Oh Honey...
Yesterday, it became obvious quite early on that it was going to be an "inside day". Rain and cold wind kinda makes that obvious. Which was alright, because I had a lot of paperwork to do (BTW... I hate discovery).
Anyway... a couple years back, I found a quite tasty beverage that is exceptional on cold rainy days. For some reason, I can drink coffee on cold snowy days, or hot days, but it just doesn't quite hit the spot when you're looking out the window at a cold dreary drizzle. No, on days like yesterday it's time to whip out the gunpowder.
Gunpowder is type of green tea, that I find exquisite. It's not too bitter, has a warm rich flavor, and is in all ways a superior tea. Some days, I even add a little dollop of honey, which combines to make it nearly orgasmic. Yesterday was a good day for the dollop. So I dug out my honey bowl, opened the top and... gone. Hmphf. Time to reload.
So... I went to the cupboard below the counter and drug out my bucket o' honey. A 25 pound bucket to be exact. Now while I was scooping out the now crystallized bee byproduct, it started me thinking. Damn, that's a lot of honey, and then that led me to reminisce about how we got so much.
30 years ago or so, some apieries came to my dad and asked if they could put their bees on his place. He thought about it for around a second, then said, "Yeah, sure. Where do you want to put 'em?" They told him where and he basically said, "Knock yourself out." and didn't think anything more about it.
Later that fall, we came home and there were 2 cases of honey on the front porch. "Erm... What's this?" was the general consensus between Dad and Mom, so they called the apiery. What was the deal? Barter. They figured it was a fair exchange for letting them put the hives there.
So for the next 20+ years, we'd get a couple of cases of honey every fall. Now that, as it turns out, is a helluva lot honey to use up, and we rarely did. Eventually, you end up having the honey not only catch up with you but surpass your consumption, and then you can't catch up. For the last several years, they've only been giving us a case of the honey products (Spun honey, honey in the little dispensers, honey salsa, honey BBQ sauce) and a 25 pound bucket of it. And that's how I came by such a large quantity.
The best thing about it all is that pure honey doesn't spoil. It's the only food that doesn't spoil, believe it or not, but it does crystallize and turn into a sugary blob. Of course, all you do is chisel the crystals out and then heat 'em up and it returns to it's liquid form. Sweet!
All told, it's been one of the best equal exchanges we could have had over my lifetime.
************
Today's Mystery Lyric:
This chick's rockin' your bro on the dance floor
but she's draggin' an anchor
a junior investment banker,
who talks about herself, and not much more
so buy her a beer it's the reason you're here
Mighty Wingman...
you're taking one for the team,
so your buddy can live the dream...
Anyway... a couple years back, I found a quite tasty beverage that is exceptional on cold rainy days. For some reason, I can drink coffee on cold snowy days, or hot days, but it just doesn't quite hit the spot when you're looking out the window at a cold dreary drizzle. No, on days like yesterday it's time to whip out the gunpowder.
Gunpowder is type of green tea, that I find exquisite. It's not too bitter, has a warm rich flavor, and is in all ways a superior tea. Some days, I even add a little dollop of honey, which combines to make it nearly orgasmic. Yesterday was a good day for the dollop. So I dug out my honey bowl, opened the top and... gone. Hmphf. Time to reload.
So... I went to the cupboard below the counter and drug out my bucket o' honey. A 25 pound bucket to be exact. Now while I was scooping out the now crystallized bee byproduct, it started me thinking. Damn, that's a lot of honey, and then that led me to reminisce about how we got so much.
30 years ago or so, some apieries came to my dad and asked if they could put their bees on his place. He thought about it for around a second, then said, "Yeah, sure. Where do you want to put 'em?" They told him where and he basically said, "Knock yourself out." and didn't think anything more about it.
Later that fall, we came home and there were 2 cases of honey on the front porch. "Erm... What's this?" was the general consensus between Dad and Mom, so they called the apiery. What was the deal? Barter. They figured it was a fair exchange for letting them put the hives there.
So for the next 20+ years, we'd get a couple of cases of honey every fall. Now that, as it turns out, is a helluva lot honey to use up, and we rarely did. Eventually, you end up having the honey not only catch up with you but surpass your consumption, and then you can't catch up. For the last several years, they've only been giving us a case of the honey products (Spun honey, honey in the little dispensers, honey salsa, honey BBQ sauce) and a 25 pound bucket of it. And that's how I came by such a large quantity.
The best thing about it all is that pure honey doesn't spoil. It's the only food that doesn't spoil, believe it or not, but it does crystallize and turn into a sugary blob. Of course, all you do is chisel the crystals out and then heat 'em up and it returns to it's liquid form. Sweet!
All told, it's been one of the best equal exchanges we could have had over my lifetime.
************
Today's Mystery Lyric:
This chick's rockin' your bro on the dance floor
but she's draggin' an anchor
a junior investment banker,
who talks about herself, and not much more
so buy her a beer it's the reason you're here
Mighty Wingman...
you're taking one for the team,
so your buddy can live the dream...
posted by LL at 2:32 PM
14 Comments:
I love honey. There is a farm near me that sells creamed honey in all sorts of added flavors or you can get just plain creamed honey. I could eat that on toast every morning. I also put some honey in baking mixes to add a little extra.
Definitely a good trade. There's nothing like real honey - namely, not the crap you get in stores. Oh sure, that's good in a pinch, but unless you're hacking it off a chunk, it's just not the same.
Incidentally, when my mom complains about a poor batch, she claims it is "too bee balmy." Any explanation?
I never figured you for a tea man, LL. But yes, gunpowder tea is very nice. I also appreciate the green "pearl tea" that is hand-rolled into little balls that unfurl as they brew. Lovely!
I like honey on toast with a little butter. Mmmmmmmmm.
My grandpa is a beekeeper. I get the bestest honey around for my tea. YUMMMMM.
Most everyone likes honey, but the law of diminishing returns still applies and an accumulation of around 150 lbs of honey gets hard to overcome...
Too bee balmy you say? Are you sure she's just not misquoting Hamlet? :P
Nahhh... I'm just a consumer of the bee spit, I've got no idea about any of the rest of it. I'm afraid you'll have to ask your mom, or better yet, Sunshine's uncle.
You never figured me for a tea man, eh fermi? Well... I'm just full of surprises... :lech:
Sunshine, lately I've been trying to catch the apieries when they're here to get a chunk of comb, but I've always missed 'em.
Exquisite? You used the word exquisite??? Strangely, I'm drinking some very nice decaf green tea right now, but I'm not a honey person at all. I find it to be too sweet.
Why yes... yes I did. Didn't you expect that from a poor peppermint miner such as I? ;)
As for the sweetness... I have a penchant for sweets. Not a good thing, but it's there none the less.
I'm so jealous over the honey deal. My husband said I should start my own hives of honey bees, but I was attacked by them as a kid so ... no, I can't do it. I'd love to do it though or even just to have your set up. Someone drops it off. Dang, that is sweet!
Where do you get gunpowder? Do you drink it just plain with the honey in it?
P.S. This was the girliest post I've ever read from you. =)
So buy her a beer
Thats the reason you're hear
MIGHTY WINGMAN
You're taking one for the team so your buddy can live the dream.
WINGMANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Girlie? I'll have you know there's nothing girlie about bartering. Nor drinking tea. It might be British, but not girlie... ;)
Oh... I dunno where you get it Beth. I got mine from Mrs. Bunyun. Check your local chinatown...
And yes, I drink it straight, or with honey. I've heard it's good with a little whiskey too, but I've never tried that.
Beth - if you don't have a local chinatown, your best bet to get some gunpowder tea is by mail order. I order teas from Tealuxe (www.tealuxe.com), but there are other suppliers out there.
I don't think the word "exquisite" gets used enough. Fine job.
Oh... I'll bet you say that to all the losers... :P
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