Reishi (Mushroom of Immortality)

 

Now if title didn't peak your interest, I don't know what will!  I know I blogged a lot about the recent interest in chaga of today's health culture.  About time for a change.  

Reishi Mushroom is also known as Lingzhi.  It's been used as a Chinese medicinal mushroom for over 2,000 years, making it one of the oldest mushrooms known to be used.  A few erroneous sources even claim it to be used for 4,000 years.  

Its health benefit claims are boosting the immune system, fighting viral infections (influenza), lung conditions, heart disease, high blood-pressure, high cholesterol, kidney disease, cancer, liver disease, HIV/AIDS, altitude sickness, chronic fatigue syndrome, insomnia, anxiety, preventing fatigue, stomach ulcers, poisoning and herpes pain.  Quite the list eh?  

Its tumor prevention, and immune system boosting abilities are what is mainly known for, but I read some strong claims to use it regularly as tonic to reduce anxiety.

So, with that teaser of info, let get to the tasty stuff.  Actually, to be honest, its not that tasty.  People have described it as having a 'earthy woody' sort flavor.  I would agree.  Its a mushroom; what more can you ask for?  Although it's easy to get used to.  I've been brewing pots for a while and drinking it as a iced tea for a while.  I haven't figured out a way how to make it into a delicious iced tea yet, but perhaps you tell me your secret when you harvest some.    I talked to a lady from a tea shop who puts some into her smoothy blender everyday.  I guess that works too!

So here is my adventure in picture form how I got hunting this year.  Out behind Horne Lake in Elliot lake, I found a few trees that had fallen that had a number of these shelf polymers. 

This is is!  I know this photo brings out the colours way too much, but it does come out like a rich deep red fading out to the tip.  Notice there are some bugs responsible for the holes -- they chow down on this stuff.

Early development of reishi.

Was happy to find this cluster.  

All on one tree!  You'll notice them on the base of old trees that have died prematurely for various reasons.  There was a small bush fire that skortched this place a while back.  This is a hemlock -- seems to grow well on these.  

More early growth of reishi.

The beginning phase of reishi.

These are about a week after I harvested the reishi.  Doesn't seem to be growing again. 

Almost missed these ones!  Tucked away and hidden!  Pretty much ready for harvest.  Biggest one yet!!

This still looks clean and soft on the bottom.  No signs of going to spore.  

This is an example of one still growing strong.  White soft bulging edges.  

Notice the small darker spots towards the center.  I think this is sign that it is starting to go to spore.  I harvested this after seeing the early spore sign.  You do not want it to go to spore, unless you want to increase your chances for having more for next years harvest.  You wouldn't want to harvest it after it goes to spore.  

You can see some spore activity towards the back.  I think this one is drying up and going to spore.  I was watching this one to see what it looks like after it did go to spore so I could also have more for next year.  The spores are seeding for new reishi. 

This is the top of an old shrivelled up one from last year.  

Another example of the early spore activity.  See my fingerprints.  The bottom is very sensitive to pressure.  

I used a bread knife while the mushrooms were fresh and cut them up into thin slices.  They get much smaller after dried. I dried them in the oven and in the sun-porch.  They have a strong odor when drying, so try and do it in a well ventilated area.  This is about 6 mushrooms.

I place 3 slices in this crock pot food-warmer and just let it sit for 8+ to 16 hours and dump the water to steep it twice to 2 times, depending on appearance of colour of tea.  

Taken out of the fridge to show colour.  Iced tea -- just add honey.  I don't add the honey in the pitcher though since I'd imagine the 2 would 'break down' the reishi too fast (since honey is acidic), making is decompose while you're trying to preserve the drink in the fridge.

This one has gone too far.  Wouldn't harvest this one.  Going to spore for more reishi!  The reishi is essentially taking the nutrients from the tree and recycling is back into nature in its own way.  

I hope this blog post has enlightened you!  Tell me if you find some and gain immortality.  Keep your eyes peeled on prematurely dead trees -- esp fallen ones.

Happy harvesting!

Geocaching in Wes' Wise Words

Its summer, the sun is out, and your inside scrobbling your facebook as if it's a DJ's scratchpad. I have news for you; you need to get out. You waited a long winter for this, and you're wasting it with cheesy excuses about the weather, or feeling tired... etc. Well I have news for you; its because your ass is soggy and you need to get that right and tight!  

Okay, maybe this isn't going to get you fit like a 12 day 12 step program, but you'll see the benefits. Yes, I'm being a bitch - but life's one too. :) I present a solution to all who've taken my humor lightly.

Geocaching
Geo (of or relating to the earth)
Cache (a collection of items of the same type stored in a hidden or inaccessible place)
ing (... you get the idea)

To those of you who do not know the term - this is an actively growing activity which involves using a gps device which will give you coordinates that will lead to the uncovering of a hidden container, traditionally holding a log book, and sometimes tradable doohickeys if you chose to exchange goods.  There are multiple types of caches available, but roughly 95% of geocaches are of this traditional type.  The adventure lies in getting to said coordinates (which your gps will point on out to where).  The terrain and difficulty of each cache is rated on the cache details listed on the geocaching website, so if you're in a wheelchair, no one is asking you to climb a mountain (unless you want to try that of course).  Some geocaches are as easy as parking and grabbing an easily locatable container.  Some involve climbing a mountain.  Some even require 5 days backpacking adventures.  Some are just for the kids.  The point is there is something for everyone.  And there are some right outside your door.  Maybe 1 block away, but ya, seriously.  There is a map on the geocaching website which you'll see at this link.  

Now you may be asking 'what be ye GPS'?  I shall show ye.  Pull out that 'smart' phone you have in your left pocket, and see the apps section.  Download the geoaching app.  If you just want to check this out, see the intro app which is free -- otherwise the 10 buck app is worth it.  If you have a backpacking GPS device, this works great too, but depending on the model, will require some tinkering to transfer geocache coordinates.  I used to do it this way, but went to the smartphone device instead since all details about the cache are transferred right into the app - no messy paperwork.

Now I have a smartphone (iphone 4) but do not have an account linked to it.  I don't pay anything -- nada -- no charges -- no bills -- no fees.  But what can my device do?  Everything still.  A smartphone still works as a gps locator, as long as it has a SIM card in it (guaranteed you do).   So what I do, it download (from wifi) the hundreds of geocaches in my area to an offline saved maps list, and then access them on the go.  Works like gangbusters.  Now I drive out to the countryside, looking for someplace new, and find some odd places I've never been.  If you have a data plan on your phone, all the better.  The idea of geocaching too, is that someone put the cache there to show you something or someplace interesting.  I was geocaching in Cambridge with my girlfriend, and this one geocache led to an old amazing mill on the Grand River.  Something like that, people need to see. Someone else who was at the mill, told us he collected the coordinates from the geocaching website, just so he could see the location - but hadn't geocached before.  Anyway, this smartphone appy way of geocaching for free is a steal to find a way to get out and explore while keeping in touch with your inner-ninja and inner-geek at the same time.

Now I know my words are fickle and thin, but I hope to have wetted your palette.  Feel free to browse their website for all the other info I missed.

Happy Geocaching!

P.S  Check out the geocaches I made -- my screen name is hops118

The Chalice

Tea is important, but no one tries to pour boiling water into their hands like our neanderthal friends and steep a leaf therein.  For countless millennia, we've been using a variety of vessels to do this for us, but in a modern era with too many selections... which one is best?  

I've used my astutely keen sense of observation to make some clever ones over the years (oh, so clever).  Many have been poured out into tea. What makes a good cup, and all that jazz.  But lets get down to Earth.

Chalices (now known as cups) are important for a number of factors listed here:

1. The cups ability to keep heat
2. Duration that it's able to keep that heat
3. Comfort of handle (if applies)
4. The handles ability to keep fingers from contact of heat (if applies)
5. The edge of the cups contact point with mouth (comfort)
6. Fluids surface exposure / vessels walls proportions
7. How the vessel affects the taste (sometimes applies)
8. Aesthetics

Some of these points may seem unimportant, but in defence, if you want to seriously consider your life over a cup of tea, you need to make sure you're not scaring your hand with a still yet boiling cup.  This can leave the rest of your thoughts a little obscured and aggravated.

Here are the top pros and cons of various vessels that I've discovered.

Glass
I still own a few glass vessels (double walled to avoid scorching heat), but 2 of them had broken due to odd circumstances. One was blown off a table, the other had suctioned itself to the bottom of a matching glass teapot set and kamikazed over a floor.  These vessels are excellent and often cool at a good pace.  They hold little body, so the temp of the tea tends to hold consistent for a little too long for my liking.  They also need to be cleaned well, so hard to reach areas will tend to give the vessel a poor aesthetic look unless cared for well.  Aesthetically, they are great guest pieces for a good loose leaf tea.

Cast Iron with Enamel Coating
Definitely one of my favourites.  These have a tried and true traditional look.  They hold a lot of weight, which keeps the temp high and long.  They have minimal affect on the taste of the tea, and go well with traditional green, black, white and so forth.  The down side is that they often do not carry a handle, which is a good thing actually.  The way to handle these cups is to not fill them to the top, and just hold the cup towards to rim where the cup is still cool.  Strange that it works.

Ceramic 
Good.  Ceramics have a wide variety, and whatever works with you works with you.  Come in all shapes and sizes. Of those shapes and sizes though, consider the type of tea and how long you want the tea of steep in the cup, and at what temp.  Larger the cup, the more the initial temp will dissipate through the vessel.  Smaller the cup, the faster it will cool.  Consider the amount of fluids exposed at the top too - this is help it cool fast, but almost too fast.

Earthenware / Clay / Pottery
I'm surprised to say it, but over the years, I've become obsessed with one cup in my possession. This is the redish one shown in the picture.  It is a bit of a man mug, but it holds so much fluid that I don't need to worry about it cooling down too fast with the volume.  The earthenware cools the initial temp down a bit and holds it quite well, but allows it to cool at a natural expected temp.  The glaze of this cup is par none for my tastes, and masks the appearance of settling tea residue.  The blue cup goes quite well with it - a matching set to me!  The other neat thing which I find so versatile, is that the cup size fits every kind of steeping device out there.  Often there is a case where a steeping device just doesn't fit in, or clasp on the edge right or something... but this never fails.  Aesthetically, the shape is timeless and perfect.  Both of these cups are hand made and carefully thought over to carry their own distinction.  I like that.

Consider the piece I found below off of Point Pelee.  I have no idea how old this is, but they have character even in age.  Because of this, I appreciate the timeless arts all the more.


I'm proud to have an Aunt who has cherished this gift she has.  She owns a pottery Studio in Algoma Mills, Ontario - just off Highway 17. Her work embodies careful craftsmanship and unique glazes in combinations I can only compare to a work on canvas.  My kitchen will not be complete until I have it completed with her work!   You'll understand why I'm being praiseworthy.  



Hope you enjoyed the extra bit of info.  I bet you'll never drink from a chalice again without thinking about it twice!  Maybe drinking from it twice too. :)  Appreciating the qualities will only bring out the best in your next cup, which may make your next cup your best cup.