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Music

I recently finished digitizing all of our CD collection to MP3 format. I have yet to finish pruning, cleaning, and correcting the ID3 tags or the file/folder structure. However at this stage our collection comes in at:

 14,724 tracks : 37 Days of music : 67.62 GiB

And this is almost all directly ripped from CD. I’d say fewer than 5% of the music is from alternate/online sources.

This project helped shine light on holes in our personal collection I wanted to fill, so Sunday H and I purchased a nice handful of music at Music Millennium. How did I survive in this town before visiting MM? Everyday Music is great for used, but the sheer selection at MM (not to mention supporting a local business) no longer has me wanting for Virgin Megastore. I know everything I would want could be available online, but the act of browsing through a deep selection is a visceral endeavour I take quite kindly to.

Here’s the list of our acquisitions:

A few of these are CD masters of LPs that we have on usual rotation on our Hi-Fi in the living room. I love the sound colour of the vinyl on tube amp, but I also love the clear, clean sound of the re-masters for digital use.

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Drinkie Navy Groggie

Lately, I’ve been fixated on the Navy Grog. Namely, Jeff ‘beachbum‘ Berry’s version of Donn’s Navy Grog.

I use the version in the Grog Log and add ½ oz of my ‘lazy’ pimento dram.

Craig’s lazy Pimento dram:

  • ¼ cup good quality allspice berries
  • ¼ cup Lemon Hart 151
  • 2 cups Sugar
  • 1 cup Water
  • Metal Strainer and Cheesecloth

Grind allspice berries with either mortar & pestle or as I do with a coffee grinder until you achieve a small crushed size. Steep ground allspice in 151 for at least 1 day. Dissolve sugar in water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add aged allspice/151 mixture. Let this mixture sit for at least 1 day. Strain first through metal sevie strainer to remove large particulate, then through a single layer of cheesecloth to remove the finer particulate.

My Navy Grog is as follows:

  • ¾ oz Grapefruit Juice
  • ¾ oz Lime Juice
  • ¾ oz Honey Syrup
  • ½ oz ‘lazy’ Pimento Dram
  • 1 oz Coruba Dark
  • 1 oz Lemon Hart (not 151) demerara
  • 1 oz Appleton White
  • 1 oz White soda (7-up, sprite, club if you must)

Fill one double rocks glass with small crushed ice. Stir all ingredients in a mixing glass. Start with the honey, then add the citrus to dissolve the honey syrup nicely. Finish with the soda and be gentle to save the carbonation. Pour into double rocks glass and stir to frost the exterior: Ideally you would use a rock-candy swizzle to stir.

Delicious, I assure you.