For those brewing Trappist Ales with recipes that call for Belgian candi sugar, here's a link for good directions on how to make your own:
http://suigenerisbrewing.com/index.php/ ... -sugar-ii/ updated url
It includes DME and Calcium hydroxide in order to employ the Maillard reaction, not just pyrolysis of monosaccharides derived from inversion under acidic conditions from cream of tartar or citric acid (essentially no amino acids present).
I did it and it is a bit of a PITA, standing at the stove without interruption for ~1 hour. It was my first experience with sugar at elevated temperatures and it worked, but my product could have been darker. Mine was the color of a typical caramel candy. Next time there will be a bit more lye added above 140 ºC and heated a few minutes longer at 145 ºC before topping out at 150 ºC for 1 minute.
Wear safety glasses and add water in not more than 2 milliliter portions, not by the tablespoon - it spits hot sugar when water hits the mix. I had to order slaked lime (calcium hydroxide) on line as no local shops stocked it. Ca(OH)2 is more soluble at lower temps than warm. Make your saturated solution cold and decant off the liquid into your spoon (over another bowl to catch any drips, it is caustic). Again, add it to the hot mix in small portions. I stirred and scraped the sides vigilantly with a silicone spatula. Initial foaming doubles the volume, make sure it will stay in the pot. For quicker response, move the pot off the heat rather than turning the heat down.
Making your own Belgian candi sugar
Post #1 made 4 years ago
Last edited by ShorePoints on 29 Aug 2019, 07:57, edited 1 time in total.
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