Need advice, Bottling process explained in thread

[scottdevine]

i have a question about the finishing process and filtering and shelf life of the product i am producing. i am not selling this syrup, it is strictly for personal consumption and gifts.

after pulling the concentrate from the outdoor pot (wood fire pit), i am filtering it through 2-3 pre-filters, and a cloth filter (all stacked) into my finishing pot (on propane). at that point, a lot of gunk (and junk) is removed and the concentrate looks 90% better. i then bring it to 66 brix on the hydrometer and filter again through 2-3 new pre-filters and a rinsed and dried (with a rolling pin, gently), into a pre warmed coffee urn (180) and fill bottles.

all the bottles have been sterilized, i have done 3 batches of syrup and bottled differently each time, and don’t know how to do it correctly.

sometimes the bottles are just out of the sterilization process drained and filled, the bottles are piping hot.

sometimes, they are sterilized on monday and filled cold (with 180 syrup) on tuesday

sometimes they are sterilized monday late afternoon, and are filled when they are still warm

sometimes they are sterilized monday and warmed in the oven to 190 until i am ready to fill them.

so as you can see this is the part of the process where i need some guidance. and i can research it on line (which i have), but i am looking for real experience and advice.

attached is a photo of a sample from batch 1. once the bottles are full and there really isn’t enough to bottle, i filter the remaining in a glass measuring cup and put it in my fridge. it looks beautiful and tastes great…once it starts being used, i transport it to this plastic holder and then something happened. this can’t be niter can it? Again, my bottled batches have sat for a week and no niter in sight, they are beautiiful...it seems like once air hits them or cold from the fridge, something happens (sometimes)

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all the other bottles shelved, look beautiful with no sign of niter or anything in them. is the refrigeration causing a separation of some kind?


i guess i am looking for bottling advice and insight as to what happened here.

i appreciate your time.

[happy thoughts]

The sides of the container look grainy. That and the cold make me think overdense syrup that's crystalizing. Make sure you're using the hydrometer correctly and adjusting your reading for the temp of the syrup at the time of testing. Two other thoughts.... Since this is the bottom of the barrel the last bits of syrup may be overdense due to evaporation. Or depending on how your coffee urn is warmed, may be overheating to temps above 200F in which case more niter will form.

As for bottling. .... Jars do not have to be sterile, just very clean. For best keeping quality the temp of the syrup should be a minimum of 180F when the cap goes on. This will help sterilize the bottle and cap and help prevent the growth of mold.. Pouring 180F syrup into cold bottles may not produce syrup of the best keeping quality because the syrup will cool some from the urn to the cold bottle allowing more microorganisms survive and grow. It may also prevent a good seal. So either heat the syrup a little higher or pack into heated bottles.

ETA- Try reheating the cold leftovers and see if the gunk disappears or dissolves. That should help you figure out if it's niter or sugar crystals.

[scottdevine]

thank you for the information. my coffee urn ONLY goes to 180, which is very convenient. i will start warming the bottles before filling. as for the hydrometer...are there different ways of using it hot? i figure pour in syrup from the propane and take the measurement...get it to 66 Brix...right? as for temperature...that is also where i am lacking right now. i am ordering a digital thermometer from amazon today, mine shuts off at 217! haahahahahah so i am using hydrometer only to gauge when its syrup. i will reheat that and see what it does...its strange becasue the other bottles from that batch look great but they are not refrigerated, and are in glass. i just really want to make sure i am doing this correctly, i thought i was (first timer here) been researching since november and so thrilled to finally be doing it. friends are loving the product, but i found this in my batch, so no ones complaining yet...i think that they are consuming it so fast, it doesn't have time to act like mine!

[happy thoughts]

You should have two lines- one for a hot test and one for cold. If you're measuring hot syrup make sure you're using the hot line which should read in the neighborhood of 59 brix.

[daniel_wentworth]

I think it's sugar crystals. Stick a spoon into it and taste it. Should be a bit grainy and sweet if it's crystals. If so your going above 67 brix, where it becomes a super saturated solution and can't hold all the sugar.
I tend to err on the side of caution when bottling and heat to 185 and pour into just sterilized jars and lids. Never have had a problem doing it this way, a bit more work but after making syrup you know all about work! LOL.....
I think your on the right track....figure out the hydrometer and the hot test and you should have it.

[scottdevine]

THAT is the problem...i am going to the second line ....hot! i have batch 4 coming up tonight, so i will go to the first line from the top of the hydrometer. so i guess it keeps cooking once its off the heat? i thought it should be 66 brix off the hydrometer?

[psparr]

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160208/d8720c064dbeebd23470a99ce5700e1a.jpg
Try this.

[Marvel26]

I did the same thing last year, measured direct from the boiling pot of finishing syrup until I was right on the line. I bottled some and jugged the rest. The bottles were fine until you cracked the top then crystals started to form on the bottom. The next batch I tested at exactly the right temp and I was WAY over. reduced the syrup to the correct density and bottled....zero issues after that.

Rob

[happy thoughts]

THAT is the problem...i am going to the second line ....hot! i have batch 4 coming up tonight, so i will go to the first line from the top of the hydrometer. so i guess it keeps cooking once its off the heat? i thought it should be 66 brix off the hydrometer?

Problem solved :) You're not the first to make that same mistake. 59 brix hot is the same as 66 brix at room temp. Think about it. Did you ever notice how the amount of syrup in your bottles seems to shrink when they cool? That's because cold syrup is denser than hot syrup even though the sugar concentration hasn't changed. It's not about cooking more once off the heat but the effect of temperature on syrup density. Thus different lines for hot and cold tests.

Now that said, and not to confuse the issue further but syrup taken off the heat *can* become denser if water continues to evaporate off of it. Keeping the pot or canner covered helps.

As for the syrup you've already sealed, you might want to go back and rebottle after readjusting the density with some fresh boiled sap. Or just pour it into your next batches of near syrup and retest until the density is right. If you leave them as is you're almost sure to see crystals develop. The crystals can get quite big and can be impossible to get out of the bottle or jar. Or if you like your syrup thick, you can freeze the dense syrup as is. It shouldn't freeze but just become a thick slush that you should be able to spoon off as needed.

Happy sugaring! :)