I frequently come across social media discussions where it’s clear the poster and/or commenters aren’t clear on the distinction between molasses and caramel. Usually, these discussions are in the context of sweetening rum, notably the tradition of some producers lining their cask’s internal walls with caramel before adding rum for aging. Shaun Caleb of Demerara Distillers (El Dorado) discusses this practice and their recent move away from it in my
Very informative. Thank you! Your article does beg one question. Why is Demerara going away from the historical practice of lining the barrel with caramel before filling with rum and aging? What in total is lost and what is gained by stopping the use of caramel?
That's something DDL would have to answer. In the interview (link in article) Shaun references an experiment to cut cost. Beyond that, it's possible that some casks are still done this way, but on a much smaller scale.
Great article. On the picture "Caramel tanks at Trinidad Distillers Ltd.", the tanks are labeled with "Allergen". Any idea why? The internet (wiki) informs me that caramel coloring might be an allergen if it is made from "starch hydrolysates (from wheat), malt syrup (in general derived from barley), or lactose (from milk)". Supposing the (spirit) caramel is only made from sugar cane and its products - what is causing the allergen label?
Thanks for the kind words. Regarding the caramel question, I have no idea. We didn't spend any time talking about the caramel on my visit, other than to mention they make two types.
Some do use it for batch variation, while others intentionally choose to go darker than might be warranted. Since this post isn't about the use (or overuse) of E150a, I chose to not go down that rabbit hole. Otherwise, I'd have to explain in detail why I think some producers misuse coloring.
There's always more I could say in anything I post here, but few readers want to read an 8,000-word treatise, so I break things up into more manageable and discrete chunks.
Very informative. Thank you! Your article does beg one question. Why is Demerara going away from the historical practice of lining the barrel with caramel before filling with rum and aging? What in total is lost and what is gained by stopping the use of caramel?
That's something DDL would have to answer. In the interview (link in article) Shaun references an experiment to cut cost. Beyond that, it's possible that some casks are still done this way, but on a much smaller scale.
Great article. On the picture "Caramel tanks at Trinidad Distillers Ltd.", the tanks are labeled with "Allergen". Any idea why? The internet (wiki) informs me that caramel coloring might be an allergen if it is made from "starch hydrolysates (from wheat), malt syrup (in general derived from barley), or lactose (from milk)". Supposing the (spirit) caramel is only made from sugar cane and its products - what is causing the allergen label?
Thanks for the kind words. Regarding the caramel question, I have no idea. We didn't spend any time talking about the caramel on my visit, other than to mention they make two types.
Some do use it for batch variation, while others intentionally choose to go darker than might be warranted. Since this post isn't about the use (or overuse) of E150a, I chose to not go down that rabbit hole. Otherwise, I'd have to explain in detail why I think some producers misuse coloring.
There's always more I could say in anything I post here, but few readers want to read an 8,000-word treatise, so I break things up into more manageable and discrete chunks.