John Arthur Henricks

During Prohibition the government added poisons to alcohol destined for industrial use to foil any would-be scofflaws and bootleggers. Much of this "denatured" alcohol was stolen or sold to bootleggers who attempted to leach out the impurities using stills. Since this was a time-consuming and expensive process, the bootleggers—lacking patience and a conscience— merely added flavors, coloring, and a lot of water to mask the bad taste. It was estimated 95 percent of all bootleg alcohol of the less reputable homemade variety contained poison. By 1927, eleven thousand people had died from drinking denatured alcohol and many more were paralyzed and/or permanently blinded.

In the following article, John Arthur Henricks, an electrochemist, discusses his Prohibition experiences with "chock beer" and "jake." The two infamous homebrews started his early career of reckless drinking that eventually...