Vodka brands have been adding fruit flavoring to their spirits for years in hopes of coaxing mixologists to shell out for another fifth, or at least get the squeamish drinking something. So it makes perfect sense the same trend would trickle down to white lightening. The sweetness from Junior Johnson’s Midnight Moon Aged Fruit Moonshine($30) just happens to come from real fruit as opposed to the chemistry cop-out that is “natural fruit flavoring”. Apples, cherries, and strawberries are simply added by hand to mason jars of Junior’s traditionally smooth Midnight Moon (made from corn in a copper still — not a radiator) and allowed to “age” for several weeks. That’s about as traditional as it gets folks.
For those who aren’t familiar with Midnight Moonshine or its parent company Piedmont distillers, the company was founded by a native New Yorker who fell in love with North Carolina and its patron spirit back in 1995 after tasting a jar of the Johnson family’s peach-flavored moonshine. It was love at first guzzle and he soon convinced the yocals to teach him the tricks of the trade. Soon a company was born which today employs a mere ten people and continues to produce high-quality craft spirits. According to the website, their spirits can be found at liquor stores across the country, not their parking lots.
Buy Now: $20-$30