Day 49

The mix finally gets some sun.

Yes, it's true. It was warmish and sunny today, so I put the jar back outside. And it's going to be above freezing for at least a week, so it's staying out there. One thing I noticed about the layer above the liquid (the raft?) is that the very top appears dryer than the very bottom, which is touching the liquid. Activating some seldom-used portions of my brain, I realized the raft might act like like a seal and keep the liquid from evaporating while the lid is off. To remedy this, I took a dowel and pushed a small hole through the raft to the liquid layer. Some liquid immediately sprang up to the top, so I'm confident evaporation will proceed at an adequate rate.

The "raft" and the dowel hole in the center.

Day 47

Good news: I bought a new camera. (Like you care)
Bad news: I haven't figured it out yet. (Like you care)

The first problem is that the camera is a top of the line A-series from Canon, and the amount of features it has can only be described as a "shitload." So it's going to take me a while to go through everything. The second problem is that the Canon software isn't opening, so I'll have to reinstall it. If that doesn't work, I'll have to go through that annoying process of combing the internet looking for advice from other miserable people.

Note the richer colors. Sweet.
The bottle on the right contains the extra ingredients,
which I still have in my fridge.

After the second stirring on Day 14, I have been leaving the mix alone. There hasn't been much change over the last two weeks, although the sediment below the liquid layer has compacted slightly, and tiny chunks from the upper layer continue to sink. Also, there has been more distinct bubbles inside the upper layer. Other than that, over the last 5 days or so, it appears things are slowing down amid the upper layer. If the process is indeed stalling, I may have to consult experts in the field to determine the correct course of action for the rest of the winter.

Day 34

When the mix hit the month-mark and there was still no mold or atrocious odor, I decided to go into my official Thinker Pose and try to figure out what the hell we did. With my fist at my chin and a contemplative look on my face, I pondered our quandry with every bit of scientific knowledge I had. (So you know I didn't ponder too long.)

What my pea-sized, beer-addled brain decided was that the two beers we added contained just enough alcohol to keep the nastiest of the bacteria at bay. It was going to be relatively warm outside over the next few days, so I decided to take the top off the jar and stick the mix outside, in hopes that some of the alcohol would evaporate before the freezing weather returned. Even though my deck is screened in, I used one of my high-quality restaurant-grade strainers to cover the top of the jar, to keep any foreign material from getting inside.

Day 34. Less liquid. More "sediment." Note the clean counter.

I just went outside to retreive the jar and I got a pleasant surprise: Even though the mix doesn't have a vomit-inspiring stench, the odor that was present is much more intense. I wasn't even near the jar when I first stepped outside and smelled it. There is also a lot more junk below the liquid level. And most importantly, the level of liquid has decreased dramatically. Alcohol evaporates at a lower temperature than water, so I have to assume some of the alcohol from the beer is now gone. The jar is now back inside the house with the lid on.

Days 16-22

After the stir test on Day 14, the mess separated again. And the bubbles returned. The take-away from these new photos is that, for some reason, the stuff above the liquid slowly sinks to below the liquid over a period of days.

Day 22. My creativity amps up to an astounding level when I throw a date marker into a Trash Vessel.

Day 16. Return of the bubbles and liquidy gap.