Moonshine : A Cultural History of America's Infamous Liquor

**Nothing but clear, 100-proof American history.** Hooch. White lightning. White whiskey. Mountain dew. Moonshine goes by many names. So what is it, really? Technically speaking, "moonshine" refers to untaxed liquor made in an unlicensed still. In the United States, it’s typically corn that’s used to make the clear, unaged beverage, and it’s the mountain people of the American South who are most closely associated with the image of making and selling backwoods booze at night—by the light of the moon—to avoid detection by law enforcement. In this book, writer Jaime Joyce explores America’s centuries-old relationship with moonshine. From the country’s early adoption of Scottish and Irish home-distilling techniques and traditions to the Whiskey Rebellion of the late 1700s to a comparison of the moonshine industry pre- and post-Prohibition and a look at modern-day craft distilling, Joyce examines the historical context that gave rise to moonshining in America and explores its continued appeal. Even more fascinating than the popularity of the liquor itself is moonshine’s widespread effect on U.S. pop culture: moonshine runners were NASCAR’s first marquee drivers; white whiskey was the unspoken star of countless Hollywood film and television productions; and numerous songs inspired by making shine have come from such musicians as Dolly Parton, Steve Earle, Metallica, Ween, and others. While we can’t condone making your own illegal liquor, reading Moonshine will give you a new perspective on the profound implications that underground moonshine making has had on life in America. "Nothing but clear, 100-proof American history. Hooch. White lightning. White whiskey. Mountain dew. Moonshine goes by many names. So what is it, really? Technically speaking, "moonshine" refers to untaxed liquor made in an unlicensed still. In the United States, it's typically corn that's used to make the clear, unaged beverage, and it's the mountain people of the American South who are most closely associated with the image of making and selling backwoods booze at night--by the light of the moon--to avoid detection by law enforcement. In Moonshine: A Cultural History of America's Infamous Liquor, writer Jaime Joyce explores America's centuries-old relationship with moonshine through fact, folklore, and fiction. From the country's early adoption of Scottish and Irish home distilling techniques and traditions to the Whiskey Rebellion of the late 1700s to a comparison of the moonshine industry pre- and post-Prohibition, plus a look at modern-day craft distilling, Joyce examines the historical context that gave rise to moonshining in America and explores its continued appeal. But even more fascinating is Joyce's entertaining and eye-opening analysis of moonshine's widespread effect on U.S. pop culture: she illuminates the fact that moonshine runners were NASCAR's first marquee drivers; explores the status of white whiskey as the unspoken star of countless Hollywood film and television productions, including The Dukes of Hazzard, Thunder Road, and Gator; and the numerous songs inspired by making 'shine from such folk and country artists as Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Alan Jackson, and Dolly Parton. So while we can't condone making your own illegal liquor, reading Moonshine will give you a new perspective on the profound implications that underground moonshine-making has had on life in America"-- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Title 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS 7 PROLOGUE: Bangin’ in the Woods 8 1 “The Pernicious Practice of Distilling” in Early America 18 2 Whiskey Rebels, “Watermelon Armies,” and President Washington 30 3 War on Whiskey: Taxing Liquor and Defying the Law in the 1800s 44 4 Prohibition’s Rise and Fall, and What Happened in Between 62 5 Moonshine on Trial 76 6 “Death Defying Ding-Dong Daddies from the Realm of Speed”: Moonshine and the Birth of NASCAR 90 7 “Popskull Crackdown” 108 8 Moonshine Renaissance 124 9 Making Mountain Dew 144 10 Moonshine in Pop Culture 156 EPILOGUE: Moonshiners Reunion 170 NOTES & SOURCES 179 PHOTO & MUSIC CREDITS 202 INDEX 206 A 206 B 206 C 206 D 207 E 207 F 207 G 207 I 207 H 207 J 207 K 207 L 208 M 208 N 208 O 208 P 208 R 209 S 209 T 209 U 210 V 210 W 210 "A history of America's centuries-old relationship with moonshine through fact, folklore, and fiction. Author Jaime Joyce examines the historical context that gave rise to moonshining in America and explores its continues appeal"