2/24/23.  Started this one right after book 3.  Prologue seems interesting.  3/6/23 I finished the book.  In true R.C. fashion it was a page turner for sure.  Connor and Sam get nabbed by the cult.  Lanny, Vee and Gwen (along with Javi, Kez, J.B. and the FBI) raid the compound.  Do they get the boys back???

Chapters are still to long but still written in characters.  I’m giving this book an 8/10.  Glad I read it in 10 days so now I can start the 5th book.

2/16/23 8:54a.m.  I just finished book 2.  Killman Creek.  I’m starting this one today and I hope it’s as good as the last 2.
2/24/23. 8 days.   I just finished Wolfhunter River.  It was good but not as good as book 2.
Gwen, Sam and the kids have to skirt over to Wolfhunter to help out Vee.  A 15 year old girl who’s mother was killed.  When things take a wrong turn everyone ends up getting beat up / bloodied and bruised.  Lanny helps Vee talk about the incident and the lawyer ends up getting his due in the end.  Gwen takes a Private Eye job at the end of the book.  Ready for book 4.

I give this book a 7/10.  The characters (although we know them already) are well written, the chapters are JUST SO LONG!  They are written in character chapters though.  I like that.

2/24/23

Earl’s old lady:

3 lbs honey (from Glenns)
15 Twinings Lady Grey black tea
1 gallon purified water
Lalvin D47 (half packet)

SG = 1.090

I started by steeping the 15 bags of tea in 4 quarts of the purified water.  I added the honey to the carboy and added the warm tea.  Pitched yeast and put on the airlock.  She’s pretty!
3/21/23
Gravity = 1.040.  She’s still working though.  This is going to need a couple of more weeks.  Still very cloudy.  First taste was good honey taste.  Can taste the tea and the orange.  The D47 is still going.  I swirled it after I did the reading and moved inside to ferment at a little warmer temp.

4/7/23
This wasn’t clearing at all.  I added 2 tsp to 1/2 cup warm water of Bentonite clay.  I racked it into a clean gallon and added the Bentonite.  It’s clearing now.
SG = 1.014.  Still a little sweet which is what I like.  It’s gonna mellow with time.

4/21/23

Racked off the Bentonite clay.  Added 1/2 tsp tannin.  SG = 1.006.  Will need back sweetened.  Good flavor, bad mouthfeel. It’s been 57 days since pitching yeast.

5/12/23
Bottling day!  I used the peel off an orange (a small peel in each bottle) and of course sanitized everything.  Got 5 full bottles.
I will create and print the labels today and get labels on them.  Then to sit for a while….. It’s been 77 days since started.

6/26/23 ~ 1 month tasting
This did not turn out well at all.  It needed back sweetened like I said.  It was bitter and dry.  I think the orange peel didn’t work like I thought it would.  I will try and add some honey to the next cup that I have to sweeten it a little and see if that changes the flavor.

Starting on 2/8/23.  I literally just finished book 1 and I’m going to read this one again.  I think I’ve read it before I started keeping notes.

Chapters are written by character.  I like that.
2/16/23.  I just finished Killman Creek.  Wow!  This was a page turner.  I could not put this book down.  I know now that I didn’t read this one.  Gwen finally gets him though. 8 days to read……
Melvin escaped prison, tormented his son and Gwen but in the end he got what he deserved.  Sam gets there just in the nick of time too.

Characters are very well written.  Mike, the FBI agent is a little wishy washy though.  Chapters are still to long but this story is just to good.  I’m giving this book a 9/10.

2-4-23
2 Gallons Great Value 100% apple juice
3 1.4 lb cans Pineapple Chunks in juice
1 tsp Pectic Enzyme
2 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1 package Lalvin 71B yeast

I added both gallons of apple juice to the sanitized bucket.
I added all three cans of pineapple in a straining bag to the bucket. Including the juice from the cans. 
I added the Pectic Enzyme to the bucket and 1 tsp of the Yeast Nutrient.  
I'm rehydrating the yeast in warm water and I added 1 tsp of the Yeast Nutrient to this slurry.   
I pitched the yeast to some very cold juice.  It was setting at about 60 degrees when I pitched it.
Starting Gravity 1.052. If it goes to 1.000 the potential ABV is 6.89%.


2-10-23

6 days.  That’s all it took to ferment this.  I didn’t sanitize the hydrometer or the cylinder so I had to taste what I extracted.  It went down to 1.000.  It’s very dry and has just a hint of pineapple.  I’m going to leave the pineapple in for another week.  Then I’m going to rack and add some clearing agent.  I’d like to leave this racked until the end of the month to clear.  Then I will add some back sweetener.

2-15-23
I racked it off the pineapple today.  I added 1 tspn of clay to help clarify.  Should be ready to bottle on 3/1/23.  It is still very dry but last time I tasted I added some sweetener.  It was very very good with sweetener.

2-24-23

I back sweetened with 2 cups Splenda and 1 tsp vanilla extract.  I transferred to the keg.  I had some left out of the 2 gallons so  I added 1 cup white sugar and about 1 tsp of bread yeast to bottle carbonate the cider.  Hopefully I didn’t add to much sugar.  2 1/2 bottles are in the “Bottle Shelter” in case the go BOOM!!

3-7-23

I actually keged 1 gallon of this.  At first it was wayyyy to sweet.  We all tried it and agreed it was to sweet.  After setting in the keg for about a week it really kind of mellowed though.  It’s still to sweet but it’s very drinkable.  I will be trying to improve this recipe.

Clarity was a 10
Mouthfeel was a 7
Taste was a 6 (to sweet)
ABV 6.8%

2-4-23
Earl’s Pineapple Mead:
2 Gallons Purified Drinking water (from Dollar Tree)
2 hand fulls raisins (not measure, not chopped)
2 tspn yeast nutrient
1 tspn pectic enzyme
5 lbs honey (2.5 Walmart honey & 2.5 local honey from Glenn)
15 oz Hot black Earl Grey tea
3 cans of Great Value Pineapple in syrup
Lalvin 71B yeast
So I sanitized everything.  I’m using the Killwin’s 3 Gallon buckets for this recipe.
I started by adding 1 full gallon of the water to the bucket.  I’m rehydrating the yeast in some warm water (not from the purified water) at about 94 degrees.  I added the raisins to the water and 1 tspn of the yeast nutrient.  I added the OTHER 1 tspn of nutrient to the yeast during rehydration.  I added 1 tspn of the pectic enzyme to the bucket.  I poured 2.5 lbs of honey in the bucket and poured another 2.5 lbs of the local honey in the bucket.  I used the hot tea to get ALL of the honey out of the 2.5 lb vessel.  I added that to the bucket. I added the next gallon of water to the bucket.  Somehow I’m very close to the top of the bucket with the ingredients.  It should’ve only been a little over 2 gallons but it’s looking more like a full 3 gallons.  That’s OK but the gravity reading will be a little off.
The must was cold so I let it warm to about 65 degrees before I pitched the yeast.  I took a gravity reading and got 1.074.  This has the potential of 10% ABV if yeast gets to work.  I’m NOT using the pineapple until I rack this off so the pineapple will be put in AFTER primary fermentation.

2-5-23
I didn’t see any activity in the airlock until late today.  It was working pretty well.  I’m using the heating pad to try and keep this a little warmer.  It’s setting in the piano room at room temp which is about 65 degrees.  I’m hoping that this yeast can stay working.

2-6-23 (Monday)
Degassed by lifting lid off the bucket.  Not a ton of activity in the airlock.

2-15-23 (Wednesday)
The air lock has been working very well.  This stuff is still going I believe.  I’m not ready to take a reading just yet.

2-24-23 (Friday)
Reading = 1.006. I racked the mead into a clean bucket with 5 cans of pineapple.  1.4oz in each can.  Pretty clear after 3 week.  1/4 tsp potassium metabisolfite 1 1/2 tsp potassium sorbate to STOP the yeast.  I don’t want it to go any dryer than what it is.

SG = 1.074
RG = 1.006 = 9.35% ABV

I will take a FINAL gravity reading in a couple of weeks but because I stabilized the mead it shouldn’t go any lower.

3-9-23
I’m pulling off the pineapple today and going to let this cold crash over night outside at about 30 degrees.
I took a gravity reading.  I also added 3/4 cup of brown sugar to sweeten just a bit.  I think this may be perfect.  Delaney tried it and agreed.  I will bottle this either Friday morning or Saturday.  I have 2 growlers 1/2 gallon each and I will bottle the rest.

FG = 1.006 or 9.35% ABV

4-7-23
I’m really liking this mead.  It will continue to mellow with time.

https://advancedmixology.com/blogs/art-of-mixology/how-to-make-blueberry-mead#recipe