A few months ago, I bought this. Several weeks went by before I opened it.

mystery spice 1

That’s when I discovered all is not what it appears to be.

This is what’s inside.

mystery spice 2

Doesn’t look like cloves. Doesn’t smell like cloves. Doesn’t taste like cloves.

Since we can say with surety what this isn’t, a second-rate parlor game around here is guessing  what it is: When there’s a lull in the evening’s conversation, out comes this little gem, conveniently stored on the counter.

By now I’ve asked pretty much the full contingent of people likely to stop by, thus the game is drawing to close. Only the neighbors kids think this game has legs. The best guess is that Tone’s was cleaning out the pipes, as it were, and this is some sort of savory sludge.

Time to season the compost bin. Even though we’ve not determined what this is, it has provided a reliable source of lively conjecture and a few laughs. I shall miss this little guessing game.