How to Tell If Moonshine Is Good?

While alcohol is legal in most states for people over 21, many enjoy brewing their own moonshine.

During the 1920s prohibition era, bootleggers made their own home-distilled liquor, called moonshine. Ingredients in moonshine, such as methanol have been known to blind and paralyze drinkers. Other ingredients, such as lye, lead, chemical fertilizers and paint thinners, can find their way into homemade liquor, causing health and sanitation problems. Though alcohol is readily available and legal today, some hobbyists still enjoy making their own "hooch." When done properly, moonshine is as safe to drink as the liquor you buy in a store. Be sure to consult your local ordinances about the legality of making moonshine. Does this Spark an idea?

Print this article

Instructions

- 1
  
  Research the person who made the moonshine, if you haven't made it yourself. Make sure it is someone you trust and cares about your safety.
- 2
  
  Make moonshine only with natural ingredients such as sugar, water and yeast and using only glass bottles. If someone else made the moonshine, ask what ingredients he used. Don't drink it if he mentions using chemicals.
- 3
  
  Inspect the area where the moonshine was brewed. Make sure the area is sanitary and free of containers holding harmful chemicals, such as bleach, formaldehyde, manure, paint thinners and lye. If making the moonshine yourself, keep the moonshine, brewing equipment and bottles used to store moonshine away from these chemicals at all times.
- 4
  
  Ask about or inspect the equipment used to produce and store the moonshine. Don't drink it if it was made with lead or plastic equipment, or stored in lead containers. If you made the moonshine yourself, you can identify if your equipment contains lead by buying a lead test kit. If someone else made the moonshine and isn't sure about lead content, don't drink it.
- 5
  
  Smell the moonshine. If you don't wince, you are safe from the risks of blindness associated with methanol. If you notice a chemical aroma, don't drink the moonshine, as it may contain chemicals or have an extremely high alcohol content.

Tips & Warnings

Home brewing alcohol may not be legal in your area. Check your local ordinances or regulations.

Suggest item

Read this Article in Spanish

Photo Credit John Block/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images

Comments

How to Tell If an Egg is Good or Bad
Before you start preparing a recipe that requires eggs, check the eggs in advance to make sure they are good. You do...
How to Tell If an Egg is Still Good
This is the traditional method to see if an egg is good.
How to Tell If Water Is Safe to Drink
Do I really know what's in the water? How can I find out what I'm drinking? Water from your faucet runs through...
About Moonshine
Moonshine is any distilled alcoholic spirit made illegally. While many grains can be used in the manufacture of moonshine, most often it...
How to Brew Moonshine
Moonshine is so named because it's creators worked at night, when they couldn't be easily found and arrested. Making moonshine was not...
Idaho Laws on Moonshine Stills
Idaho Laws on Moonshine Stills. Moonshine is clarified alcohol produced through a home still. Production of moonshine for home use is illegal...
How to Test RAM on Your Computer
Testing of RAM (Random Access Memory) allows you to know the exact space available in your computer and the need for memory...
How to Make Moonshine Step-by-Step
Moonshine is the term for alcohol that is made and distilled at home, and is also referred to as "Ruckus Juice." The...
What Are the Dangers of Homemade Wine?
Making homemade wine isn't dangerous in the life-or-death sense, unlike making moonshine, where a mistake can cause blindness. The wine-making process creates...
How to Get a Moonshine Permit in Tennessee
Independent distillers have been producing corn whiskey, colloquially known as moonshine, in the Tennessee hills for hundreds of years. Until 2009, the...
How to Make a Simple Moonshine Still at Home
The recipe sounds simple enough: Mix yeast and molasses with water and let the mixture ferment until it becomes a bubbling cauldron...
How to Know if Your Water Bottle is Safe
Do you know if your water bottle is safe? We all want safe water to drink. However, even if we buy clean...
How to Make a Moonshine Still With a Beer Keg
Making whiskey legally requires a license, so moonshining remains alive and well. For many moonshiners, ordering a copper pot isn't an option...
What Is a Reflux Still?
The reflux still is a piece of equipment invented as a distillation tool. It still was developed in the late 19th century...
How to Tell if It's Real Sterling Silver
Sterling silver is a metal used in the creation of jewelry, flatware and other common items. Because genuine silver is too soft...
How to Distill Methanol
Methanol is a natural alcohol found in many fruits that are high in pectin, like grapes or berries. Methanol is distilled by...
How to Make a Still
A still by its very definition is designed to separate different liquids or solids from liquids. Most stills in the traditional sense...