RiceReport – Page 12 – Rice's Blog Site

Freida McFadden ~ Want To Know A Secret

This was my “cruise” book. I started the book on 10/1/23 and I finished the book on 10/7/23. 6 days to read.
The story was just OK. The characters were well defined and written. Chapters were on the short side and easy to finish. The ending was twisted.

April has a Youtube cooking channel that she shares her “secret” to….brownies, cookies, pie (you get it). Her best friend Julie lives just 2 doors down and their kids play together all the time. April starts receiving texts messages from an unknown sender. Scary texts. Then a new person moves in to the neighborhood. Hot husband and April is a hot housewife. Not the first time April has seduced someone. Lots of secrets revealed in the book. It was easy to read but not really my “speed” of story. I’m giving this book a 7/10

Layne Fargo ~ They Never Learn

TikTok recommended. Started on 9/18/23. I’ve read several chapters so far. I like the characters and chapters are on the short side. Written in character chapters so you get a different perspective each chapter. Scarlett is a prof at a university. She sees all that goes on. She’s a killer. No shock because it happens in the first chapter. Carly, a shy girl from a bad home is a student.
9/30/23 and I finished the book. Twists were good. Ending was OK. I’m going to give this book a 7/10.
13 days

MRM ~ Baise’s Pear/Blueberry cider

Baise’s Pear/Blueberry cider

1 Gallon G.V. Apple Juice
64 oz G.V. Pear Juice
2 cups blueberry crumble tea
12 oz Brown Sugar
1 tsp acid blend
2 tsp Diammonium Phosphate
1/2 pack Lalvin 71B yeast (it was a little old so I don’t know about this one)
O.G. = 1.054

10/11/23
F.G. = 1.000 7.1% ABV
I kegged this today. Back sweetened with a little honey just to make it pop a little and added some tannin to it. Full gallon in the keg.

Tony Wirt ~ Just Stay Away

9/8/23. Amazon First Read. I just finished The Housemaid. Like just now, so this book better keep my attention. Just kidding. I’m going to read it.
9/17/23. I finished. Great book. Characters were very well defined and memorable. Craig, a writer is having trouble finishing his book because he has to take care of his daughter Alice over the summer. Levi, a strange rich kid wants to play with Alice. This gives Craig time in the morning to work on his book. Levi “never gets in trouble”. He’s a bad (very bad) kid. After a few mishaps Craig starts to see a trend with Levi and it’s not a good one.

Chapters were short and I feel like I plowed through this book. I didn’t want to put it down. Giving a 9/10 rating. 10 Days.

Freida McFadden ~ The Housemaid

This is a TikTok recommended book. I started on 9/1/23. I left another book because it was boring and started this one. 2 pages in and I’m already “hooked”. 9/7/23. 6 Days. 6…..Days…..OMG this is a masterpiece. It had me hooked from the first page and it never let up. Millie, a parolee needs a job and to stay out of prison. The perfect job became available being a housemaid for a very wealthy family. Nina, the wife is bat shit crazy. Or is she? Andy, the husband is a handsome and loving man. Or is he? Crazy stuff goes on in the first part of the book. In the second part we find out why and in the thirds part. Holy S Balls!!! I couldn’t put it down. This book is getting a 10/10. Chapters were short, characters were very well defined and the plot and twists were perfectly written.

Kiersten Modglin ~ Unfaithful Night

I started this book on 8/27/23. TikTok recommended author. I read “The Roommate” earlier. It was short and very well written. Let’s see how this book goes. I couldn’t finish this book. I didn’t like it at all. I was 40% done and there was really nothing going on. It was boring. I’m giving this book a 2/10. A 2 because I made it 40% of the way without quitting.

MRM ~ Django the Viking

7/29/2023
I got some new honey at the GE farmers market. It tastes amazing. I’ve been reading recipes again and you know what that means. Got to get another batch going. (I now have 2 fermenting. This one makes 3) Here we go:
1/2 oz Paraoh’s Paradise (Loose leaf tea from teajutsu.com)
32 oz Just Tart Cherry from Knudsen (Kroger)
32 oz Just Black Cherry from Knudsen (Kroger)
12 oz frozen Raspberries (Kroger)
12 oz frozen Sweet Cherries (Kroger)
1 tsp fermaid O
Lalvin EC-1118 yeast
2 lbs honey. (Name goes here)
Spring Water (Dollar Tree)

I started by steeping the loose leaf tea in about 1/2 gallon of spring water and reconstituting the Lalvin yeast with the fermaid O in a small amount of spring water. While the berries were thawing, I added the 64 oz of juice to the carboy and the 2 lbs of honey. I shook the bejesus out of it. The mixture wasn’t going to fit in the gallon glass carboy so I had to switch to using a Kilwins bucket. I let the tea steep for 20 minutes. I added the mostly thawed fruit and tea to the bucket. I took a temperature reading and it was 72. I pitched the yeast and covered the bucket.

S.G. = 1.106 (if dry it’s going to be 14.2%)

8/18/23 (21 days)
S.G. = 1.006. 13.3% ABV. I racked off the fruit today. It’s dry and HOT. Cherry taste comes through nicely. Not much hibiscus though.

8/29/23 (33 days)
Stabilization DAY!!!
1/2 tsp potassium sorbate
1/4 tsp potassium metabisulfite
1/2 tsp Wine Tannin

9/1/23 (35 days)
Bottling Day!!! I back sweetened with honey ONLY to 1.030 and bottled.

MRM ~ Bix’s Banana Cream Pie Mead

7/9/23 (day 1)

4.2 lbs honey (some clover, some orange blossom)
2 gallons purified water
Mangrove Jacks M05 yeast
S.G. = 1.078 (if dry it will be ~ 10.88%)

Secondary:
3 lbs bananas (Frozen and thawed)
1/2 tsp pectic enzyme
24 Graham Crackers

7/10/23
2 grams Wine Tannin
4 grams Fermaid – O
I added the suppliments today.

7/18/23
S.G. = 1.040 It’s very “buttery” and smooth. It’s only done 40 points in 10 days. Mouthfeel is very nice.

7/20/23
Another 2 grams Fermaid – O. No SG today.

7/26/23 (18 days)
S.G. = 1.022. It’s still fermenting and I don’t know why it’s taken so long.

8/4/23 (27 days)
S.G. = 1.000
I racked into clean bucket over 1 tsp Potassium Metabisulphite and 1 tsp Potassium Sorbate. I will add the thawed bananas either later today or first thing in the morning before leaving for IrishFest. Tastes like mead though. Smell needs more honey character. I’m hoping that once the bananas start to flavor for a couple of weeks then the Graham Crakers it sweetens up a little. It’s not clear at all. Still very cloudy.

8/18/23 (41 days)
No SG today but I added 18 Graham crackers to the bag with the bananas still in it. I’m not getting a banana flavor right now. So next week I can rack all that off, back sweeten and bottle. Yay!!

8/25/23
It’s got some weird floaties in it. Doesn’t taste much like banana or graham crackers. Gonna give it another week and back sweeten and bottle.

9/1/23 (55 days)
I racked off into a clean sanitized bucket. I added: 3/4 lb brown sugar, 3/4 lb honey and 3 tsp of vanilla. OMG this is going to be amazing! Bottled and labeled today too. F.G. = 1.028. It’s sweet but tastes amazing!

Lucinda Berry ~ A Welcome Reunion

I bought this book from Amazon. Started on 8/24/23. So this really was a “short story”. I finished on 8/27/23. 3 Days.

I wish someone would have told me before I read this one to read “The Perfect Child”. I mean I read it, but having it fresh in my memory would’ve been a little better. This is a continuation of The Perfect Child. It tells the short story of what happens after the release of the demon child. How she effects the lives of the people she’s hurt and how they effect her. I’m giving this book a 7/10. Characters were sketchy at first (because the other book wasn’t fresh in my mind) and chapters were a little long. They were written in character style though so that made it a little easier to manage. It was kind of predictable in all honesty, which isn’t necessarily true for anything else she’s written.

MRM ~ Kenton’s Coffee Currant Mead

7/19/23
Recipe for 1 Gallon:
2 lbs Palermo Bolssom Honey (From Menards)
3 cups Black Current Concentrate
2 oz cacoa nibs toasted for 10 minutes on burner level 5
1 cup Utopian coffee grounds (finely ground) and French Pressed in luke warm water for 15 minutes. Makes 3 cups of coffee
Top off to full gallon with Niagara spring water from Dollar Tree
Mangrove Jacks 1/2 packet only
S.G. = 1.084

7/20/23
There’s activity in the airlock. Going to add 1 oz Fermaid O today.

8/4/23 (17 days)
Wow, I racked this off today to a wide mouth gallon and took a taste. It’s very sweet and very heavy on the coffee and chocolate flavor. With some time that will subside though.
S.G. = 1.010

8/25/23 (38 days)
Bottling day!! I added some more black current juice to bring the sweetness up just a bit and about 1/2 lb honey. I forgot that I didn’t stabilize this so I’m worried that 1. carbonation will occur or 2. fermentation will continue. It was down to 1.002. I got 5 full bottles and 1 very small amount to taste it in a month. 11.2% ABV