Drink Spirits Editor, Geoff Kleinman, travels to Tennessee to tour the Ole Smoky Moonshine Distillery for a demonstration on How Moonshine Is Made (although much of Ole Smoky Is made offsite of the Holler)
I worked for their Pittman Center MAIN location...not this bullshit marketing and PR shop. Their Blackberry flavor for example is literally JUST bulk neutral grain spirit cut with Ocean Spray...exactly as you'd get from the store. That's it. Nothing more. It's the same with every flavor. They just mix neutral grain spirit with an off the shelf name brand jug, jar, or box of whatever. The end result generally tastes fine but I personally wouldn't buy it even if it was cheap. They run their workers all day with a single one hour break and then back to the assembly line, or back floor if lucky that day. They use very cheap day labor from a temp service called LaborExchange. That temp service is in a very bad part of town so most of them are very poorly kept and just their to make their pill or crack money for the day. It sounds cruel but it's the honest truth and some of these temps are actually amazing to have around and become regulars. Most are there for one day only and have to trained for whatever station on the spot. These people usually get stuck on the top cap sticker machine for the mini jars. Anyways yeah...assholes run the plce and the turnover rate is unusually high. I get it's a business and they really do pump out THOUSANDS of products in a day with only three lines. I'd NEVER recommend working there or buying their "Moonshine" though. The secret most people don't get is that moonshine is simply unaged whisky and unaged whisky is simply a neutral grain spirit like vodka. Point being is that it's only true moonshine if there are no taxes. Now Climax for example does have an amazing corn taste for sipping. Most though are again just bulk neutral grain spirit made to taste like nothing and appeal to people that are uneducated on what moonshine really is. Moonshine is not a product, it's a way of life that has landed a lot of good people either dead or in jail.
been here most the peach and flavored drinks are make with a sugar shine to keep cost down. still all round good gave my wife some good ideas for our clear when she got home.
hello itz 3/7/20 i got a quart of 100 proof ol Smokies,, i been giittin 160 sweet corn shine local, damn good!! just bought case Peach Crown!! Saved 4 Maggie Valley Hillbilly Jam
White lightening should be like water at 200 proof! Moonshine should not be diluted down to 80 or 90 proof! Make 190 proof grain alcohol be as smooth as water!
I just visited there, didn't care for the people there. Sugarlands Shine is across the street, much better place and people. I enjoyed my visit there much better. It's a must see.
peninsulamike that's where I went. $5 pays for 12 taste testing and it was amazing. Such a great place all around and I'm debating on moving to Tennessee.
Most just want to make straite corn likkr .. very few take the time to grind rye correctly Not many use a doubler. Brandys are better pay you know what yur doing .250 a gallon . Take a 500 gallon black pot and a 40 gallon rye mash in one doubler and another doubler with Honey mash with Apple toss in a can of cinnamon . Letem furment and Run'em Yes its like running Three stills but the Doublers are thump kegs oak . Try it youl like it use malted corn for all 3 beers or mash .
Teddy Lundy A grain neutral spirit is simply a product which is high enough proof that is doesn't retain the full flavor profile of the corn used to make it. "Corn whiskey" is distilled to a lower proof and still has those flavor characteristics. Being that "real" moonshine is 140-190 proof or so, GNS is closer to real moonshine than corn whiskey.
+bluesy92 The old shiners ran pot stills. A pot still produces lower alcohol that retains flavor characteristics. No matter what you've heard no shine from a pot still reaches 190. Not even if you run it multiple times. You need a column or reflux still for that. At 190 you have GNS which is flavorless vodka. This company buys GNS from the midwest and cuts it down and adds flavoring. They don't actually distill anything themselves. They cheat. You have it backwards. Corn Whiskey is basically the legal term for what the shiners ran. Moonshine only means it's untaxed liquor. Nothing more.
I thought bourbon was the American drink, but it was probably started here by people moving here from far away. Where as Moonshine is really the drink made by Americans. Which one is more American?
All you haters are mad because yall will never have a nice place like this,if you dont like the alcohol dont drink it,if you dont like the video dont watch it or comment on it trying to give them a bad name
That fella that owns the company looks like a insurance salesman. He might know business. But he don't know shit from apple butter, when it comes to shine.
Check out the piece we wrote on their aged moonshine, we talk about questions surrounding their source: www.drinkspirits.com/whiskey/review-ole-smoky-charred-spirit-whiskey/
