Open Drum

[Amber Gold]

2 weeks ago I bought a drum I haven't packaged up yet. When I bought it I opened it to check flavor and grade. It's currently sitting in my SH. How long do I have until I need to bottle it? I'm trying to postpone it as long as possible because I want to see what sells and will need to restock my shelves with.

Thanks

[Jeff E]

I would get after it. Especially if it is not kept in a cool spot.
I have had good luck with barrels if I get them bottled up within a month of breaking the seal. I do not want to take a chance at losing a drum, so I typically will get it done in a week or 2 of opening.

[sapman]

Well, the sooner the better. But I think that you should be OK for awhile. Usually it seems like the top will get some mold, but as long as you pull from underneath I think you're fine. Plus, the hottest weather is over, I'm pretty sure.

[Amber Gold]

Problem has been solved. The restaurant that I supply syrup with called yesterday and ordered 20 half gallons. I'll bottle that up and other misc. sizes. The restaurant's business has doubled this year and it's been good for both of us. This will put them up to 25 gallons this year.

[Amber Gold]

I bought a drum of syrup last week from my supplier and in testing drums, we found one that hadn't been sealed properly. The bung was not even hand tight. I didn't buy it, but the syrup still tasted fine and only had a couple spots of mold on it. This is surprising to see since the drum's been sitting in the SH since last season.

[lew]

So long as the product that was put in the barrel was actually syrup (not high density sap) you won't have a problem. You can just do what has been done since syrup has been stored for long periods of time. Skim off the mold, reheat to above 180 degrees and put into a clean container. The only problems that arise are when you heat above 190 degrees you should refilter because a small amount of sugarsand will have been produced. The other major problem is that if the product that was put in the barrel to begin with was not syrup, by that I mean the density was less than 66 Brix, then you could get stuff growing in the almost syrup that will not be reversible. when mold grows on syrup, it's just that, growing "on" the surface of the syrup, not actually in it. That's why you can just skim it off and reheat to pasteurize the container it's going into. The mold is actually growing on a layer of water that forms from condensation inside the container after packaging. After setting for a while, some of the condensation falls onto the surface of the syrup where it picks up a little sugar and becomes a perfect medium for the mold (and I beleive yeasts)to grow on. If you do not have proper density syrup, the molds (and I believe yeasts gain) can actually grow into the the entire column of high density sap. Not just the surface.

[Amber Gold]

Interesting. Then what makes syrup ferment and spoil?

[lew]

When the "syrup" is not syrup. By that I mean, it is not up to density. the fermented moldy smell you get from an open drum of proper density is only from the layer on the surface that was not actually syrup because of the condensation that dripped on it. the syrup below this skim layer is perfectly fine.

[mountainvan]

there's a sugar yeast that can live in proper density syrup. it causes the syrup to ferment, but not make nice maple rum. if you open a barrel and it hisses for a bit, good bet it is fermenting. in plastic fermented syrup causes fat jugs.

[Haynes Forest Products]

About 10 years ago my buddy that did syrup with me decided to fill a tall SS tank with finished syrup and he sealed it with parifin wax and stuck it back in the corner ubder a shelf.........long story short 1 1/2 year later I found it and the wax had shrunk and the syrup didnt even mold after going thru a whole summer in the shack reheated and feed it to my brother. he lasted 10 more years after that and died of cancer............so your good to go

[tapper]

I opened a 5 gal container of this seasons light syrup to enter a pint of it in a local contest in April. Won 3rd place with it. I didnt bottle it or reheat it at that time went to bottle it a few weeks ago and it had lost a grade in color.

[Amber Gold]

The reason why I asked about the fermenting, is I have a friend who packs in 5-gal jugs and I think he usually loses 1-2 to sour, fermented syrup with the sides blown up. I always wondered why. I know he packs heavy and I'm pretty sure they're hot packed.

[brookledge]

I've seen 55 gal drums that were bulged out so much they won't stand up any more. It has always been my philosophy to hot pack unless I'm going to move it right away likke comercial. I can rest asured that when I open the keg it will be just as it was even for more than a yr.
Keith

[DrTimPerkins]

The reason why I asked about the fermenting, is I have a friend who packs in 5-gal jugs and I think he usually loses 1-2 to sour, fermented syrup with the sides blown up. I always wondered why. I know he packs heavy and I'm pretty sure they're hot packed.

Plastic containers are more likely to ferment than metal containers. What is he using....metal cans or platic jugs?

[twofer]

Plastic containers are more likely to ferment than metal containers. What is he using....metal cans or platic jugs?

As a homebrewer who has fermented in plastic in the past I would use a light food grade acid sanitizer on the fermenter before adding the wort. Is this possibly a step that should be performed when bulk packaging in plastic?

[Amber Gold]

They're packed in the blue plastic jugs.

[Homestead Maple]

I don't use plastic containers for bulk storage because when I did years ago, the syrup always turned a grade darker after say, 3 - 4 months storage. I never had any problems with the syrup getting moldy, though. I just made sure the syrup going in to them was at 180 - 190 degrees.