https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/bottled-caramel-appletini • Posted by Countryman Press
My Wicksons were 15 Brix. If yours are higher (many reported measurements are over 20), you will have to adjust your recipe or it will become toothachingly sweet. You don’t need a refractometer to figure this out: if the drink is too sweet, adjust! This drink is not supposed to be a sugar bomb. Caramel syrup isn’t as sweet at the sugar it contains, because some breaks down during caramelization. MAKES ONE 51∕5-OUNCE (155-ML) DRINK AT 16.5% ALCOHOL BY VOLUME, 7.2 G/100 ML SUGAR, 0.45% ACID NOTE: For 70-Brix caramel, add a small amount of water—around 1 ounce (30 ml)—to the bottom of a pan. On top of the water pour 400 grams of granulated sugar and heat till the mixture forms a rich, dark caramel, almost but not quite burned. Immediately add 400 ml of water. It will boil violently. Stir the mixture with a spoon to dissolve everything. After the syrup cools, measure the Brix. It should be somewhere between 66 and 70. If it is higher, add water. If lower, boil some water off.
My Wicksons were 15 Brix. If yours are higher (many reported measurements are over 20), you will have to adjust your recipe or it will become toothachingly sweet. You don’t need a refractometer to figure this out: if the drink is too sweet, adjust! This drink is not supposed to be a sugar bomb. Caramel syrup isn’t as sweet at the sugar it contains, because some breaks down during caramelization. MAKES ONE 51∕5-OUNCE (155-ML) DRINK AT 16.5% ALCOHOL BY VOLUME, 7.2 G/100 ML SUGAR, 0.45% ACID NOTE: For 70-Brix caramel, add a small amount of water—around 1 ounce (30 ml)—to the bottom of a pan. On top of the water pour 400 grams of granulated sugar and heat till the mixture forms a rich, dark caramel, almost but not quite burned. Immediately add 400 ml of water. It will boil violently. Stir the mixture with a spoon to dissolve everything. After the syrup cools, measure the Brix. It should be somewhere between 66 and 70. If it is higher, add water. If lower, boil some water off.
Mix everything together, bottle, chill, and serve.