MEAT!!!

So I finally broke down and bought a Sam's Club membership. The main reason is I wanted to buy big pieces of meat and you just can't do that at Publix. Publix sometimes has beef roasts on sale but it is only for holidays. So I bought this:

 

That is a 8.7 lb Black Angus Grain Fed Choice untrimmed whole filet.  It was a $104 so that got a dropped jaw from Lisa. I watched a few you tube videos about trimming and cutting it into filet so I went at it. After about a hour of back breaking work (or maybe my back was just sore from digging up bushes earlier in the day), I got 4 lbs of center cut tenderloin fillets (10.7 oz, 10 oz, 10 oz, 8 oz, 7.5 oz, 6 oz, 6 oz, and 5 oz), 1.75 lbs of cubed tenderloin for kabobs, and 0.75 lbs of thin shavings for salad. Basically, I saved about $10 and got all the extras for free. Hopefully it makes good kabobs and salad.

I did enjoy the big 10 oz filet. Don't worry, I had a banana and a salad too.

 

I also have this little guy for next time

Like Strawberry Wine...

Its been awhile since I have updated. The first half of the year was real busy with work and the kids. I almost ran out of beer but work let up so I have been able to catch up. I've brewed a couple beers and two more wines. I decided to get a bit more adventurous and make one from scratch instead of a kit. I started with 12 pounds of strawberries.

Washed then and cut off the stems

 Then started to crush them

 

 

 After a a fifteen minute arm workout, the results are not that impressive. I added some sugar (some  = 10 lbs of sugar) and some chemicals to make sure there were no wild yeast left. I waited a day and then added some yeast nutrient and pitched my yeast. After a month, the yeast had eaten almost all the sugar and I took out the bag of strawberries. Most of the color and liquid has been removed so it all that is left is the skins and seeds. I tasted the wine and it seems like it is off to a good start. I am going to wait a few more weeks to allow the yeast to finish and then I will kill off the yeast and clarify the wine. Hopefully it will be worth it in two months.