Terpentine & Cider

A few days ago, while walking down the sidewalk near my home, I found a block of pine resin the size of my fist. Yep. A big ole hunk'a resin. So I dragged it home in my Radio Flyer wagon. No I didn't. I just picked it up and held in my paw until I got home. It's quite degraded, actually. A bit on the crumbly side, oxidized, smells of poop and terpentine. But still useful for incense, despite it's less than flowery attributes. Hey, if perfumers can use whale puke/poop in perfume . . . nothing is sacred or off the list. At the very least, my hunk of pine resin dust can be used as a binder in Kyphi or stick incense.

I'm officially into craft ciders of the hard variety. There's a brewery down the road that serves artisan beer and on occasion artisan ciders. Really, really delicious ciders. Potentially getting you into trouble ciders. I'm not a big drinker, but I do love a nice cider. I've 'sampled' a bone dry apple cider which was like sipping a slightly fruity/tart dry champagne; a red plum cider, a vintage apple cider (the apples are heirloom vintage, not the cider), a pineapple cider, a blackberry cider -- the varieties and the flavors, it's like perfumery for my tongue. I love -- or did love -- mead as well, but in comparison to these ciders, mead seems way too sweet. Less sweet suits. The trouble with ciders is that they slide down so easily. Drinking cider is like drinking tea or juice. Too easy. And these craft ciders are higher in alcohol content than most store-bought ciders. Anyway, you know me, I'm trying to figure out how to make cider and 'flavor' them with lovely perfumery materials, like rose otto, jasmine, orange blossom, etc. Tipping a sweet, cool glass of rose apple cider sounds absolutely divine. Not a rosé. A rose. Or a lip smacking glass of jasmine plum cider. I may be giving away ideas here! So do it, cider maker, make me a rose apple or a jasmine plum cider. Or an orange blossom bone dry. Do it.

I must get off this box and begin the day. I'm still working out how this new computer works, and I think that I might have bought more computer (much more) than what I need. Naw!

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