Nice ABV and crystal clear ..🍸 #Gin

It’s Sunday … so let’s make some gin.. 🍸

Wednesday lunch means practice for the worlds.. 🤺🇧🇭🇨🇦

Up at 2:10 am ..at work at 3:30 am .. I am soooo tired , both physically and mentally of this kind of sleep pattern. I’m not sure how much longer I can do it…

Aaaaaand the #kidneystone fun continues(4th in the last 2.5 days) ..not the biggest one ever..but enough to take down a 205 Lb man . Better out of me now than taking me down in Bahrain. I passed a stone 10 minutes before the CanAm tournament two years ago..not fun.

Arrived at work at 4:18 am and passed a kidney stone at 4:22 am… fun way to start your morning, NOT!

Debating if I should get myself an early 60th bday present. A gin basket for the distillation unit.

Enjoying a Penguin bar . #IYKYK

A lazy morning with coffee, Charlie and a little tug of war ☕️🐶

Ok, I’ve pulled 1L out and that should make 1,5-1 3/4 Ls once it’s been tempered to a good ABV. Now I add yesterday’s run into the barrel and let it do its thing.

Just pulled 1L of 62% ABV from the cask and now trying to find that ABV sweet spot. It tests great at 40% but I may bump that up to 44% for a little more punch .. I am wickedly proud of this Bourbon that I’ve made . 🥃

Final haul .. it’s been a productive and successful morning..🥃

A refractometer…crucial in getting those accurate ABV readings..

Doesn’t get any clearer than that ..150 proof ..🥃

Coming off the parrot at just under 150 proof ..🥃

Taking off the first 50-75 ml for the heads and discarding ..

There we go … those vapours hitting the “point of no return” and about to hit the condenser…

Column is getting g hot , won’t be long now ..🥃

All gauges are looking good …

Teaching Charlie how to make Bourbon.. 🥃

It’s gitty up go time…🥃

Ok … Final SG is really good … time to fill the still and get it running ..🥃

SG is now 1.000 .. so I should be able to run it tomorrow morning..🥃

Still working away …the smell is incredible, there is absolutely alcohol being created .

1.010 … it’s getting there. I will let it go the weekend and then run it Monday morning. 🥃

1.020 and still working away … another couple days I’m thinking and it’ll be at 0.990 and I can run it ., 🥃

Why yes sir I can turn your 4 inch kitchen pry bar into a 3 inch paring knife for you.

1.030 and falling .. whoop whoop ., 🥃

I wish Charlie came equipped with a thought bubble … as I’m not sure what he thinks about this dog we met on our morning walk. 🐶

And Charlie just helped me pitch the yeast .. now we wait for 7-15 days while the yeast does its thing ..

If youve followed me for any length of time then you know what’s going on here.. perfect ph and starting SG is near spot on at 1.090 corn n Mississippi 2 row is ground and soaking. Now I let it cool to room temp, aerate and pitch the yeast ..🥃

It’s a chicken parm and Caesar salad kinda night ..🍷🍽️

Just a few of my sabres.. two of these will be wrapped today to keep the guards from getting chipped ahead of my trip to Bahrain. The 3rd I’m still using to train with, but the night before I leave I’ll paint the inside of the guard to make sure I comply with the rules

My friend Susan was visiting from Calgary and brought me some coasters from around the world that she’s collected for me to put on the ceiling behind the bar of the Dickens Cider Pub .. 🥃🍷🍻🍹

Grilled Lambs with a 4 peppercorn sauce and a side of broccoli mashed potatoes and carrots.. ya you could say it was ok .🍽️

Dinner is served .. chicken n waffles. With Franks Red Hot , Aunt Jemima syrup and bacon ranch sauce. Yup, it was good .

Wednesday at lunch.. you know what that means…🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

50 days until I leave for the World Veteran Fencing Championships in Bahrain and get reunited with friends from all over the world again. 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

Yes mame I can fix that for you ..

Ohhh aye.. lunch is served .. haggis n tatties.

I only wear this mask for tournaments to assure it stays in as good a shape as possible .. it fits way differently than my regular club sabre mask , so I’ll wear it 1-2 times a week leading up to the Worlds to get used to how it feels . 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

Sneaking in a Monday lunch practice.. 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

Butternut squash/sweet potato soup with onion, tomato, carrots and roast garlic. With a multi seed sourdough 4 yr cheddar grilled cheese .ya it was ok ..

It’s the start of soup season….

New club jacket patches. Mom supports and contributes enough that I thought it only fair to now add her as a sponsor. 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

BOOM !!! Fully booked for my trip to the Worlds.. and my Bahrain e- visa application has been submitted and hopefully accepted…now I just gotta show up . 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭

The amount of elbow grease it takes to grind this out by hand is incredible..please treat your knives better, my sanity and hands thank you in advance .

This mornings chore after work .. pressure washing the deck and getting it ready to be sealed .

I’m not familiar with a lot of their music but I’ll be chillin with Bruce Dickinson the lead singer for Iron Maiden in Bahrain .. he’s entered in men’s foil for Great Britain. Crazy who you get to meet doin this odd sport of mine.

BOOM!!! Hotel booked in Manama Bahrain for the Worlds. Now just have to book the flight … 🤺🇨🇦🇧🇭