- Do you scrape the crystals that form above the boil line back into your syrup after turning the heat off? That would create nucleation sites for further crystallization.
- I scrape them off and add them back to the bubbling syrup, periodically, to dissolve them again.
- DAP needs to be added at the onstart, it supplies the amino acid, needed for the Maillard reactions. That's why I use wort as it has more different ones (FAN content).
I do scrape it periodically as I boil, but not after turning off the heat.
Adding DAP at the onset caused some problems for me, so I don't do that. The first problem is that it's volatizing and filling my kitchen with ammonia which I don't love. The other problem is that I can't make a crystal-free syrup with a lighter color when I add the DAP that early.
I want to invert a larger percentage of the syrup before trying to get the Maillard reactions started. The method I'll outline here utilizes the ammonia as soon as it is added, so you don't need to use as much, and it doesn't end up in the air. I did a bunch of research, but I have since forgotten why this works. It does work though!
DME seems like a really good option as well, but I haven't tried it alone.
I've worked this recipe a couple of times since I last posted, and I think I've worked out a procedure that creates exactly what I want in a reasonable time-frame.
The picture here is a batch I made about 3 months ago, and you can see there are a few crystals just starting to form on the bottom. That was with a 20 minute hold in the 260-275 range. I've since increased that to 30 minutes and eliminated the problem.
Belgian Candi Syrup Recipe:
Ingredients:
4# White Sugar
1# Dextrose (Corn Sugar)
1 1/2 Cups Water
1/2 tsp. Cream of Tartar
1 Cup Water
2 tsp. DME
1 tsp. Diammonium Phosphate
Put Sugar, Dextrose, Water and cream of tartar together in a pot and bring to 260 degrees. Hold between 260 and 275 for 30 minutes.
While sugar is heating dissolve 2 tsps. of Dry Malt Extract and 1 tsp of Di-ammonium Phosphate to 1 cup of water and set aside.*
After 30 minutes raise temperature between 290-300 and then SLOWLY add water/DME/DAP solution to syrup to start the Maillard reactions and drop temperature (It should drop close to 240). Add additional water until temperature is 240. Use less solution for less color.
Continue boiling slowly until desired color is reached and then add water to drop to 240 degrees again. Fills two quart mason jars.
*Note: You can add less or more of this solution depending on what you are trying to make. I tend to have both water and DAP/DME/water solution, so that I can adjust as I need while still dropping to 240.