[Flashback] Vim and Vinegar

Orin teaches himself the process of making vinegar

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This shining population center is considered the jewel of The Sylira Region. Home of the vast majority of Mizahar's population, Syliras is nestled in a quiet, sprawling valley on the shores of the Suvan Sea. [Lore]

[Flashback] Vim and Vinegar

Postby Orin Fenix on March 20th, 2015, 12:06 pm

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5th of Winter, 510 AV


Orin surveyed the empty cottage with satisfaction. The family he’d been living with had gone out and was frolicking in the first snowfall of the year. They’d made an impromptu celebration of the event, flinging snow and making sculptures and getting into all sorts of fun. They had two younger sons and one daughter whom they were entertaining suitors for. Orin would have felt incredibly uncomfortable joining them. He felt like an outsider and an intruder at the best of times. To try and insert himself into what was clearly their personal time wouldn’t have done much to alleviate the matter. So, Orin had stayed inside instead. He’d put a kettle of water on the hearth to boil so that when Orin’s guardians came in he could make them some tea or another warm concoction. If Orin had been feeling particularly bold or stupid, he would have made them some spiced wine. But Orin wasn’t supposed to have access to the spices or the liquor.

However, Orin was observant, if not bright, and he’d long ago discovered where the keys to the drinks cabinet, the pantry, and the spice drawers were hidden. He’d been siphoning off small amounts for his culinary endeavors and the family had been none the wiser. Ever since they had discovered Orin could and would cook for them, and that his dishes were inevitably better than anything the family could have made, they passed the making of meals over to him. Still, he wasn’t trusted with the more expensive items and therefore Orin had been forced to get a bit creative and a bit sneaky. So, as Orin tidied up, sweeping, fluffing the pillows and turning two the coverlets, he also was retrieving the keys from their hiding places.

Once the cottage looked relatively spotless, Orin unlocked the pantry. He went to the jam jars, and pushed them aside, until he got to one that appeared empty, except for a strange substance pooling in the bottom. This was apparently, or so Orin hoped, a vinegar starter. He had bartered for it from a visiting merchant who had come down after harvest time. In exchange, Orin had shared a few of the recipes he knew for cooking along the road as well as a few coins. And he had cooked for the man to prove it. Still it was worth it, since the man had also given Orin precise instructions as to how to make homemade vinegar. Orin had just been waiting for the right opportunity to try it.

Taking out the jar with the starter and two fully empty jars, Orin carried them to the washbasin. Orin scrubbed out the jars thoroughly, using as much soap as he dared. He rinsed them out thoroughly until there was no hint of a bubble. Orin didn’t know what the effect of soap in vinegar that was forming would be and he had no intention of finding out. But it was probably something spectacularly awful though, if Orin’s forays into other sauces were anything to go by.

Now, Orin furrowed his brow. He was trying to remember, nearly word by word, what the correct process is. The man had refused to see it to Orin unless Orin could repeat back to him the steps perfectly. So, Orin had been drilled until he’d finally mastered it. Now he was ready to give it a shot. He carefully poured some of his starter into each of his now clean jars. Placing the remaining starter down, Orin took up one jar. He swirled the small amount of liquid around, until he was pretty sure he had coated the sides thoroughly, and then did the same to the second jar. Now he was ready for the more dangerous portion.
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Last edited by Orin Fenix on March 20th, 2015, 5:18 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Orin Fenix
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Vim and Vinegar

Postby Orin Fenix on March 20th, 2015, 12:57 pm

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Orin poked his head out of the door. The family was nowhere in sight. Orin had a sneaking suspicion that they had gone to the commons, and there might be an impromptu celebration of some sort springing up. At least, Orin could hear music and shouting in the distance, so that’s what Orin assumed was going on. Either that, or there was a fire. Confident that either way his presence would not be appreciated, Orin shut the door. He made his way over to where the alcohol was kept, and unlocked it. He pulled out the bottle of white wine and a bottle of hard apple cider. As long as he was going to be doing this, he wanted to use two different drinks. One, Orin was pretty sure they would create different flavors. And two, that way the fact that some of the drink was missing would be less apparent.

Taking his pilfered goods over to his workstation, Orin set them down with care. Orin felt only the slightest twinges of guilt over what was essentially flat out theft. Orin knew if he was discovered he would be beaten, but Orin didn’t particularly care. This wasn’t the first time Orin had stolen this particular set of items. He’d been using them to attempt to spice up his food with surprisingly good results and Orin hadn’t been caught yet. As long as he kept being as cautious as he had been, Orin was confident he’d be fine.

The other reason Orin had very few qualms about making use of the family’s hidden alcohol was because Orin had an aversion to anyone drinking. Ever since his father had perished, Orin had been terrified of drunkards and he personally had only taken small sips of alcohol when it was absolutely required. After all, toasts meant everyone had to drink, although more often than not, either Orin wasn’t in a situation where he had to participate in a toast. And even when he did, Orin could get away with having water in his cup or with only pretending to sip. No one was ever watching or paying attention to Orin at those celebrations anyway.

Taking up the white wine, Orin stared at it. It was such a small object to be able to cause so much destruction and harm. Of course, Orin was stubbornly ignoring that it could also bring people closer together and create happy memories as well as sad. Just because that was how Orin’s life had turned out didn’t mean that’s how everyone reacted to being drunk. Still, Orin was of the mentality that it was better to be safe than sorry, so he avoided liquor like the plague.

Orin uncorked the wine bottle. Carefully, he tipped it until just the smallest stream was pouring into the jar. Crouching down, Orin put his eyes on level with the rising wine. When Orin judged the jar to be three quarters of the way filled, he put the bottle upright and corked it. There was no immediate change in Orin’s eyes but he wasn’t worried. It would take about thirty days or so before the vinegar would be finished. Looking at the wine, Orin was pleased to see that there was still enough left in the bottle to avoid suspicion. While there had been a noticeable drop, only someone who was actively looking for it would be able to tell that. Orin repeated the process with the cider, being less careful with his measurements. Cider was much more abundant in Mithryn, seeing as many farmers made their own. It was fairly simple to do so in the winter. Just put a jug of apple juice outside and lit it freeze, then extract the alcohol at the core. At least, that’s what it looked like to Orin, although he’d never been allowed to participate. Whatever the reason, no one would even think that the cider levels not matching would be abnormal, since so many people drank it at pretty much every occasion.
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Orin Fenix
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Vim and Vinegar

Postby Orin Fenix on March 20th, 2015, 2:23 pm

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Orin took out three squares of cheesecloth and some string. Now he would have to wait. The merchant had mentioned that there were specific conditions that Orin should follow to keep his vinegar fresh and properly prepared. Apparently it needed air or else it would spoil or wouldn't form properly, hence the cheesecloth. Orin stretched a piece over all three jars and tied it off at the top, as tightly as he could. The merchant had recommended cheesecloth for a variety of reasons. First of all, the access to the air. Secondly, it would prevent dust or anything other particles from getting into the mixture and spoiling it. That would end in disaster. Either it wouldn't be salvageable or Orin would be reduced to picking out pieces of dirt from his teeth. Also, the cheesecloth allowed Orin to check on the vinegar's progress without opening it up and tasting it. Apparently, it was quite easy to tell if the vinegar had formed by smell, since the fumes would be nearly overpowering. And, most importantly, cheesecloth would allow Orin to separate the vinegar from the mother of vinegar that supposedly formed at or drifted to the top of the liquid. If Orin could remember to harvest and store that, he would be able to make homemade vinegar whenever he chose, which in Orin's mind was well worth the hassle.

So, he took his prepared jars, and turned, trying to decide where best to put them. Apparently, he hadn't quite thought this through as well as he should have. The mother of vinegar and soon to be real vinegar had to be kept at a relatively stable temperature. If it got too hot, or, more importantly, too cold all of Orin's hard work would be ruined. The only reason Orin had put the mother of vinegar into the pantry in the beginning was because it had been warm enough if the fall that Orin hadn't needed to worry about it. However, now that winter was upon them, Orin needed to keep it in the main room of the cottage, especially since the pantry was specifically designed to retain cold air to help prevent spoilage and aid in preservation. After all, salt and smoke could only do so much. So Orin needed to find a place to hide his jars in the main area, one that no one would inspect and was relatively close to the fire.

While he was pondering his dilemma, Orin replaced the bottles and the keys, taking care to make it appear as if all that had happened had been the cleanup and nothing more nefarious. Orin was an old hand at this particular game and he'd quickly figured out what would draw attention and what would not by trial and error. He'd moved objects around enough as he cleaned until the family stopped commenting or noticing it. And since Orin had started playing dumb after he'd discovered through eavesdropping that they'd decided Orin was an idiot, albeit a useful one to have around, he'd basically become invisible. Not that playing the part was particularly a stretch since Orin wasn't exactly intelligent. But this was honestly how he preferred it.

When everything was back in place to Orin's satisfaction, Orin still had the jars to deal with. But an idea had occurred to him as he'd been bustling around. At this point control of the kitchen had been entirely relinquished into Orin's hands. And that included the hearth, and the pots and pans on top of it. Orin took his jars one by one and placed them in various empty pots. Chances were that they'd remain untouched by anyone but Orin and it wouldn't look at all unusual for Orin to be puttering about in the kitchen. So his secret would be as safe there as anywhere else. And the proximity to the fire meant that the vinegar would remain just warm enough through the short winter days and long winter nights. Orin dusted off his hands, incredibly pleased with himself. He thought he'd done an excellent job today.

Moving to his bedroll, Orin picked up the pile of leather tack for the farm animals and beasts of burden that had been dumped there unceremoniously this morning. Orin had only rudimentary skills at sewing, especially leather, so his job wasn't to repair these goods. No, Orin simply was supposed to sort them into those that were untouched, those that requires minor touch ups, and those that would be in some need of some serious attention. It was tedious but far from difficult. So, Orin set about doing it. It required his hands and his eyes but not his mind, so Orin set it ranging far afield, dreaming about the day when he would be in charge of his own life
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Orin Fenix
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[Flashback] Vim and Vinegar

Postby Keene Ward on April 7th, 2015, 1:57 am

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Grades


“For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought.”
-Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene

Orin

Skills
    Brewing +1
    Philtering +1

    Cooking +3
    Planning +3
    Hosting +1
    Cleaning +1
    Subterfuge +2
    Observation +2
    Tactics +2
    Larceny +1
    Philosophy +1
    Knot Tying +1
    Organization +1
    Disguise +1

Lores
    Brewing: Apple Cider Theory
    Cooking: Secondary Uses for a Cheesecloth
    Cooking: Fermenting Vinigar
    Recipe: Simple Vinegar
    Philosophy: Alcohol's Disproportion in Size to Destruction
    Subterfuge: Using One's Environment to Conceal Things
    Subterfuge: Exploiting Mundane Patterns

Rewards/Consequences
+Two jars set to ferment into vinegar

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Notes
Edit: I added two skill points that were pointed out to me on another thread! Sorry for the confusion!

If you have any questions or concerns, please send me a PM!

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