During the pandemic, many states liberalized alcohol laws. Alcohol supply was illegal before the pandemic, but it has now been legalized in many states. While not directly related to homemade alcohol, it does show that many states are liberalizing alcohol laws and are interested in supporting the alcohol industry. West Virginia is one of those states. In 2021, Governor Jim Justice signed the House of Representatives bill of 2025. According to the West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration, some of the concepts in the House Bill 2025 include legal alcohol supply; other outdoor and street-based restaurants for beer, wine and spirits; limited direct shipping for breweries and distilleries; and a reduction in the cider tax. CHARLESTON, W.Va. West Virginia lawmakers are considering a proposal that would allow people to make alcohol at home for themselves and their family members. It is already legal for West Virginians to produce beer and wine at home. Drinking alcohol at home is illegal throughout the country, but some states allow it. If passed, West Virginia will join Alaska, Arizona, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Rhode Island as home distillation states. Those who oppose the legalization of home distillation often argue that it should remain banned for health and safety reasons. Whisky can be contaminated with methanol if not distilled properly.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, methanol is a highly flammable toxic alcohol that can cause many health problems, including blindness and death. Methanol is one of the main reasons moonshine is associated with blindness, death, and explosions. Although methanol is used to make many valuable products (including fuel, antifreeze and solvents) and is even naturally present in many fruits and vegetables that people consume regularly, it is not safe for humans to drink whiskey contaminated with methanol. Illegal whisky is still produced and is readily available to those who know where to look for it. However, homemade corn liquor is a thing of the past, as sugar is now usually replaced by most grains. Around 1910, states began enacting prohibition laws in anticipation of the great national drought that would soon follow. The West Virginia Prohibition went into effect in 1914. Then, from 1920 to 1933, the U.S. government imposed a national ban, which resulted in a dramatic increase in moonshine.
Even when national prohibition ended, parts of the South remained dry. Anyway, some drinkers stayed in part to clean the mountain whiskey, and the illegal distillation continued. After 1950, when local prohibition laws were passed and economic conditions improved, demand for illegal whiskey declined and moonlight production declined. Home distillation could soon be legalized in West Virginia. The West Virginia House of Delegates recently passed Bill 2972, a bill that would make it legal for West Virginians to produce alcohol at home. The bill will make it legal for people 21 and older to produce 50 gallons of alcohol per calendar year in a household where only one person is over 21, and 100 gallons of alcohol per calendar year in a household where two or more people are over 21. Homemade liquor can be made for personal or family use, but it will still be illegal to sell homemade alcohol. House Bill 2972 is currently pending in the West Virginia Senate.
West Virginia is no stranger to moonlight, and many people`s vivid hoods depended on it. That is, until the government imposed high taxes on moonshine and production dropped sharply, and those who continued to produce did so in secret. Currently, there is still moonshine in West Virginia, but it is mostly produced by licensed manufacturers. The production of illegal whiskey or moonshine has a long history in West Virginia and elsewhere. The word entered the English language around 1785 when burnt white was smuggled to the south-east English coast of Kent and Sussex. Those who made or transported the drink worked in the moonlight to escape the law. Moonshine is illegal because producers do not comply with state or federal laws regarding the licensing, manufacture, sale, and taxation of distilled spirits. It`s legal to own a still in West Virginia as long as you don`t use it to distill moonlight. West Virginia requires a license to make your own fuel or make your own essential oils, etc.
Mountaineers traditionally used corn to make moonlight. The first step was to germinate the corn, then crush the sprouted grain and mix it with water. This mixture, called puree, was fermented in open barrels. If the moonshiners had yeast and used it, fermentation lasted up to four days; If they didn`t have yeast and the weather was cool, fermentation took longer, maybe two weeks. Once fermentation was complete, the slightly alcoholic liquid, now called beer, was ready to distill or “drain.” The beer was heated in the copper pot or kettle of the still to a temperature well below boiling when alcoholic vapors rose from the liquid. These vapors were condensed into liquid in the worm, a coil of copper pipes passing through a bath of cooling water. Each batch was usually unloaded two or more times to get the maximum amount of whisky from the bindings. Under West Virginia state law, it`s already legal to make beer and wine at home. House Bill 2972 would make it legal for any West Virginia resident 21 years of age or older to “produce alcoholic alcohol for personal or family use,” with a limit of 50 gallons per calendar year or 100 gallons per calendar year for households where multiple people are over the age of 21. A bill has been proposed that would legalize home distillation in West Virginia so residents can make alcohol at home for themselves and their family members, according to NewsNation.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Those who like to drop off their own load of homemade liquor could do so legally if legislation that emerged from the West Virginia House of Delegates on Monday becomes law. There are several licenses you need to apply for to legally produce spirits. Below are only federal licenses. Additional government requirements must also be met. At present, it does not appear that homemade alcohol is being legalized, but the latest trend to liberalize alcohol laws shows that many people are interested in supporting laws that promote the alcohol industry and alcohol production. Some bans seem endless, but the fact that many prohibition laws end shows that many bans have very little real support. State governments have liberalized alcohol laws to help industries affected by the pandemic, and liberalized laws continue to help the economy.
House Bill 2972 would allow people over the age of 21 to make up to 50 gallons of alcohol at home in one year. If two or more people over the age of 21 live in a household, families can produce up to 100 gallons of alcohol per year. AgricultureBlack Draft DistilleryBlack Draft MoonshineCorn WhiskeyCraft DistilleryFamily BusinessMoonshineprohibitionunaged whiskey West Virginiawv Whiskey Production of stills at Kings County Distillery on September 22, 2012, Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York City. Home distillation could soon be legalized in West Virginia, allowing residents to make their own spirits. (Photo credit: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/GettyImages) Making moonlight without a license in West Virginia is considered a misdemeanor and the person can be fined and/or jailed. Frank is a writer at Commoner. He is a graduate of Duquesne University, Eastern Gateway Community College and Indiana Wesleyan University. He enjoys listening to rock, jazz, metal and Italo disco music.
He writes about many subjects, and he wants to make inventions In West Virginia, field corn, fresh stream water, and hard-working farmers have come together to make moonlight, sometimes called mountain dew or white lightning. Moonshine is usually a 100% whisky that has aged little or not at all and has been an important crop.