Death of an Appalachian Icon

[smhbbag]

'Popcorn' Sutton dies | CITIZEN-TIMES.com | Asheville Citizen-Times

PARROTTSVILLE, Tenn. – Legendary Haywood County moonshiner Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton took his own life because he couldn’t stand the thought of going to prison, his wife said today.

Pam Sutton said she found her husband Monday afternoon dead of carbon monoxide poisoning outside their home in Cocke County, Tenn.

“He got his letter to report Friday, and he just couldn’t handle it,” she said. “We tried everything we could to leave him on house arrest, and they wouldn’t do it. So I thank the federal court for this.\"

This guy was a legend. A friend of mine from college still has some of his moonshine, and will be drinking it in his honor.

He openly showed his operation a number of times for the Discovery Channel and History Channel. I don't want to make this a commentary on the messed up system that considers Popcorn a criminal, but he was defiant to the end. The man certainly had his fair share of faults, but he was never a threat to anyone (other than monopolist liquor retailers).

Word is that he had so many spare weapons that he was seriously planning to build a big shed almost entirely out of old firearms.

I love listening to him talk, too.

[video=youtube;EPuWX7d7yEw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPuWX7d7yEw[/video]

 

[LawrenceU]

That is tragic. Senseless and tragic. I enjoyed watching him. As one old timer I know that still practices the art says, 'Someone has to keep doing it the right way. These young fellars are only in it for the money. They don't know how to really make whiskey.'

 

[smhbbag]

That is tragic. Senseless and tragic. I enjoyed watching him. As one old timer I know that still practices the art says, 'Someone has to keep doing it the right way. These young fellars are only in it for the money. They don't know how to really make whiskey.'

I'd believe it.

Popcorn's 3 most popular likkers (in his words): "th'fightin kind, th'cryin kind, and th' banjo-pickin kind."

 

[Hamalas]

So what exactly are the arguments against moonshining? Why is it viewed as different from normal brewing? (This is an honest question, I'm still learning about all the nuances of this stuff!)

 

[smhbbag]

So what exactly are the arguments against moonshining? Why is it viewed as different from normal brewing? (This is an honest question, I'm still learning about all the nuances of this stuff!)

There are two main problems with it, that I will try to describe as even-handedly as possible:

It has a reputation for being unsafe. Moonshiners are not big on hygiene. This stereotype is impossible to get rid of due to all the idiots during Prohibition and the Great Depression made equipment out of car parts and the like. Folks really did die from it. And I'm sure in some places folks still do. Idiocy hasn't gone out of fashion.

Secondly, when the state wants monopoly power and exclusive retailing rights for a product, well, any reason counts. And anybody who violates that monopoly is, by definition, engaged in a little act of sedition.

Why is it viewed as different from normal brewing?

Home-brewing produces fine ales, lagers, porters, etc. of every taste and variety.

Moonshining produces stuff that tastes like turpentine, varnish, and lighter fluid tossed together in random proportions.

The former is typically consumed by folks who enjoy a respectable reputation. Deserved or not, the latter is consumed by those without such high status who are easier to pick on.

 

[LawrenceU]

Moonshine made properly is really not bad. It can vary widely in taste depending upon what is in the mash. And, it is safe if made well. That takes time and care, and a lot of the people in it for money today (frankly there aren't that many except in localised areas, pot makes more money than liquor) rush the process or use salvaged copper that may contain traces of poisonous chemicals.

A very good friend of mine has tasted some shine that has rivaled better known liquors. He even knows of a couple of fellows that age it. He tells me that is rather wonderful after that aging.

 

[Glenn Ferrell]

I grew up in Appalachian Kentucky. When I was about five, my father took me up a hollow, sat me on a log, and let me watch some of his friends run off a few gallons. Appalachians are only continuing what their Scot-Irish ancestors did in small family owned distilleries in the old country. Some of those in Scotland and Ireland still produce some of the finest whisky in the world.

Prohibition almost destroyed the art in Appalachia. Moonshine had to be made fast to avoid detection by the revenuers. Used radiators (containing lead) were sometimes used as the condensers and produced a poisonous product. Large quantities of sugar were used rather than corn, making an inferior product.

Unlike Scotch, Irish whisky, Rye, Bourbon or Tennessee sour-mash, moonshine is usually not aged in oak barrels, but sold young and raw. The aging process mellows the flavor, adds character, sweetness, aroma, and gives the liquor its amber color. Thus moonshine is called “white lightening,” because of its clear color. That said, I’ve tasted some moonshine in Virginia, which was as smooth and balanced as aged bourbon. I’m sure it was made from pure corn mash.

The primary issue for moonshine making is that of taxes. Since before the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794, the federal government has insisted on their being paid an excise tax on whiskey.

Although the federal government permits an individual to make 100 gallons of beer or wine per year for personal use (200 gallons if there are two adults in the household), distilling is illegal in the US. This is not the case in Canada, where there are some amateur distillers, and one may legally purchase and own equipment to do so. Of course, in this country one may own equipment for distilling water; and if some of that water should be chemically enhanced, well! Alcoholic products usually may not be sold without payment of state and federal taxes. The only exception I know of is that hard cider may be sold from the farms which produce it in a few states. If the ban on home distilling were lifted, there might be some interesting developments in the art of whiskey making, as there has been in home brewing.

 

[Knoxienne]

This is a nice tribute to 'Popcorn' Sutton.