Got mead?

Well, the specific gravity of my mead is down to 0.98, which means it's done fermenting. It was time to put it into a carboy for settling and aging. The problem with me using fresh apple squish is that after I racked it all off, there was shy of4 gallons remaining from a 5 gallon start. Not a huge deal, but when I put it into my 5.5 gallon carboy there was WAY too much room on top. The mead would have oxidized as it aged and gone off...and I refuse to ruin all my work :)

Soo...off to the brew store for me, where I picked up a 3 gallon and 1 gallon carboy and put the mead into there. The 3 gallon is nice and full and the gallon has a bit of room in it, but it also has the sludgy bottom stuff, so the 3 gallons should settle out really nicely and the 1 gallon will be what it will be. I should get at least 20 bottles of tasty mead in the end so I'm happy. Now I put it in a dark place and ignore it for a few months...it's at about 14% alcohol so it will need to age a while before we crack it. It may be on the dry side too, so when I bottle it I may add some honey to some of the bottles as a comparison and see which I prefer when we drink them at Christmas. The few mouthfuls I got while siphoning tasted alright so I am looking forward to how it ages out. I think this will become a yearly thing. :)

Since I have an extra carboy now (he hee) I picked up a kit to make India Pale Ale. When I have some free time in the next while I will get that started. It will be easier to ignore the mead and let it age with some beer in the pantry.

This is fun.

I love home brewing. Having a mini hobby while thesising has kept my brain a bit happier I think.

I don't do it near enough...:)

Plans for the future from the past

Ah. March is here. Thank frog. It's been a mellow winter weather-wise, but so much has gone on to make the darkness a bit too gloomy...I for one would like to leave it behind for the warmth and excitement of spring. I like leap years but I hate february. I for one am glad it's gone.

I ran across this meme on a blog and thought it was cool, so I will do it, as a reason to post. I find that other than my fitness blog where I log workouts and such shite, I don't have a lot to post about, and don't want to whine incessantly about my thesis to you all. This is a good compromise I think.

It's questions about how you'd be living now, if you asked yourself these questions when you were a kid. Here's my answers at age ~10:

My profession would be: Egyptian archaeologist

My spouse would be: The lead singer of A-ha, Morten Harket... Man he was hot. *sigh*

My car would be: Red Mazda RX7

My home would be: old and rickety with a big wooden staircase and a turret like a castle with a private room at the top full of books. Oh - there would also be an observatory on the roof, with a spiral staircase to get to it, and a fireman's pole to get back down in a hurry. Or, in a pinch, a lighthouse would do! :)

My best friends would be: people who wouldn't tease me and wanted to play adventure games and have waterballoon fights. Kids who liked to skip rope, play games with imagination, go camping...we'd draw and paint and make milkshakes all day

My backyard would have: a big pad for skipping double dutch, and a big yard for running around in and lying in the sun (I had this. It rocked)

All my dinners would include: Jello and rootbeer

My kids/pets would be named: Max and Maura. My dog was named Scotty.

How about you??

I can't hear you lalalalala

shiny sounds

This song has been in my head all day. There's a newer Ott album we finally picked up, and listening to that has got this back in my mind now.

This song.... which literally blew my mind when I heard it and still calms a little hidden part of my heart whenever I hear it. It inspires me...brings me a little snippit of how I felt right then and there. Kindles the flame. Makes me smile. Like hot biscuits with honey or a fresh espresso, the taste of prickly pear Gewurztraminer ...the smell after the rain. :)

Enjoy. Have a lovely weekend :)

What songs, or things, do this for you?

I find your lack of pants disturbing

I am embarrassed and annoyed to report that Saskatchewan is going to have a team in the Canadian Women's Lingerie Football League. No that is not a typo. I'll write that out again so you can see it for the ridiculous thing it is: Saskatchewan is going to have a team in the Canadian Women's Lingerie Football League.

Yes, there actually is a newly formed Canadian Women's Lingerie Football League...where teams of women in bikinis and stocking with suspenders (and a few bits of strategic padding I don't doubt) and helmets play football against each other. Yet another american creation for the entertainment of the drooling masses.

I am curious how the province will play this one. There is a really strict no alcohol served while there is stripping/erotic dance law in the province, and I am curious to see how this fits in there. I mean the main people going to games would be guys, who likely will drink booze and get tacky and rude (because, honestly, what classy guy would go within 10 miles of this sort of thing). If you can't even have a burlesque dance show and serve booze, how is this legit?

Hell, even with booze...how is this legit?

Why can't we just have a women's football league? You know, with pants? Like normal people.

Oh wait. WE ALREADY DO!

My mind is boggled that this is for real and not some April fool's joke.

To me it is truly the very definition of tacky...I mean why not hose down the field before they start so it's all muddy too?

*sigh*

Mead ahoy

After a long snowy walk last night, I am proud to announce that the yeast has been pitched in my mead.

I was all official and sciency and measuring the specific gravity...ooh. aah.

Here's crossing my fingers...I hope to come home to happy burbling tonight :) :)

Apple spice malamel

Just set up my apple spice mead last night. Because I juiced (yeesh) 17 Lb apples for the mead I had to add campden tablets to it and let it sit overnight before I add the yeast. YOu only get ~6 L of apple cider squish from that if you can believe it...I figured I'd get more than that, but you learn as you go...

Never done this before. It's all very wierd. And I feel like it's not up to lab sanitary standards. Yes I bleached the stuff well and used a newer no rinse sterilizer on the other things but...after culturing human cancer cell lines in a lab this feels like monkey lumbering kindergarten stuff that will be totally contaminated and spoiled. Gah. I would hate to do all this and have vinegar in 6 months, but here goes nothing. We shall see. :)

It took an HOUR to get the 4Kg honey and 10L water up to boil for 15 minutes, then I tossed in some Cinnamon sticks and cloves and a T of nutmeg. Poured this into the bucket of apple goo and campden and covered it up...and it smelled lovely. Tonight I'll add the acid blend and a bit of yeast food and the champagne yeast...and then try and ignore it for a few weeks until it's ready to be racked off..

Once I rack it into a carbuoy I need to ignore it a few MONTHS. Maybe longer until it clarifies somewhat.

Yeesh.

I think I'm made for beermaking. This takes ages :)

I may have to buy another carbuoy and get some beer going for the summer just so I ignore the mead properly...he heh. Apparently it doesn't taste very good for at least 6 months. Must be good.

I'm trying to get work done on my thesis since it's a day off but I really don't want to.

But I will. Honest.

Just getting my mead angst out...

I figure at this rate should be ready to drink right around my birthday. I will stick a bottle away for christmas...and a few for friends to enjoy on their holidays as well. :) If this works it will be an annual thing for the holidays I think...