This week it was finally time for our appointment at the Tárnokréti Pálinkaház, a distillery in a village about 7-8 miles from our house. Józsi had been cleaning, halving and storing plums from our trees in a barrel since the summer, to be distilled into a type of Hungarian liquor called pálika. (a kind of brandy/schnapps) This was his first attempt, and we didn't really have the proper equipment but it came out well and the 100 liters of plum "glop" (as we like to call it) yielded more than the usual 1/10 ratio and ours produced 12.4 liters of quality pálinka!

Apologies in advance for the uneven color in the photos, but it was a day with VERY strange light, going back and forth between cloudy and sunny and we only have our two mobile phones to use for taking photos.

Left, the templom (Roman Catholic church) at the corner in the village of Tárnokréti, where the distillery is located; Center, pulling into the parking lot where the distillery is located, next to a renovated older house and a guest house; Right, lots of other barrels waiting for their turn.

Left, a view from the side, you can see the smoke coming out of the chimney from the fire that means the distillery is active; Center, this is the really cool machine that does the distilling. We enjoyed looking in the glass portholes to see the various things happening inside; Right, the sign on the front of the main house.

Left, a view of the yard next to the pálinkaház where the guest house, outdoor cooking area and small pool are located; Center, in the driveway there was a sleeping puli, a small very curly haired type of Hungarian shepherd dog that we often refer to between ourselves as a "rasta dog" because their fur is naturally very long coils that resemble rasta hair; Right, the small pool, with covered sides that can open in warm weather.

Left, the guest house that can be rented; Right, the end result of our first attempt at having pálinka made from our own fruit. The guy at the distillery said it turned out to be very good quality, so we were happy!