The Zima Challenge

A co-worker and I decided to initiate what we call "The Zima Challenge" - an effort, using standard homebrewing techniques, to replicate the (in)famous alcopop Zima.

The rules I am holding myself to are as follows:

1. Don't buy any new equipment
2. Use ingredients available to an homebrewer
3. For the love of Pete, don't make more than a gallon

Today, I brewed.

I assembled my ingredients:

1 Gallon of water

3 1/4 cups of sugar

Then came the most difficult step - I brought the water to a boil and added the sugar:

This took a great deal of concentration, and one beer.

 After letting the sugar boil for about half an hour, I cooled the solution to 80F:

This required another beer.  Being patient is hard.

 Then added the zest of one small lime:

Mmm, limey goodness.  Not Kate Winslet, unfortunately.

 Next came some dry ale yeast and a vigorous shaking to mix the yeast in and oxygenate the syrup (honesty prevents me from calling it wort):

 
It was already fermenting nicely a few hours later:

Further updates will be posted as we go along - I anticipate about a week in the first jug, then a second week to clarify, another 2-3 weeks for bottle conditioning and carbonation.

Something that didn't occur to me until the Mrs. asked me today is this:  Who is going to drink it?

That's a good question.  A very good question.  Anyone here in Austin that remembers what Zima tasted like want to be a guinea pig?

Adventures In Unhealthy Eating

The Mrs. is out of town with the Knitting Mafia this weekend, so it's me and the kids.  We (I) have decided to celebrate by eating Things That Are Exceptionally Bad For Us.

Dinner last night was hot dogs and oven fries, breakfast today was donuts.  Lunch will be at Muster Day, an open house at Camp Mabry, the National Guard base here in Austin.  Probably something grilled and/or on a stick.

Dinner tonight is chopped BBQ pork sandwiches.

Tomorrow night we're back to healthier eating choices.

Life is good.

Rejected Blog Post Ideas

Not so much cooking stuff here as a list of ideas I have rejected (some summarily, some after a little thought) for posts on this blog in the last week:

1. (video post) Cooking In Our Winter Underwear
2. Horrible Meals People I Love Have Cooked For Me
3. Dog Food - Is It Really That Bad For Humans?
4. Foie Gras - Those $#@*!?&%$# Geese Deserve It
5. A Week Of Toast
6. How Intoxicated Can You Be And Still Use A Dull Knife To Slice A Hard Bagel?

I'm working on either a video post or a series of photos of me cooking something - likely pizza, or a soup.  

Coming soon, I'll be making cheese.  There will be pictures of that mess in action.

It's A Crazy Idea, But It Just Might Work...

Planning for our New Year's Day get-together, and I'm thinking I'll make a lucky soup, because everyone could use more of it.  I set up a poll on Facebook to get some ideas for tasty ingredients that might touch on the  "luck" theme.  I'm starting with duck broth, so pop on over and voice your thoughts.