What is the white stuff floating in my syrup?

More than likely the thing floating in your maple syrup is mold . A rare type of fungus, called xerophile, is happy to make its home in your maple syrup if it hasn't been processed correctly. These xerophiles can only grow in dry places, which makes them different from many other types of molds.

Why is my syrup cloudy?

The “cloudy” look is probably due to minerals (niter/sugar sand) . The minerals and can be removed by proper filtering of the syrup. Some years, and some times during the season, can be worse for minerals than others. A good “gravity” filtration system using special cloth/orlon filters can work well.

What does syrup look like when it goes bad?

To be sure your maple syrup is at its freshest, check for these three things before you pour it on a pile of pancakes: visible mold, an off smell, and an off flavor. Visible mold should be pretty easy to identify. It can appear fuzzy and light brown or green in color .

Why does my syrup have crystals in it?

If your maple syrup container is starting to look like Superman's Crystal Cave, then the sugar content of the syrup is too high and crystals are slowly forming.

What does syrup mold look like?

However... Black mold differs from the white, or cream colored mold that grows in the syrup bottle. As black mold in buildings is a cause for serious concern, I would first wash the top of the syrup bottle, then put the syrup into a pan and boil it for about 5 minutes.

The best way to check on your maple syrup is to smell it or take a small taste. If it smells good and tastes good, it is good! If there is mold on the surface or in the container, you can scrape it off or strain the syrup through a cheese cloth to remove all of the mold pieces .

Does syrup ever spoil?

So does syrup ever go bad? The short answer is technically no, syrup does not expire and you can keep an unopened container of the stuff on your shelf indefinitely. That's due to the high sugar content of pure maple syrup, according to the experts at Ben's Sugar Shack, which produces syrup in New Hampshire.

Is cloudy simple syrup safe?

Below are the signs that you should watch out for spoiled simple syrup. The first indication that a simple syrup has gone bad is a cloudy appearance. A freshly prepared syrup has a clear appearance, much like water. So a cloudy appearance is not a good sign .

This may very well be fine, but it's not what we'd call an official recommendation . To ensure your moldy maple syrup is safe to use, first skim off the mold. Then heat the syrup to at least 180°F to kill off any remaining mold spores and bacteria.

What is the white sediment in maple syrup?

The majority of sediment in maple syrup is called sugar sand, or niter , and is the natural result of heating the syrup. Minerals the tree uses for food clump together during the heating process and need to be filtered out.

Is it OK to eat crystallized syrup?

If your maple syrup or honey crystallizes, it's still perfectly fine to eat . Gently reheat the container and your honey or syrup will re-liquefy. For an easy, mess free tip: try heating a large bowl of water and placing your container of crystallized product inside. Remember, never microwave your honey.

What does moldy simple syrup look like?

If your syrup appears cloudy, has spots or mold on it, or in the cap/lid , it's time to toss the simple syrup and make another batch. You don't want your syrup to colonize molds or allow them to grow in it. Make sure to store your syrup in airtight containers and label them with the date and contents.

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (2024)

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What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup???

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (3)

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (4)

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (5)

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (6)

What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup??? (7)

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12-20-2017,09:06 PM #1
seanbutler
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What's that cloudy stuff in my syrup???
Hi folks,
For a couple of years now, I've been having problems with cloudy particles appearing in my syrup. It's not sugar sand cloudiness, which is distributed evenly through the syrup, but "fluffy" particles floating in the syrup. They are not there when I first bottle it, but appear several months later. If the syrup is left undisturbed, they will eventually settle on the bottom and look like a fuzzy coating down there. If you shake the bottle they'll spread around it. I've uploaded a photo so you can see what I'm talking about. I've never read or heard about anything like this.
After the first year of this happening, we upgraded our filtering system from orlons to a filter press. But the problem had been just as bad this year. I'm stumped. What could this be? How can I fix it? It doesn't affect the taste, but it doesn't look good bottled in glass.
IMG_7398.jpg

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12-20-2017,10:08 PM #2
RileySugarbush
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I think it probably is sugar sand. It can show up a while after bottling as it cools. I had similar things happen, but almost always reheating. One year I pulled some out and looked at them under a microscope. It was really cool, pretty crystals. Very tiny. Very frustrating.
To solve the problem, I only heat to 195 or so after filtering. And only in a water jacket bottler so there are no hot spots when heating for bottling.

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12-21-2017,05:36 AM #3
JoeJ
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Seanbutler,
Do you heat your bottles before filling with syrup?
Joe

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12-21-2017,03:41 PM #4
seanbutler
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No, we bottle into cold bottles, in a cold room. We've been having some mold problems on the surface of the syrup in the tops of the bottles, particularly the half litre bottles, so we have a plan to build an insulated bottling shed, where all the bottles will be stored at room temperature during maple season, and the bottling will happen at room temperature.
Could the cold bottles also somehow be causing the cloudy issue?

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12-21-2017,03:47 PM #5
seanbutler
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We aim to not go above 195 too. We'll let it drop as low as 185. Last year we used a propane heater over water, this year we switched to a water jacket bottler though. We've been having some mold issues in the tops of our bottles, likely because we're bottling into cold bottles in a cold room, so we try to push the temperature as high as possible without causing sugar sand to form.
We also put our bottles back into their boxes upside down immediately after bottling, so the tops can get good and cooked, before taking them back out of the boxes to cool on a counter. I wonder if this treatment back in the boxes could be causing small amounts of sugar sand to form.

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12-21-2017,04:12 PM #6
johnallin
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The cold bottles are not good. I set mine up against the sides, and on top, of our water jacketed bottler. Stack them about 4 rows deep along the sides and they can get too hot to touch.
Placing your freshly filled bottles next to each other in that box may cause what’s called stack burn. Likely only a change to a darker color but not the best practice.

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12-21-2017,07:09 PM #7
n8hutch
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195 is too hot to pack in glass if you don't want that really finite sugar sand to form I would stay below 190, I keep my glass in 200+/- degree water until i am getting ready to fill them, about 5 minutes or less before I fill them I tip them over and let them drip out before I fill them, they are still almost too hot to hold when I go to fill em.
I struggled with that fine fine sand for awhile until I finally lowered my bottling temps.and I'm carefull not to heat too fast, even with the water jacket.
Last edited by n8hutch; 12-21-2017 at 07:12 PM.

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12-22-2017,06:33 AM #8
JoeJ
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Seanbutler,
Kathryn Hopkins at the University of Maine Extension Cooperative did extensive research on the mysterious floaty things that appeared in some maple syrup packaged in glass. After a lot of expert testing and research, she found out by packing in cold glass bottles, the temperature of the maple syrup dropped so fast, that the maple syrup was actually being sealed in the cold bottle at a very low temperature relative to 185 degrees. I don't remember the exact temperatures, but the syrup placed in the cold bottles dropped to somewhere around 145 degrees in just a few seconds. The cold glass sucks the instantly sucks the heat out of the syrup. Results: syrup packaged at the wrong temperature and mold growing in the glass bottles.
Solution: Heat your bottles to about 200 degrees as N8hutch does.
Joe

2004- 470 taps on gravity and buckets
2006- 590 taps on gravity and buckets 300 gph RO
2009- 845 taps on vacuum no buckets, 600 gph RO
2010- 925 taps on vacuum new 2 stage vacuum pump
2014- 3045 taps on vacuum, new 1200 gph RO
2015- 3104 taps on vacuum
2017- 3213 taps on vacuum
3' x 10' oil fired evaporator with steamaway
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