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Kidnapper2 wrote:If I could offer a good suggested reading, Eliot Wigginton - The Foxfire Book - Volume 01.

I ordered this book a few days ago. I'd forgotten about the Foxfire series--though I used several of the books as background for other writing. It should help me make distinctions between distilling then and now.

After the many comments about sugar, I'll be thinking about that. I'm at the first draft stage -- chapter 8, working title is The Legacy of Lucie Bosell. It will probably not appear in print for two more years, but I should have sections to post here for critique in the next few months.

I've started reading Moonshine: Its History and Folklore, by Esther Kellner. All my reading has been very interesting. Can't wait to read the Foxfire book.

THANKS FOR ALL REPLIES. I'm trying to digest this stuff. LOVE your terminology - I'll have to make my still 'puke.'

NEW QUESTION: Would a still "blowing up" have potential to start a fire in the woods?

carol333 wrote:NEW QUESTION: Would a still "blowing up" have potential to start a fire in the woods?

The wash itself wouldn't because it is of low enough proof to not burn... The real danger would be the high proof spirits which have already been collected and possibly sitting in the proofing barrel, glass jugs, or other containers around the stilling site... It is the vapors in the headspace of the boiler and the collected spirits that are the most dangerous... This is why we stress to never charge a boiler with low wines greater than 40% (80 proof), because above that the boiler charge itself would be flammable until enough spirits have been distilled out of it and most stilling accidents happen early on in a run rather than towards the end...

I'm back learning about distilling after months of completing my first book.

I will be posting more ignorant moonshine questions soon. A belated thanks, rad14701, for your post, which takes me ever closer to understanding. I've been reading around the forum - safety, etc. This is such a complex subject--it's hard to take it all in.

Soon I'll post sections of my work-in-progress (about a moonshining family) and ask if I've described enough/said anything wrong or misleading, etc.

This is certainly an interesting site.

wb......

Hello again! I've a new question for my book (historical fiction). If moonshine is mixed with fruit and sugar and capped or corked, will there be a wine-type "pop" when it's opened?

One of these days I'll post a chapter or two for your critique on the parts about distilling.

Merry Christmas to all!

Merry Christmas to you too Carol. The "pop" you speak of I think comes from additional fermentation while in the bottle. Since shine traditionally is 50% abv and yeast cannot survive even near that level, I don't think you would have a "pop". Besides, fruit pushed down into a narrow opening jug???

Good points, wacabi1. I read a description of "fruit liquor" - fruit like berries or peaches (maybe mashed) and a cup of sugar added to a half gallon of moonshine and allowed to sit for a few days.

Nice to see your still working on your book. Cant wait to read more.....Merry Christmas

The pop comes from carbonation. Usually, spirits are not carbonated. Like wacabi1 said, if the proof is low enough and there is residual sugar, well yeast will do what yeast do and ferment the sugar and produce carbon dioxide and more alcohol. Home brewers add a small amount of sugar to there beer, cap them, then the yeast ferments and carbonates the beer. Same true for wine etc.

If you use a wine cork to seal your bottles it "could" have a wine pop. I think that sound is more associated with sparkling beverages but it could go either way. Just pulling a cork out makes a signature pop or maybe a plop rather than a POP, like when a pirate pulls out a rum cork with his teeth, then spits it across the room signifying he intends to drink the whole think and not need the cork to reseal it for future storage.

"...fruit like berries or peaches (maybe mashed) and a cup of sugar added to a half gallon of moonshine and allowed to sit for a few days"
We have a special name for fruit infusions, it's probably not historical so let's just call them fruit infusions or <insert name of fruit> flavored moonshine.

carol333 wrote:

edge wrote:My folks moved to XXX County in Virginia in 1980.

That county used more sugar than any other county in the US, and not a week went by that a still was not busted in those Blue Ridge Mountain hollers.
No doubt they are cookin right now

edge.

I'm glad you mentioned the sugar-- I've got sugar in the story!

I see that sometimes sugar is not used in recipes. Is it more necessary in cold weather?

1915 sugar was on ration because of WW1 if memory is right. so more than likely mash would have been from malting grains such as corn, barley, rye, etc. or a blend of the malted grains. the wood used to heat the still hickory and oak. The car that bootleggers drove that led to NASCAR and so on and on.

Might also get a 'pop' if bottled hot off the still with a cork - creates a slight vacuum that makes a pop when the cork is pulled; basically if there is a difference in pressure between inside and out then it will pop when opened (that goes for pretty much anything not just hooch!).

ya aint the writer for Tickle are ya?

Carol333, I have been waiting for a sample, if not a chapter just give us a couple of paragraphs so we can get a hint of where this is going! Would love to here where this is going! You have my interest peaked!

Here is part of a chapter I think is ready to be evaluated for authenticity! The name of this novel is Wanda's Revenge, and it's about a woman who wants revenge on her grandmother. The grandmother is Lucie. The story takes place in 1915, at the beginning of prohibition.

“There’s something new here,” Piney said, when they reached the site. She pointed to a barrel between the boiler and cooling flake, connected to both by new copper spouts.

Lucie tapped it with her cane. “The marshal built it. It’s a ‘thumper,’ meant to shorten our time considerable. Pay attention now.”

Hargis uncovered the mash barrels, and Wanda saw their foamy heads had nearly disappeared.

“Piney, plug the slop hole,” Lucie said.

Piney took a bundle of rags tied to a stick, and leaning into the empty copper boiler, plunged the stick down and drew it out the hole at the bottom.

“Stop,” Lucie said, when the rags plugged the opening. “All of you, now, dip outa that first barrel and fill the boiler near full. Then put three or four buckets’ worth in the thump box.”

“I’m mystified about that thump thing,” Piney said.

“See, the steam coming off the beer in the boiler will heat the beer in the thumper and go on through the coil, so the outcome will be stronger. It's a fast way to double the run. You’ll get the hang of it. Hargis, build the fire gradual. If it gets too hot too fast, you’ll scorch the mash.”

They left the boiler uncovered until the beer heated to a rolling boil, then Hargis and Piney set on the cap and sealed it with Lucie’s special paste. Not long after boiling began, the thump box sounded like something inside was pounding to get out.

“Good,” Lucie said. “That’s the steam from the still hitting the cold beer in the thumper. It’ll set that beer to boiling and steaming.”

Lucie now drew their attention to the spout at the far end of the box of water with the coil. “She’ll be coming outa there pretty soon.”

As they watched the spout, there was a burst of steam, then liquid spurted into a small crock. The spurt soon turned into a trickle, and Lucie picked up the crock and tossed the liquid on a bush.

Standing near Wanda, Hargis whispered, “The first bit is poison. She’ll keep what comes after the second big spurt.”

“Mind the fire,” Lucie called.

“Yes, ma’am.”

As the first run dripped into a clean crock, Lucie sometimes held her finger under the spout and touched her finger to her tongue. Finally she tasted and said, “There ain’t no more kick to it. Stop now. Hargis, pull the logs out of the firebox and we’ll let the boiler cool.”

Wanda looked at the small accumulation of liquid. “Is it whiskey now?”

“It ain’t real strong yet,” Piney said. “We’ll run it back through.”

“But not the old way,” Lucie said. “The old way was to save all these firstlings till all the barrels was run, then run them through the boiler again. This new way is to put the firstlings in the thumper box and keep doubling each run as we go along.”

Before the second run, they drained and cleaned the boiler and thump box. When that was done, they poured the newly-distilled liquor into the thumper and filled the boiler with beer as before.

--
THANKS FOR READING. I'VE IMAGINED THIS FROM MY RESEARCH, SO I'LL APPRECIATE TOUGH COMMENTS. LET 'ER RIP!

Carol,

I'd say that you got it right. You did your research much better than most of the noobs on this forum.

Most of us 'experts' try to nit-pick on the details, so expect a few bad reviews.

Looking forward to the book. Let us know when the movie is coming out!

bundle of rags tied to a stick, ?
firstlings ?

carol333 wrote:...The story takes place in 1915, at the beginning of prohibition.

Prohibition officially began January 20, 1920.

Braz wrote:

carol333 wrote:...The story takes place in 1915, at the beginning of prohibition.

Prohibition officially began January 20, 1920.

West Virginia and some other states (like Virginia) went dry before the federal government did. 1914, I think , for WV. Maybe 1915.

I like it, I was not around back then (Imagine that) so I don't know the terminology that they used but I imagine it varied from person to person. They did not have the information highway we have to try to get on the same page.
When you get it published let us know. I would really like to hear the story of Lucie. Does the story cover why she uses a cane? And I'm curious how Marshal learned how to build a thumper! I'll buy the book to get my answers!
Thanks for doing your research Carol and asking us what we think.

how big of rig is it
if there a burst of steam it all ready puked into the doublein keg an dependin on size unless you rake the coals back you you fitin to have
a mess an it aint gonna be dripin. you want a stream bout the size of a ole kitchen match not no drip an workin the fire acordinly.
think id be sayin somethin bout capin your outfit.
to some folks the cap was the prize of the outfit. anybody can make a kettle but it takes no how to make your cap just right.


so im tole

Good start . Politics played a major role in government enforcement of laws . Check Hillsville , VA Courthouse Shootout . I lost family on both sides of that fray . My Grandfather had a general store in Carroll County , VA . When the Feds said that all Mason jars and all sugar had to be signed for and records kept he considered this . Grandaddy was a red hot Republican in a Democrat county . He never held records showing that any Republicans ever bought sugar or jars in his store .................. He signed it all out to the Democrats ......................

Richard7 wrote:I like it, I was not around back then (Imagine that) so I don't know the terminology that they used but I imagine it varied from person to person. They did not have the information highway we have to try to get on the same page.
When you get it published let us know. I would really like to hear the story of Lucie. Does the story cover why she uses a cane? And I'm curious how Marshal learned how to build a thumper! I'll buy the book to get my answers!
Thanks for doing your research Carol and asking us what we think.

People here led me to great resources for info. Thanks to all!

Truckinbutch wrote:Good start . Politics played a major role in government enforcement of laws . Check Hillsville , VA Courthouse Shootout . I lost family on both sides of that fray . My Grandfather had a general store in Carroll County , VA . When the Feds said that all Mason jars and all sugar had to be signed for and records kept he considered this . Grandaddy was a red hot Republican in a Democrat county . He never held records showing that any Republicans ever bought sugar or jars in his store .................. He signed it all out to the Democrats ......................

I didn't know about signing for jars and sugar.

goose eye wrote:anybody can make a kettle but it takes no how to make your cap just right.


so im tole

Interesting about the cap. I've never seen a still--had to read about everything. And of course there's no knowledge like the first-hand kind.

The confusing part has been that there are so many different recipes, names, and ways of doing things. I learned it was very hard work.

Well its only a matter of time. Any thoughts of building a little 1 or 2 gallon still old school style like in your book? Wouldnt take much and it might be good research for ya Cant wait to see yer book on the shelf

carol333 wrote:

goose eye wrote:anybody can make a kettle but it takes no how to make your cap just right.


so im tole

Interesting about the cap. I've never seen a still--had to read about everything. And of course there's no knowledge like the first-hand kind.

The confusing part has been that there are so many different recipes, names, and ways of doing things. I learned it was very hard work.

" No lazy man ever made whiskey."> Simmie Free in one of Elliot Wigginton's Foxfire books .
I agree with TOAD : You can't make it real until you have done it yourself .

TOAD wrote:Well its only a matter of time. Any thoughts of building a little 1 or 2 gallon still old school style like in your book? Wouldnt take much and it might be good research for ya Cant wait to see yer book on the shelf

Well, yes, Toad, right away my husband said 'let's do it.' I'd rather write.

Hey, all,

Today I've put some info about my moonshine story on my blog and gave homedistiller.org a bit of credit. The book's not done, but here's a preview-- http://carolervin.com/2013/05/02/blog-tag-im-it/.

Hope to be published by fall. I'll let you know when! You may want to discuss here whether I got it right or not.

Thanks for your help.

Carol

Excellent writing, Carol. Captivating style.