Olives in brine

They're big and black and in brine and soaking.
Over the weekend I visited a mate's farm and picked a bucket of big black olives.
Beat the rain by a day. Picked just in time.
They're not as big as last year due to the long period without rain in Adelaide.
In 3-4 weeks they'll be in jars in a dark cupboard.

Here's the recipe:
Pick the olives. Your choice of green or black. I prefer big black Kalamata.
Wash in the sink.
Discard any olives that are dried or damaged.
Place a few bay leaves in large jars.
Add olives to the jars.
Make a brine mixture using 4 tbsp of salt to 1.1 litres of cold water.
Fill to near top of jar.
Place a food rated plastic bag over the top, tie in place with string, make a well in the plastic and fill with water - this keeps the olives immersed in the brine and stops air contact.
Leave for 6 days.
After 6 days, rinse olives in fresh water in the sink. Wash well.
Repeat the above process.
After 18 days (3 washes) bite into an olive. It should be reasonably pleasant to taste with no bitterness.
If still bitter, put back in brine for another 6 days.
Now they're ready to bottle and store.
After the final wash, start by adding bay leaves, minced garlic (and chillies if you wish) to the jars - use smaller tall jars.
Add the olives.
Add a 50:50 brine/vinegar mix.
This time, the brine mix is 2 tbsp of salt per 1.1 litres of cold water.
Fill to near top.
Add a small amount of good quality olive oil to help keep the air out.

Actually I prefer less vinegar. Try a 2:1 mix.
Label the jars so you know the mix and can get it right next time.
This year I will try using lime juice instead of vinegar. Should add a nice flavour - and I have a tree loaded with limes at the moment. I'll try a mix of 3:1.