White Lightning

[ebbtide176]

Re: White Lightning

you should run a search on Dawsonville, Georgia. it will give alot of history on moonshining & the early years of nascar. most of the early nascar winners were from dawsonville and north georgia. <br /><br />if you stop in dawsonville, and eat at the dawsonville pool room, you will find walls full of old photos related to early nascar, and clippings of the old racers. there is a moonshine festival there every year, although i doubt moonshine will be in public display,and its a small festival.<br /><br />just 10yrs ago, i last tasted some moonshine. it was smooth stuff, made in south georgia, supposedly near the okeefenokee swamp area. i've had it probably 4-5 times over the years. used to see old chopped up stills when deerhunting as a teen. <br /><br />good shine is smooth, to me its similar to rum. the bad runs are more like twofinger tequila! yeech<br /><br />i once tasted some at a KA frat house on ga tech campus - amateurs tryin to prove they could make it- about as smooth as regular gasoline.

 

[12Footer]

Re: White Lightning

I could tell you some tales about the "Miami Connection" that would curl yer hair..But then I would have to terminate you. (JK)

 

[Hooty]

Re: White Lightning

Anybody ever make or drink any Marine Corp wine? It's made with Welch's Frozen Grape Juice, sugar and a little yeast. Ah yes, Wednesday was an excelent year.<br /><br />c/6<br /><br />Hooty

 

[62_Kiwi]

Re: White Lightning

12Footer - go on...I'd love to hear some of those stories and I'm feeling quite safe all the way down here in Wellington (on holiday in NZ's capital city) <br /><br />Thanks again everyone for all the posts on this very interesting and colourful aspect of your American heritage. <br /><br />I'm realizing that NZ and the USA have a lot in common with the similar types of people who settled here and there. We also had a thriving "home brew" cottage industry in NZ's earlier years. My grandfather was quite active in this area - although my father tells me it was the worst tasting stuff he'd every tried

 

[FLATHEAD]

Re: White Lightning

My Grandfather (bless his soul) was from Alabama. He used to tell about an old mule he had named Maggie. Seems it was when he had a good batch brewed up he would put the bottles in saddle bags on the mule then just give her a good slap on the rear and she would make her way 10 miles to a fellow that distributed the stuff for gramps. You see he could not take a chance on getting caught being he was a lawman. Funny how things have not changed all that much.

 

[upstate]

Re: White Lightning

we never worried about makin shine, just went to<br />canada. no fast cars just boats.

 

[Bear]

Re: White Lightning

"Ah yes, Wednesday was an excelent year."<br />

 

[12Footer]

Re: White Lightning

OK, 62Kiwi. The scene was a bit different in the very deep south, in southern Florida ,where I was born and raised. We had some stills, but nothing like the Georgia thru Virginia.<br />But on a related note, the drug trade is a different story.<br /> Ah yes...Those heady days of the 70's and 80's!!!<br />when black Donzis plied the waters off our Florrida coast!<br />I was a young man then. I had the mullet hairdo, parachute pants, and 3-day beard-stubble goin-on. I had my livin room painted in white, with pastel stripes,and shiny chrome stair-railings...I was "happenin"!<br />Ah yes, the times when any fishing trip could become an boat-chase, and boardings were expected (becuase of the captain's age and appearance in the binoculars).<br />Times when "square grouper" were not defined as non-happenin deep-water yummy fishes, but rather bundles of pot, that could be found floating on rare occasions, after the passing of a frieghter.<br />Them black boats were only detectable by the sound of thier propulsion at night. You could see the ships in the shipping lanes off the coast,from the comfort of you lounge chair on the beach.<br />It was a time of systematic degradation of American youth, the likes of which, we have not fully recovered from. (Manuel Noriega, burn in hell).<br /><br />My best friend and I were out one weekend evening, fishing the shallows for reds and the occasional trout and snook, when he spotted a garbage bag. Whenever we found floating debris, we would haul it in, and dispose of it properly. Well, this bag was full of water-logged pot. We threw it back, and called CG, who came out and picked it up 2 hours later.<br />That happened to many fishermen down here...Far more than was reported, as some would just turn a proffit, instead of turning it in. The frieghters rarely stopped (as depicted on Miami Vice), and would simply toss the bails over the side underway. Many bales of pot were not found by the black boats after such a drop.<br /><br />Piracy was a big problem too, and accordingly, many captains are armed to the teeth to this day.<br /><br />As far as white lightnin, my only experiances were in high school, where it made it to a few parties.<br />And the "bilgegrape wine" was usually pretty tollerable when nothing else was available.<br />To gain an experiance of it's taste,quality, and potency, purchase a bottle of MD20/20...It's the same thing.<br />Bildgegrape wine made watches more difficult,personally, so I only tried it the one time, realizing that it was not condusive to keeping awake.

 

[62_Kiwi]

Re: White Lightning

Thanks 12Footer - next time they put a Miami Vice re-run on tv, I'll be looking out for a young 12Footer in the background <br /><br />Sounds like the equivalent of the "shine runners" was happening out on the water. I imagine those black boats would have been very quick too. Did you ever see any police boats chasing them ?<br /><br />Are they still doing that these days ?