Trade Goods: Alcohol Addendum

After hitting "publish" on my last post, a few things were brought to my attention, or rather the lack of a few things. This is an attempt to cover those omissions.

Distilling Drinking Spirits
I mentioned the legal framework for making your own beer, wine and fuel but forgot to cover the distilling of drinking alcohol. Under current law, you can't. The various governing agencies have not provided a legal way for people to distill their own drinking alcohol without paying huge fees and taxes. Moonshining is still illegal, and you may have noticed that I won't suggest that anyone knowingly break the law. Consider all of the information available on line "For entertainment and educational purposes only":

• A good place to start is Tony Ackland's page. He's a chemical engineer from New Zealand and his measurements are metric, but the information is clear and reliable.
• The History Channel has covered moonshining in a few of their series and their webpage has some clear and concise graphics to help explain the process.
• There are commercial home stills available for sale, but the tax man will want it registered if it is going to be used for drinking alcohol.
• Of course, in a WROL situation, the tax man will be the least of your worries, and having this kind of information could be very valuable. Use your own judgement and know the risks before getting started.