Bottling below 180 F

[Bullet]

Hi, I'm a newbie and have boiled last march and this march. On my first boil and upon bottling the last few, bottles had sugar crystals. I've not had this problem before. Because I had 5.5 liters (which is a lot for me) of maple syrup that went thru a cone filter I suspect the last few liters were below 180 F. The fact that the syrup was well below 180 F, could this have caused my bottled syrup to have crystallized? The first bottled 3 to 4 liters seem fine. I can't find an answer to the question "what happens when you bottle maple syrup below 180 F". Any help would be appreciated.

[BSHC]

crystalizing is generally because you are over syrup. Get yourself a Hydrometer to verify density. Temperature is not as accurate a measurment. Bottling over 180 is done to prevent mold growth in the bottle and is not likely the cause of your issue.

[Bullet]

Thanks for the response. You could be right as my draw off was at 222 F, that's where my hydrometer told me to draw at that time. I thought that was too high, should have been about 219 F. So I think that in fact it was too thick. However, what doesn't make sense is why only the last few bottles i filled have crystallization. Am I to assume that eventually the balance of the bottles will crystallize? My hydrometer may have not been washed properly and had solidified syrup on it from prior testing, making the hydrometer heavy and thereby giving me a false reading.

[buckeye gold]

If you had it hot for a while and uncovered it'll still steam off and get denser as you go. Did you have a lid on the filter or bottling pot? It helps hold heat and loosing steam.

[CTSap4Maple]

Were you still heating while bottling? As the syrup level decreased, you could have over-heated the last few liters. A water jacketed bottler keeps even heat without adding niter or crystals.

[BCPP]

As you get above 66.6% sugar the water loss increases exponentially so if it took you a bit of time to bottle the last part would have higher sugar. If you have Crystal's forming immediately on the later bottle I expect you'll get crystalization on the others as well, just may take several months to develop.

[Bullet]

I had the lid off and it was cooling off rapidly. I guess I need a steam heat bottler to keep the temperature a constant. It took some time to bottle and the bottles probably had cooled off (had them in the oven) by the time we bottled. I think the biggest contributor to the crystalization is the hydrometer and not washing it between tests with warm water to make sure it did not have any caked on syrup from previous tests. The other thing I think I should do is when I'm getting close to syrup to turn down my flame and try to slow down the boil as BCPP mentioned the closer you get to syrup the evaporation rate goes up exponentially so I thinks its good to turn down the heat and be patient and test frequently. I'm boiling tomorrow again so I'm going to put all my bottled 5.5 litres back in the finishing boil and redo it along with my new syrup I boil down tomorrow. Thanks all for your input. Always an education.

[maple flats]

Thanks for the response. You could be right as my draw off was at 222 F, that's where my hydrometer told me to draw at that time. I thought that was too high, should have been about 219 F. So I think that in fact it was too thick. However, what doesn't make sense is why only the last few bottles i filled have crystallization. Am I to assume that eventually the balance of the bottles will crystallize? My hydrometer may have not been washed properly and had solidified syrup on it from prior testing, making the hydrometer heavy and thereby giving me a false reading.
We can't tell you what temperature will give you the exact right density, that's why you should use a hydrometer and learn how to use it.
The reason is the temperature you need is based solely on the exact barometric pressure at your location. That will change as weather fronts move in or move away, and your elevation above sea level also changes it. If you have your exact barometric pressure, that should allow you to get the boiling point of water right then, with that add 7.3 degrees F and you will know what to draw at. However during a draw the density will gradually drop, so you will still do better with a hydrometer (or a refractometer). A hydrometer to give you the correct density must get a reading at 211F, which if you fill your test cup with actively boiling syrup 2x, dumping it back to warm the cup, then fill a 3rd time and carefully lower the hydrometer into the hot syrup in the cup, by the time it floats steady the temperature will be pretty much 211F. There are formulas and charts to adjust for other temperatures in this: https://holmes.osu.edu/sites/holmes/files/imce/Program_Pages/Maple/North%20American%20Maple%20Syrup%20Producers%20Man ual%20full%20pdf.pdf

[Bullet]

Maple flats: Great link Good resource for detailed info.......THANKS
https://holmes.osu.edu/sites/holmes/...full%20pdf.pdf

[buckeye gold]

Bullet, I have a small thermos I fill with hot sap. When I am finishing I keep my hydrometer in it all the time I am running the finisher. Just don't drop it in as with sap it will fall clear to the bottom and break.gently lower it in until it hits bottom. My thermos is just tall enough about 1/2 inch sticks above the top.

[Bullet]

buckeye gold..........great idea.....thanks. Are you happy with Smokey Lake? If I lived in the states it would be a no brainer

[bill m]

Bullet, I have a small thermos I fill with hot sap. When I am finishing I keep my hydrometer in it all the time I am running the finisher. Just don't drop it in as with sap it will fall clear to the bottom and break.gently lower it in until it hits bottom. My thermos is just tall enough about 1/2 inch sticks above the top. Do you take it out of the thermos and wash and dry it before testing your syrup? If not it will give you a false reading.