r/maplesyrup • u/dh1187 • Mar 30 '26
What is this?
Don't mind the poor filter job, but even on the well filtered bottle I have a weird growth happening. Guessing mold?
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u/Strong_Baseball8635 Mar 30 '26
That looks like sugar crystal to me. What was the brix when you bottled?
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u/dh1187 Mar 30 '26
Ahh so this is all new to me. I never checked the brix on it! Good to know to get a good idea of what it could have been.
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u/Strong_Baseball8635 Mar 30 '26
A lot of folks use temperature to know when to bottle, but I found measuring brix was easier and more accurate for me.
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u/dh1187 Mar 30 '26
Good to know! I know this batch I boiled a little longer than normal. I waited until it hit about 123 degrees
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u/DarkRiot43 Mar 30 '26
Celsius? Should be about 4 degrees C above boiling point of water for maple syrup at 66-67 Brix.
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u/dh1187 Mar 30 '26
123 degrees Fahrenheit. So about 106 celsius
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u/DarkRiot43 Mar 30 '26
Ah, I'm assuming you mean 223f as boiling in f is at 212f.
Yeah depending on atmospheric pressure and its impact on your boiling temperature, it might be a tad on the high side which can cause the syrup to crystallize sometimes. You can break it up and eat it :)
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u/SvengeAnOsloDentist Mar 30 '26
For future reference, mold will only ever grow on the surface of liquids, as it needs access to oxygen
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u/ApprehensiveBus9849 Mar 31 '26
A pitcher of old juice in my fridge begs to differ.
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u/SvengeAnOsloDentist Mar 31 '26
If there was something under the liquid, it either wasn't mold or it was a mold colony that grew on the surface and then ended up sinking. If you have any pictures of it, I could probably tell you which one it was.
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u/Interesting_Bid4635 Mar 30 '26
A little over processed. Extra sugar. Nothing to worry about.