Boiled too long? Syrup really dark

[Choubacca]

I have been working on my syrup for a little while now with what little I have. I have been keeping a very close eye on the temperature but it hasn't reached 219 F yet. However after a long time of boiling and trying to finish it off tonight I've noticed it has gone REALLY dark. Is it ruined? To lighten the grade do I just add sap? Help greatly appreciated :-( would a pic help?

[wnybassman]

Does it just look dark boiling away in the pot, or did you pour some out in a glass container to see what it looks like about an inch deep? While finishing in my kitchen it always looks rather dark, but when finished and poured into my glass bottles it always looks much much lighter.

[Choubacca]

Does it just look dark boiling away in the pot, or did you pour some out in a glass container to see what it looks like about an inch deep? While finishing in my kitchen it always looks rather dark, but when finished and poured into my glass bottles it always looks much much lighter.

yeah i used a glass container to transfer it to the next pot to prevent spilling and its still kinda dark :cry: I'm boiling it right now inside its at 213 F and its really dark. I tried to dilute it with sap but im not sure its doing anything....

[Choubacca]

it literally looks like a guinness haha. with the froth on top.

[wnybassman]

213 and already dark dark?

Don't dilute it, that will only prolong the process.

Are you sure the thermometer is accurate?

[danno]

If you're at 213, you're nowhere near syrup and have a lot more boiling to do. Find a local sugarmaker with a hydrometer and test it. Once you reach syrup and run it through a filter, it will lighten up quite a bit. The suspended niter makes the syrup quite a bit darker.

[Choubacca]

Its at 214 right now. Its rising again. I have a hydrometer and I tested it before but it was no where near the amount of sugar. I have two thermometers and they are reading the same....I will filter it and hopefully it will clear it up...

[Choubacca]

See I was trying to make sure I had at least a gallon, It has reached 218 but I've added syrup to keep the process going... plus i also didn't want to scorch the pot

[Rossell's Sugar Camp]

Sounds like either low sugar content or bacteria filled sap. there is nothing you can do about low sugar content. But dont boil cloudy sap that has turned whiteish in color. It is fermenting and lowers the grade of the syrup drastically.

[Cider Hill Maple Farm]

Remember this: ( A quote from a master sugarmaker, I visited.)( " You can make light syrup darker by a longer boil, but you can't make a dark syrup lighter.") I wouldn't add any more sap to the pot you'll be boiling longer and not getting the results your looking for. If you don't have a syrup hydrometer, put that on the to do list, well worth the coin, it's better to have one instead of the frustration. Best of luck!!!!

[Rossell's Sugar Camp]

And dark is ok if you like a strong maple flavor. Most of my customers ferfer the darker stuff.

[Choubacca]

Sounds like either low sugar content or bacteria filled sap. there is nothing you can do about low sugar content. But dont boil cloudy sap that has turned whiteish in color. It is fermenting and lowers the grade of the syrup drastically.

ahhhh......As it had gotten warmer the sap had clouded slightly in my storage tank. I think that might be it. I have been boiling it constantly and even now, so is it no longer good? I looked it up and it said as long as it is boiled it should be ok.

[Choubacca]

oh man ahaha, It had too much sugar in it according to my hydrometer...

[maple flats]

As long as it does not taste burnt you did not ruin it. Old sap and repeated re heatings makes syrup darker.

[Aaron Stack]

I had this yesterday. The syrup is coming out black like a good Guinness. Tastes great too. Sap tested at 1.5% Had this last year at the very end of the season

[Galena]

If I ever get any really late season syrup it usually looks and taste like molasses/brown sugar, though not quite as heavy a texture. One of my bros loves the super-dark stuff.

[slammer3364]

That is the way we like it! Has a strong maple flavor and my wife says it taste like marshmellows