It's hard to find a single house with large pans and pressure cookers.

The problem is, there are still people around that are ignorant about using contaminated equipment; "Ya gotta throw the first batch away ...".

oddly enough the last bottle of shine i saw came from chicago

i have met a few "good ole boys" here that still make it. they do it for fun becuase they can, or as a way to stick their thumb in the "mans" eye.

honestly with the price of ingredients and effort you can buy quality party liqueur cheaper than you can make it.

I think moonshiningis still alive and well all over the US, not just the south.

no doubt about that.

i have had shine you could literally run a dragster off of that was so smooth it went down like water.

back in the 20-30's my grandfater used to run saw mills. he made and sold stills on the side but never made it himself as the only thing he ever drank was an occasional beer.  when he died we found a few cases of shine with different dates and people names on it. We figured it was given to him by the people that bought the still and he just put it away.

Moonshine whiskey is still being produced in the south, and I am sure all over the country. These days it is more of a novelty than a commercial enterprise. Moonshine just isn't all that profitable these days, a legitimate commercial operation can make ten thousand gallons for a few cents a gallon, the taxes and levees on the liquor are higher than the production cost on much of it. The legitimate makers also don't have to worry about law enforcement, which makes it easier for them to produce consistent quality products, moonshiners have to hide the still, and aren't always able to work in the best conditions.

In the old days Moonshine was rarely a quality product, it tasted bad, and was often contaminated by the materials used to make it, and the equipment it was made in. Lead solder was often used, as were car radiators and other parts that were never intended to be used to prepare foods in, or underheat. In the old days it wasn't uncommon for a person to go blind or die after drinking moonshine.

Today many of the moonshiners do make a quality product, but more often than not they are making a product that is bought by people who have developed a taste for whiskey that tastes like rubbing alcohol. Any liquor that you feel you need to add fruit or other strong flavors to make palatable isn't exactly something I would call a high quality product. In my area there are a few oldtimers that truly make high quality whiskey, and not just the corn variety, but Rye and sour mash as well, but these days they are doing it more as a hobby than a commercial enterprise, they are proud of their whiskey, and occasionally they make a product as good as anything on the legal market, and when you find some of this, it will be priced accordingly.

For me, I have no interest in low price moonshine, sure, I can buy a gallon jug for $6, which is cheaper than anything in the liquor store, but for not much more I can buy a fifth of Beam and actually enjoy what I am drinking.

ETA: Yes, there is still enforcement of the laws, earlier this year there were several raids on stills in this area. Modern Moonshiners are also involved in other illegal activities, and it isn't unheard of for a large patch of marijuana to have a still nearby, local law enforcement and the DEA put most of their resources into chasing drugs. As long as moonshine isn't causing problems they don't chase the shiners much, but if they come across them they will bust them.