know, and even though
we ain't going home with the trophy,
I was still happy to be here, and I still learned
a whole lot about how to run liquor.
[Richard] We won the racing part.
We just didn't win the one we didn't know anything about.
Well, that's true.
-Brendan's been in the liquor business... -Yes.
-...a lot longer than we have... -Yeah.
...and then, he's in it all the time,
so I think that it'd be,
we won our deal,
-and he won his deal. [chuckles] -He won his deal.
I might be hiring a new apprentice distiller.
We got a job for you out in Vegas.
I just think I'll stick just to racing for now.
Probably a good move.
[all laughing]
All right, guys.
I'm proud of all of you, but that being said,
let's all just chase out of here,
and have a drink.
-Sounds like a plan. -[Thad] That sounds like a winner.
[Richard] That's what I'm talking about.