Molasses, caramel from

Caramel. Officially, the color additive caramel is the dark brown Hquid or soHd material resulting from the carefully controlled heat treatment of the following food-grade carbohydrates dextrose, invert sugar, lactose, malt symp, molasses, starch hydrolysates and fractions thereof, or sucrose. Practically speaking, caramel is burned sugar. 

The observations from the reactions of amino acids with mono- and di-saccharides have been logically employed for caramelization of molasses. A strong color, stable to tannin, sodium chloride, and alcohol was obtained at pH 9 with glycine or L-lysine as the catalyst. ... 

These chemical reactions and tests for caramel are complemented by a group of physical methods based on size-exclusion chromatography. These methods may be applied for the detection of caramel in beverages, beer, and wine. Caramel may be detected in bread and in various slightly colored products from the sugar industry (raw sugar, molasses, sugar syrups, and the like). Spectral methods are most useful for these purposes. 

As in the case of molasses, the color of different samples of caramel varies in intensity. Usually 4 to 6 grams of caramel per liter of water will give a satisfactory solution. The method of buffering the solution and the procedure for conducting the test parallel those used for molasses. During the early development of carbons for the treatment of liquids, this test was extensively used. Since then, it has been found that the test has very little relation to the removal of impurities from most industrial solutions and is seldom used now. 

Rum is produced from the fermentation of molasses. After distillation, it is aged from 5 to 7 years. Rum gets its color from the oaken cask in which it is aged and from caramel added before aging. Some light rums are rapidly fermented with cultured yeast and aged from 1 to 4 years. 

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