[narrator] this time on master distiller...
We want to peel back the layers like an onion and find every flavor.
-[narrator] gin. -Ooh. I smell that star anise.
[narrator] a 700 year-old recipe...
-That's juniper. -[man] one berry too much could make a bad run.
[narrator] ...Still produced in the backwoods.
[mike] oh. We got a baby.
[narrator] the base for some of the world's most popular cocktails.
With some tonic water and damn lime juice, that'd be a good drink.
[narrator] but bringing this spirit to life
could be the ultimate test of a master distiller.
That's probably one of the most complex liquors
-we've ever tasted. -Definitely.
[narrator] across the country, a handful of amateur distillers
are heirs to a century's old tradition.
Some operate on the legal side.
Others practice their craft beyond the reach of the law.
Now they'll face off to earn their place
in america's liquor making legacy...
I've never had anybody want to take a pump keg apart in the middle of a runs.
[narrator] judged by three legendary moonshiners...
Wow. I've been missing out.
[narrator] ...They'll go head to head in a series of challenges.
You just ate one of those flowers?
[lisa] forgive me, mother nature.
-[mike] pumpin' hard. -[jason] here's the secret weapon.
[narrator] to determine who has what it takes...
-...Putting him in another category. -A girl.
[narrator] to be named...
-[lisa] you hear that? -[man] oh-oh.
[narrator] master distiller.
[rattling]
ladies and gentlemen, welcome to master distiller.
You know me, there's my buddy, mark ramsey.
Tim smith.
You gonna make us some gin.
If you win, you get a limited run of your gin
at sugarlands distilling company.
Obviously you know something about gin,
or you wouldn't be here in this particular content.
[narrator] history's most notorious liquor, gin,
is made by distilling a strong base spirit
with juniper berries and other botanicals.
Created by medieval monks as a plague cure,
dutch distillers perfected the spirit
and soldiers braced for battle with it.
Unlike whisky or rum, gin can be made
using any base spirit, from grapes to grains.
Cheap, high proof gin was churned out of back alley pot stills
in every slum in georgian England,
cut with turpentine and sulfuric acid.
After the invention of the column still in 1831,
purified gin hit the market,
restoring its reputation
and leading to the creation of the spirit's most iconic recipe,
london dry.
[tim] now, the most famous gin is a london dry gin.
I like for each one of you to replicate this.
This is what we're looking for, guys.
London dry gin.
[mark] taste that, sip it, gargle with it, smell it, snort it.
Do whatever you want to do with it, but commit it to memory.
[tim] this is what we're looking for right here.
-[lisa] that's good. -[exclaims]
[lisa] that's very good.
[digger] you got four hours.
We want to see your best jar on the table.
Your time starts now.
[lisa] excellent.
[narrator] in the first challenge,
shiners must produce a london dry gin
by redistilling 100 proof corn liquor
while infusing their own blend of house botanicals.
The distiller whose gin best matches the standard, will get extra time
to pick ingredients for the next challenge.
West virginia's filling his fill up like he been doing it all his life.
My name is michael. I'm from huntington, west virginia.
I work in the waste water industry.
We deal with a lot of nasty bad, bad things.
I see a lot of dirty corn. So being on the clean side of corn
that actually produces something that's enjoyable
is a, is a big thrill.
Here you go, my little friends.
I have a great grandpaw that had five stills runnin'.
And that's what he did. For years, years and years
he told us about them stories, and it always stuck in my head,
and I always thought, you know, I wanna try that one day.
[speaks indistinctly]
I started out bootleggin'. I ran a bunch of liquor,
and then I ended up in a job that I got laid off.
So you got that yeast just moving around in there.
I was sitting around talking to myself and I said, "self,
it's just about time you figure out how to do the other side of this."
I bought a four-gallon stock pot, a three-gallon stock pot,
and a five-gallon bucket, and I fashioned me together
a little homemade still on a hot plate.
I thought it was one of the greatest things I ever did, you know. [laughs]
and it's been all downhill since then. [laughs]
make a little "japaleno."
I can make just about anything out of it.
And if I can't make it, I will try to make it.
Three slices of ginger. That's it.
My ultimate dream is to go legit one day
doing something that you love to do.
No better way to live your life, as far as I'm concerned.
That mike just smashes that big bucket up, pours it like it ain't nothing.
[tim] like it's a baby bottle.
[lisa] someone's playing a joke on me here.
Lisa's having problems openin' up her bucket.
[digger] nah, she's got it.
-You better hush. She'll knock the hell out of you. -I'm seeing that.
-It's uh... There we go. -[jason] there you go.
This is my little play still.
My name is lisa lowery, and I am from north carolina.
The still is flowing.
I spent most of my career in corporate america.
There came a time where I just said, "I just can't do this anymore."
all spices.
-I wanted to go be a distiller. -[horn hooting]
thinking about it since I was young with my aunt and uncle
while they were distilling in their basement. They made wine as well.
I would be totally fascinated that the product that actually goes in one device
and comes out of the other device something totally different.
So, like, you know, like magic,
the real rough part of the job we've got here.
And here I am currently employed at a distillery.
About to make some magic happen.
Be able to get in there and learn the process.
It's not a scary as a big, scary monster,
full of all these crazy wires and hoses and tentacles
and things coming at you and you're like, "well, I don't know what this is."
but it becomes really fun and rewarding.
Cardamom.
What I love about gin is the uniqueness.
There are thousands of combinations out there.
There are a hundred different ways that you could make it
even more ways to finish it and countless ways to enjoy it.
If I were master distiller to have other women say,
"if she's doing it, I can do it,"
which, if I can do it, anybody can do it.
What?
-Yeah. -Oh, easy.
-Easy, easy. -I got a leak.
[lisa laughs]
my name is jason sanders. I'm from salt lake city, utah.
I'm an executive chef by trade.
Since covid I haven't worked.
I'd really like to open my own place.
It'd be cool to bring a really cool product to utah.
There's not a lot of distillers there.
I brewed beer for years. Got really into it.
I thought, "hell, you know, distilling looks fun.
I built a still.
My wife told me that I would bring the house down, so I went ahead and did it anyway.
I had a couple of friends try, and they were all
really impressed with it, and it's just slippery slope from there.
Making liquor in utah is I think I'm kind of a unicorn.
Honestly, I hear of people that are doing it.
I've never actually met anybody that's doing it.
I love gin and some gins have got 22 different ingredients,
there's some that have got six in it,
and they're all very different.
There's a lot of room for playing.
I want everybody to do a good job, but I definitely want to win.
I think it would open some doors career wise.
Lisa's already got her fire going.
You know, ooh!
There you go.
[laughing]
me and lisa lead up, we're steel dumping liquor.
Your buddy, is lead up, running.
In a london dry gin,
you don't want to go real heavy on the spices.
You want more of a general flavor.
Getting the spice build right is really keeps them
from too much of one spice or not enough of another.
And you're going to have some of flavors.
Let's see how it goes.
Don't forget to write all your stuff down, guys.
It's all, it's all memory.
-It's all in your head. -Yeah.
I'm really good at, just, here's a pile of ingredients.
Mix something.
Being a chef definitely helps with gin.
Only small steals.
And taking one or two
will put your over the edge and it goes from being pleasant
to bitter in just a heartbeat.
Oh, that's a little strong.
Maybe too much.
Guys, you all got one hour.
Andy, still got three hours remains.
Where it could make a difference on how they run it up.
They gonna put it in a steel,
they're gonna put in your thump, or they're going to use it later.
Yeah.
All right. That should be good.
Few extra for love.
A bit of ginger, for some spice.
Max, only one out of three, but this botanicals in the steel pot.
-Yeah, yeah, yeah. -Everybody else put them in their thump.
[man] with burners lid, heat vaporizes the alcohol in the base spirit.
The vapor passes through the gin basket, filled with botanicals hung in the cap
or inside the thumper, where a second distillation takes place.
Once the infused alcohol vapor hits the water cool coil,
it condenses into a stream of london dry gin.
Here we go.
[lisa] right, you're flowing.
That is 180, 185 at least.
[lisa] time to start mixing.
Yeah, we're messing around a little bit here.
I think I'm about ready.
Each part of the flow will produce a different flavor.
You look at your flow like it's a treat.
You know, the very top you've got the light floral, airy parts
all the way down to the roofs that come out in the botanicals.
So you have this full spectrum
that will capture all of that into a finished product.
[man] essential oils from the botanicals are released
at different times during the run.
Distillers must capture the drinkable alcohol in the heart of the run
while balancing each flavor as it comes through.
Ooh! I smell that star anise.
-Yeah. -Oh, yeah.
-Still fire? -No, it's good.
It's like a... I think I'm getting like a little lemon.
Here you go.
Wish I would have gotten a little more juniper out of it.
So I usually use a lot like an excessive amount.
Yeah.
I put a couple lime peels in there.
-Just a couple. -Very nice.
Mike's going at it over there.
I'm competing against people that know what they're doing with gin,
and they do a really good job with it.
While I'm hitting the ground, running.
Here is my big thing.
I don't have what you call a, sophisticated palate.
I use my nose to smell stuff, but I cannot taste at all.
You're in the wrong business, mike.
Ladies and gentlemen, you've got one hour left.
She's been pouring water a little bit.
That's a lot of tempering down.
That'll bring the proof way down.
[man 1] if it wasn't high proof, it's gonna be really low proof.
You ain't teasing.
[narrator] coming up...
He said it was 200 proof.
-It was one hundred. -It was one hundred.
[narrators] a hard lesson in moonshiner math.
She messed it up.
[narrator] and the return of a wild card.
You ever had a pizza, jim?
Where you from?
[lisa] oh, here we go.
[narrator] a legal distiller, a backward shiner
and a chef-turned-illegal liquor maker
are competing to replicate the flavors of a classic london dry gin,
using only their palates as a guide.
Gentlemen, I got one good jar for you.
[mark] that's all it takes.
-Good luck. -Thank you.
Gentlemen, give this a shot, see how she goes.
Okay.
-[digger] that's the one you decided on? -Yes, sir, yes it is.
Thank you.
-All righty. -Good luck, honey.
This one here is jason. It was pretty clear.
-Clear, clear. -Good-lookin' jar.
-One hundred ten? -[digger] that'll be a little better than 110.
They're super different. Like, you pop it in your mouth,
it's one thing, you run some liquor through it
and it's a whole different flavor.
It all changes when the heat gets in, right?
It's not too overpowering on the juniper.
-The nose is a little bit stronger than the taste. -It is.
It's not unpleasant.
-I can tell the way it flashes across my tongue. -It's warming.
-[tim] it's got a little licorice. -And ginger.
There's a lot of ginger in there.
With some tonic water and damn lime juice, that'd be a good drink.
Let's go to big mike here.
-[mark] well, that's a little lower proofed. -[tim] about a 95-90?
I'm going to go about 90.
I don't think I got enough flavor to mine.
Now, that's a totally different taste profile.
But it ain't unpleasant.
No, but it's stout on the juniper side.
-Them two both... Those are drinkable. -Well...
[digger] what kind of bed she showing there, timmy?
-Eighty-five? -[tim] nothing.
-That's low. -[mark] that's low low.
Eighty.
It's 100-proof liquor to start with.
I thought that it was 200 proof.
No, it was 100.
-It was 100 proof? -Yeah.
[jason] how much did you cut it with water?
Uh...
You put that water in and it flashes.
It really can destroy...
Her botanicals are in there but there's not a lot of liquor in there,
-yeah. -Yeah.
You get that juniper up front then you got no liquor.
-It falls flat. I don't know. -Yeah, she messed it up.
Now comes the work.
[mark] honestly, I like the smell of mike's better.
But, I like the taste of jason's better.
Which one do you really think is more of a london dry gin?
[tim] that's tough.
Well, guys.
I guess you all are wanting to see
what our decision is at this point.
This does not eliminate anybody.
The winner this round gets the pick of the litter with all the ingredients.
Uh, mike, your liquor was good.
I get a lot of ginger with you.
Get a little bit of that juniper,
but it's good drink. It would sell.
-[tim] lisa, you got a good product here. -Thank you.
It tastes good. Smells good.
One thing I did notice is this. This is not 80 proof.
-Okay. -Your fatal flaw was your blending.
You went just a little bit heavy on the water.
Yes.
Jason? The nose is straight on jam.
It's high-enough proof.
Probably 110-115.
But it still had a smooth taste.
-It's good product. -Thank you.
Jason, you were the number one jar.
Thank you.
You get to go to the fruit stand first off the bat,
-then mike goes, then lisa goes. -Okay.
Stevie ray tickle!
Oh, no, you didn't call tickle in?
I called the infamous stevie ray tickle.
You didn't tell me you was coming over here?
Now you know I had to.
Listen to me. I want you to take 'em to the farm shed.
They need to pick out what they need.
It's time for y'all to make us one jar of a top-shelf modern gin.
We don't want to be like we're biting the top end of a juniper berry.
But we want something that's got a lot of botanical.
There's a lot of complex flavor.
We want to dissect that liquor and peel back the layers
like a onion and find every flavor.
[narrator] modern gins have their roots in prohibition
when illegal liquor runners added whatever botanicals they had on hand
to mask the taste of harsh-based spirits.
Inventive speakeasy bartenders created cocktails that complimented the flavors
and made them more palatable to customers.
And customers got the last word on the future of gin.
Today, modern gin swap heavy juniper flavors
for artisanal ingredients,
from fruits and vegetables to exotic spices,
to craft unique spirits that enhance a cocktail and command a higher price.
The winner of the challenge gets the advantage of more time
and first pick of limited ingredients to create their modern gin.
Okay, modern gin. Basically like modern times
meaning it could go any damn where.
Mix it up a little bit.
Don't be afraid to experiment.
Jason, you're going first. You have five minutes.
-Is that basil? -A little mint.
Now this is what I've been looking at.
-You ever had a peach gin? -Where you from?
I was absolutely pumped about winning my first challenge.
-I didn't think I would. -Never had it.
-Me either. -I'm definitely wanting to try it now.
I have not made a lot of crazy modern gins,
but I'm gonna take a little risk.
And I'm going to throw a fruit right into the thumper and see what happens.
Two minutes left there, jason.
-Tickle what is a muscadine? -A muscadine is a grape
that makes some damn good wine.
-Tickle, I think we're there. -You're there?
-I'm there. -All right.
Mike, come on up.
You have three minutes.
Mike is wasting no time.
There you go. Man's got his pants on.
He's got his pocket knife.
-May have to cut up a squirrel or something. -Yeah.
The judges said they did not want a london dry gin.
That tells me to cut back standard spices and botanicals.
Add a little something extra in there and try to offset those imbalances.
How about a pear?
Might as well grab a little bit of that, too, just to be safe.
Grab one of these jewels right here.
Yeah, with them grapefruits.
[mike] all right.
I think that'll do.
[man] lisa, you have three minutes.
Can I take the flowers?
I don't see why not.
Yeah, you just ate one of those flowers?
If I can't eat it,
I'm not gonna put it in my gin.
Some honey. Look at that.
What I'm hoping to present to them is a wild ride.
Really have them guessing from first sip, all the way through to the end.
Look at that, a little mexican vanilla.
Forgive me, mother nature.
God. Ah-ha!
Little lemon time.
Yeah.
-Nah. -Nah, it is great.
-[scoffs] it's gross. -That's it.
-[lisa] time's up. -Time is up, lisa.
All right.
[man] looks like y'all got some interesting stuff in them baskets.
-[man] whoa. -Hi, fellas.
Hey, guys. Welcome back.
You back for your big deal run right here.
Your imagination's the limit here.
You know, do it as you see fit.
[tim] you know, one of you going home.
So you know, you only have four hours to live.
What's going to make a difference
is what you got in front of you, in that basket right there.
Bring us the finest modern gin the earth has ever seen.
-No pressure -starting now.
[narrator] using the ingredients they pulled from the farm stand,
the contestants must transform one hundred proof triple distilled corn liquor
and to a modern gin that shines in a cocktail
and on the top shelf of a liquor store.
[mark] I'm kind of looking forward to this modern gin.
Something kind of new to me.
-There we go, firin' oh. -[man] oh, yeah.
Right. Here we go.
I'm in a fever pitch to see what's in them baskets.
[mark] we got a tremendous amount of peaches.
-Is that a cucumber he's peeling, or a zucchini? -[man] that's a cuc.
[mike] I use cucumber, thyme, spearmint, cherries,
mexican vanilla, skin off of a grapefruit.
This is the one that might get interesting.
It could get interesting.
One of the weirdest gin flavors known to me.
I may slice up a little tiny bit of that.
-Oh, all right. Good luck with that. -[laughs]
I could eat garlic on a dog turd.
I mean, it's just... It's just good stuff.
[jason] my plan is to put a ton of peaches in the thumper.
I want a real peach flavor coming over it with a little bit of gin.
A little more citrus on it 'cause citrus and peaches go well together.
A little thyme and some rosemary in there, too.
So that's going to add a little herbaceous flavor to it.
So now I'm going to start getting some heat down in that thumper,
it's gonna start cooking those peaches a little bit.
[lisa] I didn't see any peppercorn or so I thought,
"well, I'll just try a jalapeno."
it's nice and fresh, bright and green,
and hopefully those flavors will translate.
I've got muscadine grapes in the thumper.
So hopefully, I'll get some nice sweetness out of that.
Some thyme, rosemary and sage. Juniper and some marigold leaves.
Hopefully we'll get, uh, nice, well sweet and savory out of it.
All that juice, that's so nice.
Yep.
Here we go.
-Good run and you beat me to it again. -I'm runnin'.
That's good. There are not a lot of female distillers out there,
so I want to really show women that it's something that we can dominate.
Oh, there we go.
That's juniper.
Boys and girls, you're two hours into your run.
You're half way there.
You're runnin' into a bucket?
Is that what you're doing? I like that.
That way it all gets some air and gets happy.
Kind of getting into where I don't really like the flavor just a little bit.
Hmm. All right.
So just pulling out the spice bag, I could reach it.
I've never in any of my one take the thump keg apart
-in the middle of a run. -Not in the middle of a run.
[narrator] coming up. Distillers get spicy...
I think mike's surprised himself.
And the judges sweat.
This is the hardest decision we've ever been confronted with.
[narrator] three distillers are locked in a battle
to run the most complex of all spirits, modern gin.
[lisa] pulling out the spice bag, I could reach it.
But few distillers dare open a working thump keg.
I've never in any of my one take the thump keg apart
-in the middle of a run. -Not in the middle of a run.
Are you done with your run?
No, I think, I'm gonna let it run a little bit longer.
Pull out the juniper.
I've got the grapes inside.
I've got grapes, I've got honey.
Enough of the spices were kind of getting a little heavy,
and we still have some time, so thought I'd just let it, let it go,
-see if I can pick up some more of the flavors. -Yeah.
Then she's gonna blend it.
It's going to be like a sweet sour deal.
I added, I think it was twenty different things in there.
I did all kind of crazy to put whatever I could to try to age these two out.
One hour guys.
Time to be thinking about them finishing touches.
Blend these babies up blend, blend, blend.
From the first run, I learned not to over proof my gin.
-I think that's pretty high, right? -Yeah, that's pretty high
just, you know, really go with my gut. That was my thing.
You know, don't second guess myself.
I think mike's surprised himself.
-That was my nest. -He's got the look of surprise.
Mm. Mm-hm.
That is good.
[coughs] it is hot, though.
All right. What is the secret weapon?
[lisa] uh-oh, secret weapon time.
Hmm. What in the world are you two are doing?
I put four and a half pounds of peaches in there,
and I was looking for a peach flavor.
And I didn't get it.
I had great wildflower honey.
Downside was that it was not a clear-looking gin.
Being the chef,
I know presentations, you know, 30, 40, 50 percent of it.
But to me, flavor is 60, 70 percent of it.
That's pretty stout as après.
Wow. I think that brought the peach out.
All right. Good girl. Good girl.
God, I don't know.
I'm second guessing myself left and right right now.
Go with your gut.
Got that bad touch.
I'm gonna do that, and I'm gonna do one more guard,
and I'm gonna compare it.
Your first dip, you're like, "bam", you get the vanilla.
I was like, "and it tastes like bubble gum"
for some weird reason, it tasted like bubble gum.
And then next thing you know, on comes spearmint,
on comes the cherry.
Everything else, but it just blows my mind.
You know what? I got a winner.
We're gonna put a name on it and call it a day.
Gentlemen, that's your final decision.
One jar of...
Modern gin.
Good deal, buddy.
We got you.
I think this is it.
-That the one? -This is the one.
Thank you.
There you go, fellas. That's one big mike.
I don't know. That's up to you.
-Oh, thank you. -Good luck.
Well, there's two way clearer than the other one.
It would seem.
-Big mike. -That's pretty.
It's not harsh.
No, I don't think there's, there's good, fruity full.
That's a cucumber he got in there.
It finishes really good.
Yeah, this guy's putting garlic in gin...
That's right.
Don't taste no garlic.
I don't get any of the garlic in there.
But when you breathe out at the end of that juniper,
when it's gone, it finishes through the floor.
It's a real pleasant drink.
I'm ready for the next gin.
-Let's do it. -This is going to be lisa.
Now that's a little brighter on the smell.
The whole thumper thing, like I was kind of nervous about that, right?
That was a bold move.
Wow, that smells good.
That's really good.
Um, really light on the note.
It's perfect.
Don't dunk, I'm telling you.
It spreads out like a damn bouquet.
-Yeah. -That's...
What in the world, I'm getting a little strong bite.
The muscadines are coming through that are heavy.
-There's a little bite in... -It's little biting.
-It's a good bite. -It's outstanding right there.
It's a little tricky because it's got a lot of flavors in it.
That's probably one of the most complex liquors we've ever tasted.
-Yes. -That's proper business right there.
Let's try jason's.
It almost looks like a light lemonade. [laughing]
it's going to taste really, really good to overcome that.
That smells good, too.
-Wow. -Mother of pearls.
My pores have opened up.
The more ingredients you put in there, the crazier it's going to get,
the harder it is to control.
That little shot of honey, I don't know, man, I like that.
-It smells... -Yeah.
It's making you sweat.
I think we found a cure for the covid.
Ran out of money.
That get a little bit of that sediment, you know,
that you get out of honey and little citrus in there.
They're are all good.
This is awful, trying to have to decide.
If it hadn't been for all the peaches that's in jason's.
I think he would have come in dead last.
Jason is one, lisa two.
-And mike three. -I'm going the other way.
Mike, over here, number one, lisa, number two, jason over here...
I mean, I'm almost putting him in another category.
Modern gin is more complex.
That's... That's lisa.
I mean, it's really difficult of the three. They're perfect.
It's a trade off in so many different directions.
It's really hard.
I wouldn't want to be in their shoes, I'm telling you.
Now, who you putting in last?
Who you want to cut?
I mean, well, I think we're at a stalemate, right?
Honestly, I can go with any of them in any order.
-They're that good -do you want cut a deal?
This is the hardest decision we've ever been confronted with.
Yeah.
[narrator] an up and coming legal distiller,
a former bootlegger and a chef moonlighting as a moonshiner
have brought their best jar of modern gin to the table for judging.
Well, I think we're at a stalemate, right?
All right, guys, welcome back.
You know, you all three here have done something. It's...
I hope you don't get calluses from patting yourselves on the back.
Gin is a fickle mistress.
Okay, jason.
I mean, if you see that sitting on the shelf like that
I would think there's something wrong with it.
But I'm okay with that.
The taste is so smooth,
it is a drink that I would drink over again.
Thank you.
I tasted yours.
And up... Just in my head,
all I heard was a voice is screaming,
"what in the hell am I going to do?"
lisa, you're spot on with your botanicals.
I said it out loud. I tasted yours, and I said, "wow!"
-it's just complicated. -I've been misled.
It's got a lot of stuff in there.
It's making me sweat.
-Sweat? -I'm sweating.
I put a little a little jalapeno in there too.
-Just so it... -That's why.
-A little spice is... -It's spicy.
Mike. The garlic.
Uh, it's just a handful
which is to me, in a drink, is enough.
It's considerably high proof.
A smooth, smooth taste, a good smell.
It's a drink you can be very, very proud of.
Thank you.
Mate, I tasted yours.
And I thought, "damn!"
and where we... You know, we gotta cut it down to two
and then down to one.
And unfortunately, in this situation,
every one of you all
are coming back for the next round.
Oh.
Well, we could not,
-thank you. -Under no circumstances,
we're a hung jury.
I was completely shocked.
I really didn't see that coming at all.
You just... This round the pressure was on
competing against richard.
Tides on this next win.
The next round is gonna be crazy.
[mike] my competitors, I mean, they do a fantastic job,
but never, ever underestimate good old fashioned
west virginia hillbilly.
[jason] I like mike and lisa a lot.
I'm really happy all three of us are gonna stay.
But I definitely wanna win.
[narrator] for the final challenge,
the distillers will each make their own signature gin recipe
using ingredients from home.
Joining the judging panel
is award-winning gin expert stanton webster.
Distillers, I gotta say, I'm excited.
[narrator] stanton webster is a gin maker
in the heart of shine country.
His knoxville distillery uses artisanal ingredients
to craft award-winning gins
raging from the traditional london dry
to groundbreaking modern takes on the spirit.
I hate that we're gonna have to cut two of you today,
but that's just how it is.
-Good luck. -Thank you.
We expect to see another a game here.
You've got four hours... Starting now
flowers and all.
I really took a chance
on these ingredients that I've got.
I spent countless hours and sleepless nights,
and [chuckles] to win this. I really, really want this.
Jason has brought his measured ingredients
and so, nobody can see what he's doing.
[jason] I have made this recipe.
I know it's good. It's tested. It's true.
I know all I have to do is make it right.
Mike, you're making us a casserole today?
Damn right I am.
It's gonna be the best casserole you ever had.
[laughs]
I got a little zucchini squash,
a little bit more garlic,
of course I got my botanicals.
I'm gonna prepare a coriander...
-The old mary. -I like it.
Some vanilla beans down there, too.
Yeah. Got two vanilla beans.
Sounds pretty savory.
You wanna put it on your dinner plate?
-You might put it... -Good deal.
I'm gonna really, really play
with those different spices and the garlic.
I think I'm starting to pick up on it
and starting to figure it out.
I really shocked myself.
I just never thought I had it in me.
A lot of these botanicals grow in the appalachian mountains
and in this whole entire region.
I like it.
Yeah, so, I've got ginseng, elderberry,
lavender, of course, some lemon balm.
Obviously, oranges and lemons don't grow here,
-but we all know those fruits. -[laughing]
some rosehip, some rosemary and ginger.
You know, people that are opposed to gin
have an old memory based off just the junior,
and they associate it with something
that maybe with something they didn't enjoy as much.
So I love that you're bringing the good citrus, good balance.
Thank you.
[lisa] working for a distillery,
I'm using somebody else's recipes,
it's their creations.
And what I really want just to show the world
what I can do.
What lisa lowery can come up with.
[jason] essentially, it's a london dry,
-but I use lemongrass. -[judge] okay.
So, I'm gonna get some floral notes and lemon notes.
Still gonna get that citrus?
Yeah, a lot of citrus
without actually putting any real citrus in there.
-I was going to ask. -Oh, I do orange peel.
So, a little bit. And a cassia twig.
Okay.
So, it's an actual twig from a cassia tree
that's sliced up.
It's got a little cinnamon on it.
Did I see you breaking up some cinnamon sticks?
I did put a little cinnamon in there, too.
I know the amounts are perfect.
The only thing I could have is a problem with distill.
You're gonna love it.
[chuckles] good for you.
Guys, you all got three hours remaining.
[sniffs] ooh, I can smell it.
Yeah, she's smelling.
I'm gonna have liquor in a minute.
-Let's get it out. -[lisa] oh. It's coming out.
-[mike] oh. We got a baby. -[lisa] we got a gin baby.
Cry a lot...
[lisa] to be a master distiller,
to be judged on something
that I was able to come up with myself,
that would be really cool.
[jason] my signature recipe
is a little different than most.
I've had people try it that don't like gin at all
and really love this one.
One hour left, guys.
Oh, yeah.
There's the lemongrass in it now.
-[exhales sharply] -[lisa laughing]
it's gotta get your motor running.
Taste your garlic in there, mike?
-[mike] oh, I can't taste it. -You can't taste it?
It's in there.
I think you'll find it.
[jason] I know where the cuts are.
I know what it's supposed to taste like.
I've done this recipe enough
that I know when I get to that jar
if it's right or not.
[lisa] jason's already mixing.
I'm definitely gonna have to get a bigger bucket.
Folks, you got 15 minutes getting close.
[mike] that one's not going in.
Hmm. I need to add some more.
How's yours?
Some of them need to start moving.
It's warm.
Somebody needs to start moving towards this table.
[narrator] coming up.
We got a lot of jars over there.
[narrator] three distillers go head to head...
That smells altogether different.
[narrator] ...For one ground.
There's one that rises to the top.
So, stanton, what're you looking for?
I want something that I enjoy drinking.
Want to see some botanicals.
I want to see citrus.
We want a nice concentration of flavor and alcohol
'cause we're gonna dilute this usually before we drink them.
Gin's a fun one, you know, in europe, they were using it
to preserve the botanicals they thought there was,
you know, some health benefit to that juniper berry,
and they wanted to save that for year round use.
Well, obviously they have way more health benefits
-when they're turned into gin. -That's right.
You know, there's a lot more old drunks
than there are old doctors.
-[stanton] that's right. -[laughs]
[man] that one's not going in.
[narrator] a legal distiller,
a back woods shiner and a chef are going still to still,
in the final run of their signature gin.
He got a lot of jars over there.
-But only one... -Oh...
...Could be master distiller.
Hope you don't pick up the wrong jar.
[mark] they've got five minutes.
They're taking full advantage of their time, ain't they?
Yeah. Using up all their time.
[mark] here come little mike.
There you go, gentlemen.
[mark] back with a jar, buddy?
Well, that's the one you're getting today.
[mark] fair enough.
-[stanton] that looks clear. -Yes, it is.
[lisa] great.
I am ready.
[mark] lisa, lisa.
Is it school?
-Cool. All right. -This is it.
-Well, good luck. -Okay. Thank you.
-And here comes jason. -Gentlemen.
Here's the winner.
-All right. Feel confident? -[mark] I like the confidence.
[mark] well...
Big mike.
Gotta bring it all.
-Know what I mean? -[lisa] you brought it.
-Whoa. -Hmm.
Damn, it's nice on the nose.
-A little juniper. -[mark] spicy.
I'm getting a lot of that pine.
Those savory botanicals are really coming through, too.
I mean on this.
Just flows the way, doesn't it?
Very nice on the tongue.
Just drop off at the end slowly.
There's a little bit of like, little sweetness in there,
-that's... -Yeah.
That helps you set up that nice... That spicier finish on it.
It's concentrated enough too.
If we put this over ice, we add a little tonic--
-exactly. -Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
-You'll still get the gin. -Still hold together.
That's something you can work with.
I like that.
-All right, let's move on. -Risky pusher.
-Here we go. -Whose is that?
I think this says lisa with a heart on it.
[laughing]
[mike] I can't believe you used ginseng.
That's why I called it...
You put ginseng in it.
...Gin, hyphen, s-I-n-g. Gin-sing.
Now that's smelling altogether different.
-Huh. -[mark] very floral.
Yeah, get those floral botanicals right up front.
Very little juniper right there.
That rosemary and that lavender, you've got to be careful.
[stanton] a little more heat.
She used peppers in her last recipe,
-and I think she did this time. -No.
[stanton] she had a lot of citrus in there.
She added lemon in.
-It's got a great nose though. -[stanton] yeah.
[man] feels real smooth.
It get very smooth.
Good concentration of the secondary botanicals
so when you go to diluted,
it'll... It'll carry.
I don't know what it is.
A little flowery.
-I can't tell whether... -It's flower smooth,
-but that-- -maybe the--
she did put ginseng in it.
She made it hot.
Ginseng can be bitter.
With the chunk I sent,
-about as big as your fist... -Yeah.
But it sat fermenting.
... Probably opened it up a little more.
I mean, I don't this like it at all.
It's just different.
All right.
[mark] making my arms weak.
Let's move on to the next.
Mr. Jason here.
Mine turned out pretty well, I think.
I... I get it where I like it.
Wow.
-That's a great gin smell. -Perfect.
-It's got that juniper up front. -That's got wonderful...
[mark] yeah. Yeah.
And it's... Nothing else really interfering with it.
That's gin.
Just something a little sweet on the end,
and it ain't cloudy like it was a last time.
That's really nice.
-[stanton] and he's got some flowers in that too. -Whoa.
[mark] now that would be great right out of the freezer.
-I'm getting that fruit-- -lemon grass.
Yeah, that's that lemon grass.
-That's what I'm picking up. -Definitely some orange.
It's nice, but it didn't go hot.
-That's what it is. -That's the thing.
It's a gentle balance.
Yeah, yeah.
[mark] wow, that really, special.
You have to actually draw it in to get the juniper.
Yeah. It's not overpowered.
I think they're all really well crafted.
-Oh, definitely. -Yeah, all of the, good job.
They could all build a good cocktail.
But, we've found one that rises to the top
-pretty, pretty handily. -[mark] yeah.
I agree.
Ring the dinner bell.
Well, I'm sad to report
it's not going to to turn out the way it did last time.
I would be proud to put my name on any one of these gins,
and I make gin every day for a living.
You know, mike, you brought us something really well balanced.
Nice savory notes there.
Lisa, your floral work was outstanding.
And jason,
you delivered something very interesting.
It had some really good citrus notes in there.
So I think all three of you should be proud
of the work that you've done here today.
You're all outstanding distillers.
There is one here, though, that I think, um,
makes you want to go back and buy a second bottle.
And maybe makes you want to go by third bottle.
And...
Jason, you're the next master distiller.
[lisa gasps]
[lisa] you did it! [laughs]
[digger] congratulations, buddy.
-Nice. -I'm gonna pass out.
My heart stopped cold.
You did cheat off her.
I thought she had it.
[lisa] judges had amazing remarks so I can take that back
to work with me and get back to work.
It's been an honor to get to meet you guys.
When we all three passed that second round,
we all three won.
And to taste your product. It really has.
It's definitely gonna push me the direction I wanna go
and be a distiller.
I haven't worked as a chef for three or four months now,
and so, you know, I'm looking to be a gin distiller
somewhere now. Maybe my own place.
[narrator] next time on master distiller...
It's freaking me out.
[narrator] peach brandy.
When do we start drinking.
[narrator] the dry, aged colonial spirit
is nothing like grandma's schnapps
everyone still got their fingers?
[narrator] it commands top dollar in the back woods,
but it's rarely seen on liquor store shelves.
Well, now.
That's impressive right there.