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Why is it illegal to distill your own Whiskey

Cubslover
I am a huge whiskey fan. I'd love to be able to try distilling my own. Any reason why it is banned? I assume there is a fire risk with a distiller and raw alcohol.
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  • JamesRK
    quote:Originally posted by gunnut505
    So many misconceptions, so little time.
    Prohibition is what CAUSED folks to try their hands at producing alcohol in their bathtubs (doing so before or after prohibition makes zero sense), thus causing blindness when the lye or clorox was added to make the deadly poison Methanol taste better.
    It IS legal to make as much as 500 gallons for your own consumption per year, and if you make wine as well; you can make another 500 gallons of that. I have a neighbor that gives me his mash for my chickens-about 250 lbs at a time!
    There's no need for a BATFE mullet to "inspect" your premises; they are not chemists, and have no idea what to look for. If your still is located outside; nobody has a right to wander into your house.

    gunnut, there is about a 99.99% chance that your neighbor is in violation of the law. If he is making distilled spirits (drinking alcohol) without being a "bonded premises of a qualified distilled spirits plant", you can up that to 100%. He might get away with it forever without being caught or prosecuted, but what he is doing is illegal. He can legally make beer and wine at home for personal use, but not distilled spirits.

    This is a copy of an eMail from BATFE to some guy who was inquiring how to do it legally:
    quote:http://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Legality
    Ray, you have not been able to locate anything on home production because there is no provision for it. Moonshining is still illegal!! Unlike wine or beer, the laws and regulations governing distilled spirits contain no provision that would allow someone to produce spirits in their home for personal use. Under 26 U.S.C. Section 5171 operations as a distiller, warehouseman or processor may be conducted only on the bonded premises of a qualified distilled spirits plant. To qualify such a plant, a registration, application for permit and bond must be filed in addition to other supporting organizational documents. 26 U.S.C. 5178 places restrictions on where a plant can be located. Hope this answers your question.
    Carol Coy Industry Specialist National Revenue Center-Cincinnati, OH Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms e-mail: cjcoy@cinc.atf.treas.gov
    The requirements to become a "bonded premises of a qualified distilled spirits plant" are listed in 27 CFR Part 19. This is a link to CFR Part 19:

    http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_05/27cfr19_05.html
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