‘Moonshiners: Master Distiller’ Judges on How the Show Has Gone From ‘a Bit of a Joke’ to Serious Competition

Competition on Moonshiners: Master Distiller this season has already been hot and heavy. The top legal and outlaw distillers have put forth their best booze creators to not only judges Tim Smith, Mark Ramsey, and Eric “Digger” Manes but also guest judges like Robert Irvine in a battle of chefs for the January 21 episode.

Among other challenges this season: turning beer into liquor, making prison shine, and spicy liquor. With Season 7 just getting started, we sat down with the trio of moonshiners to get a taste of what’s to come. 

How do the competitors measure up this season? 

Tim Smith: The competitors are better than ever. The previous seasons have educated them, and we are getting a higher level of competition.

Mark Ramsey: The competitors are great this season. I think initially the show was seen as a bit of a joke, but now people are taking it seriously, and we are getting some very accomplished contestants.

Eric “Digger” Manes: We see better and better contestants every season. Initially, people thought it was a setup by the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives), so they refused to sign up but as time went on, we started getting the best of the best which makes our job harder.

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What can you tell us about some of the other challenges the contestants will face this season? 

Smith: Some of the contestants came thinking they were ready to win because they have been distilling for so long. So, as judges, we gave them items they never thought they could make alcohol from like cookies, cereal, and soda pop.

Ramsey: As the competition got better, we had to start throwing many different problems at them and they needed to be quick on their feet.

Manes: With the contestants’ skills getting better, we have to continue to raise the bar. The beer challenge is one of the best we have seen so far. It was thought that since it already has alcohol, it would be easy. But when you introduce things like Hops you realize it’s a lot more than you bargained for.

What are some of the match-ups you’re most excited about viewers seeing? 

Smith: I was really excited for the viewers to watch the first episode, “Prison Shine,” but also excited for them to see Ma Tickle is bringing her famous carrot cake that they then had to distill with. 

Ramsey: The tribute to Jim Tom [Hedrick’s] Rye may be one of my favorite episodes to date.

Manes: Vanessa Braxton, who is a vodka expert, brought an extra layer to the judging table that the contestants didn’t expect. They really rose to the occasion. Then as Popcorn Sutton said, “Jesus turned water into wine, I turned it into liquor.” The “Wine to Shine” episode will be a real crowd-pleaser.

Special drinks and special guests!#ReplyPost What did you think about tonight’s suspenseful #Moonshiners and Moonshiners: Master Distiller episode with Chef Robert Irvine? Let us know down below! ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/KcKvhwoZX5

— Moonshiners (@MoonshinersTV) January 22, 2025

Who are some of the guest judges you liked having on the panel? 

Ramsey: I really enjoyed Chef Irvine and Tim Jones always brings so much knowledge. 

How would you describe your judging approach and how it has evolved? How has what you’re looking for changed? What would you say are your criteria that make a creation stand out? 

Smith: I have become more educated by the contestants and over the seasons learned from them whether they are PhDs or backwood distillers, and this season is no different from a rabbi to a Navy SEAL. 

Ramsey: As always, I judge what has been presented to us. As the competition gets stronger, the judging becomes much more difficult and complex so we have had to redefine our judging process.

Manes: Our judgment has evolved as the contestants got better, in the beginning, we chose the best of the worst, but now judging requires a lot more complexities and a finer palette to choose the winner.

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Anything you want to see from the show that hasn’t been done yet? 

Smith: In the next couple of seasons, I hope we can lean more into the non-alcohol (reverse distillation) trend that we are seeing and also the use of more natural ingredients.

Ramsey: With so many celebrities out there launching liquor brands I think it would be great to have more celebrity judges.

Manes: In the coming seasons, I would really like to see the contestants have to go into nature and find ingredients, water in particular. Without a good water source, you are never going to get a great final product.

Moonshine Master Distiller, Tuesdays, 9/8c, Discovery Channel

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