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MRM ~ Roland’s Ancient Orange

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10/26/23 (Day 1)
3lbs Menards Honey
3 lbs Sam’s club Honey
2 Navel Oranges
2 Cinnamon Sticks
3/4 tsp Ginger
3/4 tsp Clove
2 tsp bread yeas
2 Gallons Spring water

I mixed all the ingredients.  In the original JAOM recipe it says mix and let sit.  No gravity, no swirling, nothing…That’s what I did, but I’ll estimate the gravity to 1.070.  If it goes dry (which it might) it would be around 9.2% ABV.

11/30/29 (36 Days)

I’m entering this for Roland, but it wasn’t created on Roland’s week.  I just needed to wait to get to a good artist to name this.  I’m going to take a gravity reading and taste tomorrow 12/1/23.

12/8/23 (44 Days)
This has been cold crashing outside for about 24 hours.  It’s only about 44 degrees outside.  That should be cold enough.

12/22/23 (58 Days)
Racked into pitcher, back sweetened with 1/2 cup honey and bottled.  There was 2 gallons so there was 2 pitchers full.  Tasted great!  Hope it was stable though.  F.G. = .992 (actually 10.3% ABV)

Brianna Labuskes ~ The Lies you Wrote

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I started this book on 12/7/23.  Pretty sure this was an Amazon First Read.  It’s an FBI procedural.  This isn’t my first Labuskes book.

Raisa, an FBI linguist looks for patterns in the way people write to catch serial killers.
So I finished on 12/21/23.  14 days.  Not to shabby.  This book wasn’t bad.  There seemed to be a lot of characters.  A family murdered in a small town.  Three girls (sisters) survived.  Then 25 years later another family is murdered along with several other people.  The FBI is there looking into who did it.  Turns out Alex (the son who was accused of the family murder 25 years ago and he committed suicide then) wasn’t the one who did it.

Most chapters were short.  Raisa’s chapters were almost to long and I found myself stopping mid chapter some nights.

Overall I’ll give this book a 7 out of 10.

 

Elise Hart Kipness ~ Lights Out

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I’m starting this book on 11/21/23.  I’m also reading Art Pepper’s book during this time so hopefully this is a good story.

This is an Amazon first read book.  Didn’t like it.  I read it fast but the story was kind of bland.

A murder, a news anchor who was a sports star herself.  Best friends husband gets murdered.  He’s a sports super star.  It’s a who done it and there’s just to much going on.  I’m giving this book a 6.  Finished on 12/6/23.  9 Days.

MRM ~ John Handy Traditional

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MRM ~ John Handy Traditional

10/16/23
2 Gallon recipe:
6 lbs Lehua Honey
1/2 tsp Fermaid O
2 Tsp Bentonite
Mangrove Jacks yeast
2 Gallons Crystal Gyser water from dollar tree

Mixed all ingredients.  O.G. = 1.102
My plan is to split this batch and do 1 gallon traditional and 1 gallon blackberry.  Blackberries will go into secondary for several weeks while the traditional will bulk age the same time before bottling.

**Self notes.  It’s got no acid or tannins.  Those will have to be added in secondary.  This is NOT the actual week we were studying John Handy, it’s just the week I documented it.  I actually didn’t name this until I documented. It was the Lehua honey that should shine on this one so I will also be back sweetening with Lehua.

11/5/23 (21 days)
Primary fermentation is complete.  S.G. = .994.  That’s right, it went completely dry.  I racked 1 gallon into glass carboy and put a mix of oak chips.  1oz American oak and .5oz whiskey barrel oak.  Will let that set on the oak for a week before tasting. 14.3% ABV
11/10/23 (26 days)
I tasted with the oak.  Still needs more time.  It’s good even as dry as it is.  A little back sweetening and clearing and this will be ready to go.  Not going to do anything else with this today.  Next week maybe rack off oak and use clearing agent.It needs some tannin too.  I’ll add that next week.

***I’m going to start another post for the blackberry.

 

11/20/23 (36 days)
1/2 tsp potassium metabisulphite
1/4 tsp potassium sorbate
1 campden tablet
It’s clear.  I haven’t tasted it yet but tomorrow may be bottling day.

11/21/23 (37days)
1/4 tsp tannin
1/4 tsp acid blend
.5 lb honey for back sweetening
F.G. = 0.018

Bottled and labeled

 

Mia Sheridan ~ All the Little Raindrops

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I just finished with Missing Parts, Lucinda Berry.  Starting this book on 11/9/23.  This is an Amazon First Read free book.  11/19/23 and I finished the book.  10 days.  This book was amazing.  I literally couldn’t put it down.

It starts with a very gruesome few chapters about 2 young people who are caged and in the dark.  They manage an escape.  Then the fun begins- with trying to find out who did it to them.  I’m giving this book a 9/10.  Lot’s of feelings and some sex.  Chapters were short (ish) but very easy to read.  There were some characters that I kind of forgot who there were at times but the story was really good.

 

 

Lucinda Berry ~ Missing Parts

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I started this book on 11/2/23.  Well….you know, it’s Lucinda so no explanation needed.
11/9/23 finished the book.  Celeste, a wife and mother, has the perfect life.  Until her daughter gets sick and doctors can’t figure out what is wrong with her.  Celeste’s husband turns out is not the father.
The second part of the book is an AA advertisement.  The group helps Celeste find her way.  Turns out she’s not in as much trouble as she thinks.
Book was good but not great.  Giving a 7/10

MRM ~ Coleman’s Sweet Bochet

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9/21/23 (day 1)
Coleman’s Sweet Bochet

2 lbs Golden Lake honey  (Bochet for 110 minutes on high in crock pot.  See chart above)
1 Gallon Niagara Water (dollar tree)
3 grams Fermaid-O
1/4 tsp Wine tannin
DV10 Yeast (1/2 packet)  Lt. Dan said this one is a killer!!!!
O.G. = 1.108
Pitched yeast at 90 degrees

10/11/23 (21 days)
Racked into clean carboy, added 1/4 tsp tannin, 1/2 cup sparkaloid and stabilized.  S.G. = 1.002 14.1% ABV

11/5/23 (46 days) Bottling day!
There was still a small amount of settlement in this gallon.  I racked into pitcher, back sweetened with golden lake honey to taste.  Labels were done.  It’s gonna be nice in a few months.  I didn’t take a gravity reading for back sweetening.  It’s “to taste” and I like it sweeter.

MRM ~ Gennett Special Reserve

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9/10/23 (day 1)

3 lbs Honey (Kendra’s work honey) (Enough honey left for back sweetening)
2 12 oz Jars Apricot Preserves
1 tsp Fermaid O
Red Star Premier Classique yeast
O.G. = 1.104  Possible 13% if ferments out!

Mixed all ingredients and pitched yeast at 80 degrees.  After a couple hours airlock activity was really going well.

9/16/23 (day 6)
1 tsp Diammonium Phosphate Yeast Nutrient added and degassed

9/21/23 (day 12)
S.G. = 1.040.  Added 2 tsp Diammonium Phosphate yeast nutrient.

10/11/23 (day 32)
S.G. = 1.010.  Racked into clean carboy and stabilized.  Added 1/4 tsp tannin and 1/2 cup sparkoloid.  It’s not very clear yet but after some time I’m hoping it clears out nicely. F.G. = 1.010 ABV = 12.5%

10/29/23 (50 days)
The gelatin destroyed this mead.  It did settle everything but made it cloudy.  It was clear.  I’m not letting it set any longer. I will NEVER use gelatin again for clearing.  I’m going to try adding some juice to this to see if I can salvage it.

11/5/23 (57 days) Bottling day!
So the gelatin was a bad idea.  To save this mead, because it was stabilized, I added 3 cups Juicy Juice Pineapple juice and bottled this.  It seems to be clearing nicely in the bottle but has a ton of sediment.  I didn’t take a gravity reading.  I was pissed at this batch!  It didn’t taste bad but the honey character isn’t really there.