Two Trees Distilling’s barrels of whiskey, which is aged rapidly thanks to innovative technology.
A souvenir postcard shot by George Masa shows a staged moonshine setup. Historic figure Bascom Lamar Lunsford sits on the left. Lunsford was a lawyer and Appalachian folk musician.
The first step in making moonshine is creating a mash, which typically includes cornmeal or cracked corn, sugar, water, and yeast. Every moonshining family has their own recipes, some of which are fiercely guarded.
At A-B Technical College, students can study brewing, distilling, and fermentation. Their program covers everything from production, operations, and safety to sanitation and associated process technologies.
Willie Clay Call (left) and an ATF agent (right). The agency gave Call his iconic nickname, “The Uncatchable” because of his ability to evade law enforcement.
Brian Call (left) and his son Austin (right), who operate Call Family Distillers in Wilkesboro.
This family-owned distillery currently offers seven varieties of moonshine. The Uncatchable collection—a reference to the family’s original legendary moonshining ancestor—features four flavors made with hand-selected malted barley, locally-sourced corn meal, wheat, and cane sugar. Reverend Daniel Call is recognized in The Reverend collection, which includes Forbidden Fire Cinnamon, Apple, and Coffee Liqueur flavors.
Making moonshine is a tedious process; after corn mash has been created.
The mixture is heated in the still.
The alcohol evaporates and the steam is captured, filtered, and bottled into moonshine.
Two Trees cofounder Chad Slagle (left) and Steven Laker (right), CEO of MDWerks. Two Trees caught the attention of MDWerks because of the distillery’s unique rapid aging process that is both environmentally sustainable and true to classic flavor profiles.
Whiskey is the main product of Two Trees Beverage Company; they offer twenty-plus varieties, including a few different bourbons and several flavored whiskeys such as Carolina peach, Michigan cherry, and peppermint. Two Trees pays homage to the mythical creatures of the Appalachians—the Snarly Yow, the Owl Head, the Wampus Cat, and the Old Fyre Dragaman—in their Folklore collection. Alongside whiskey, the distillers also offer an 80 proof premium vodka.
Rett murhpy, eda rhyne distilling company.
Eda Rhyne offers a single vodka and gin, as well as other atypical flavors of herbal liquors. The Lindera vodka is flavored with spicebush, while the gin is made from classic botanicals with notes of foraged eastern hemlock and angelica. From the bitterness of roots and bark with a splash of wildflower to smoked rhubarb and aromatic Appalachian herbs, their Amaro flavors are equally evocative. The distillers also offer canned sodas combining grapefruit and cola with amaro.
Like moonshine, other spirits are made using stills that filter out the fermented alcohol from the solid mixture that gives them flavor.
The solid mixture that gives them flavor.
da Rhyne’s tasting room allows patrons to sample all the company’s offerings.
Cedar mountain: This distiller offers eight varieties including a lemon-infused sweet tea moonshine.
CHEMIST: Chemist produces several high-quality spirits by the fifth, including collections of vodkas, gins, whiskeys, and liqueurs.
CULTIVATED COCKTAILS: Their diverse product list includes everything from vodka, rum, and gin to specialties like aperitif, cordial, crème de cacao, and whisky.
M&T Distilling: From amaretto to coffee, peanut butter, and apple pie, M & T has a variety of full- and shot-sized offerings.
Oak and Grist: In Black Mountain and stores around NC, you’ll find this distiller’s single malt whiskeys and gins, including Genever, which Oak and Grist calls “The Whiskey Drinker's Gin.”
