People's Database of Sugar: Sugar testing for all!

Post by **Capn Jimbo** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 6:42 am

As many will recall...

We - with the help of Richard Seale - struggled with the idea of doing our own measurements of sugar and altered rum using a simple and inexpensive hydrometer (under $20), or perhaps a standard reflectometer (also inexpensive, used by home brewers and winemakers). This was suggested by a member, and although I/we tried to carry through, we never finished the project.

Finally though someone has, and has produced a VERY accurate and simple method any of us can use to evaluate our rums, and hopefully produce a "master list of tested rums from ALKO, Sweden and the nice large list produced by this gentleman. His website and docs are linked below and are a MUST read for any serious lover of rum (most of us)...

Links to scan and/or read...

Hydrometer Method
http://www.drecon.dk/index.php/16-the-hydrometer-method

About Additives
http://www.drecon.dk/index.php/14-no-additives

Basic How To
http://www.drecon.dk/index.php/19-hydro ... structions

List of Rums Tested and Sugar Levels
http://www.drecon.dk/index.php/17-list-of-rum-measured

Flat Ass Bottom Line

1. His method was developed with support and advice by Richard Seale
2 His method is accurate and tests very closely with the sophisticated ALKO database, which was produced under laboratory conditions.
3. His method is simple: take a measurement, correct using his temperature table if necessary, then get a sugar reading from his sugar table.

According in him rums testing 0-5g/liter can be considered on the rather pure end (Richard would say 0-3g). The reason for the small range is that there are also a very small amount of wood extractives in aged rum. My position is that a range of 0-1 is possible if you compare against a known pure reference rum of about the same age, eg one made by Seales.

For those who'd rather not mess with the tables, it's possible for you to participate by just taking a hydrometer reading and recording the reading, and temperature. I'll be happy to check the tables for you and get the sugar result.

Frankly, this for the first time gives all or any of us the opportunity to fairly and accurately evaluate absolutely any rum, any time, anywhere. Inexpensive and simple, but effective - all key words here at the Project.

Carry on.

*******
Kudos to mamajuana and credit to him for these links! We thank you...

Note: corrected link above to great list of tested rums!

Dai · Post by **Dai** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 9:05 am

For those who'd rather not mess with the tables, it's possible for you to participate by just taking a hydrometer reading and recording the reading, and temperature. I'll be happy to check the tables for you and get the sugar result.

What a good idea. Now we're cooking, I think this would be very good to do as many hands make lite work. Also it would cut down on the expense, since different members drink different types of rum at varying prices. I don't think any of us would go out and buy a bottle of rum just to test it. Good thinking Jimbo.

mamajuana · Post by **mamajuana** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 3:53 pm

I would be down with this idea. But I would put forth another. Lets figure out what suggested device/brand we will use to do this. This will allow for less variance between samples. I specialize in finance not Science, so someone more suited to figuring out what standard device we should order for measurement for the best results should come up with something we can purchase. I personally am now nearing 300 bottles of rum in my collection that could be tested eventually.

Also, a note of concern to anyone not reading further into this. Because a rum tests at 30% but is listed/labeled at 40% ABV does not mean you can drink more one night. The rum is still a 40% product. Added sugar etc does not lower ABV from this type of testing it just indicates that things have been added.

US law does not allow for more than a .15% variance in spirit ABV labeling.

Dai · Post by **Dai** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 4:46 pm

mamajuana wrote:. I personally am now nearing 300 bottles of rum in my collection

Send me your address I'm coming over yours!

mamajuana · Post by **mamajuana** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 4:54 pm

Dai wrote:
mamajuana wrote:. I personally am now nearing 300 bottles of rum in my collection
Send me your address I'm coming over yours!

If I had the time I would. I am a work horse at my company I barely have enough time to finish a few bottles a week at most, but at least this work allows me to continue said collection.

Post by **Capn Jimbo** » Sat Jan 03, 2015 6:11 pm

Error!

Please note the corrected link to the huge list of rums this man has tested! See new link in the OP above in RED... of course we can add to it. Please be SURE to take a look at the list - it's rather reassuring that many of the rums we all strongly suspected of alteration, in fact, are...

JaRiMi · Post by **JaRiMi** » Sun Jan 04, 2015 1:15 pm

The results are interesting, but for alcohol percentage there seems to be big errors - and some sugar results do not correspond to at least the stock sold in Nordic countries at all - see Brugal 1888. As is, the results are indicative, but not 100% accurate it seems. A good effort, but I would not read all the data as God's word. Fact is anyhow that 99% of so-called brand rums from large producers contain added sugar - a practice I suspect has grown significantly since WWII (and was accelerated by the US market success of supersweet rum products in the 90s - 2000s).

Post by **Capn Jimbo** » Sun Jan 04, 2015 2:54 pm

FWIW...

This gentleman tested this method against both the Swedish and ALKO figures and his number were very close. It is important to realize that the ALKO, etc., results are of a given bottle of a particular brand on a given day. The products are constantly changing, and different recipes are used for different countries (eg the US market tends to have a sweet tooth). Thus, the acid test of course is to test a spirit to which you have physically added known amounts of sugar to see if the test accurately measures what you KNOW you added.

He did, and It did...

"The Swedish state controlled "Systembolaget" and the Finnish "Alko" have published values about the amount of sugar in some rums (listed in g/L). Not knowing the method used for these measurements, I can only assume that these measurements has been done in a lab with high end equipment, giving accurate results. With my simple Hydrometer measurements and the conversion table, I've measured some of the same rums, and these are the results:

Brand....... Lab....... My measurement.......

Angostura 1824 Aged 12 years 17 18
Angostura 1919 14 13
Botran Solera 1893 Gran Reserva Anejo 9 9
Diplomatico Reserva 8 anos 7 9
Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva 12 anos 41 30
El Dorado 12 year old 45 36
El Dorado 15 year old 31 37
Plantation Jamaica Old Reserve 2000 17 16
Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 45/20 38

Another way to validate the method, is by adding a specific amount of cane sugar to a white rum which have no sugar added to start with.

In the example below, a cheap white supermarket rum which has an %ABV of 37,5%, was used. 200mL of the rum was poured into a beaker, and a picture was taken, showing that the Hydrometer sink to the bottom. 8 gram of cane sugar (8g/200mL = 40g/L) was added to the white rum and dissolved by stirring the rum for a few minutes. After the sugar had dissolved into the rum, the Hydrometer was placed back into the rum and a second picture was taken. On the second picture, the Hydrometer does not sink to the bottom, but stays at the surface. In both cases the rum is 37,5% ABV, but the density change due to added sugar, causes the Hydrometer to measure a wrong value.

The "wrong" value measured are 26,4% ABV and this was measured at 24°C so we have to temperature correct the measurement using a correction table. 26,4%@24°C = 25%@20°C , looking up in the Sugar g/L conversion table I've created, 37,5% on the label and 25% incorrect Hydrometer measurement gives an exact match to the expected 40g/L sugar added.

Having struggled with this issue myself and running my own hydrometer/alcoholmeter and refraction tests, I do believe his method is accurate enough, and if compared against a known pure rum (eg Seales 10, Doorly's 5, etc), could be even closer. In any event, quite reliable enough for our purposes.

Post by **Capn Jimbo** » Mon Jan 05, 2015 8:01 am

Wrote him an email...

...regarding the source of the hydrometers he uses, and he provided this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Professional-al ... 4aba8e1904

These are called "professional" units, about $20, and are alleged to be +/- 0.1%, while the everyday units (used by thousands of home and craft brewers/distillers) can be had for around $8 to $10, and are claimed accurate to 1%. Also as you will see the "professional models" are designed for narrower ranges (say 30-40% alcohol), while the more common units often cover the full range on a single unit, say 0-100% alcohol.

Currently he reports that he now uses a more expensive tester (an electronic density meter) that is extremely accurate and automatically compensates for temperature:

"Recently I got access to a more accurate Electronic Density meter which makes it easier to measure, because the density meter only require a very small sample to measure the proof and it automatically compensates for the temperature. The Precision Hydrometers/Alcoholmeters I use are calibrated at 20 degree Celsius, so measuring at other temperatures, I need to do a manual adjustment by looking up in a table."

The electronic testers start at around $200 and up, up, up.

In reviewing his many tests I it seems that by far the most readings are reported from about 30 to 45% for purposes of calculating sugar. Only a few rums lay outside this range. Although it bears some reflection, based on my own testing with a common hydrometer (tested Seales and a few sugared rums), the common unit gives good enough results for our purposes.

By this I mean that although the common hydrometer may not give the exact amount of sugar, but is accurate enough to easily distinguish from a pure and unsugared rum - which is our goal anyway.

JaRiMi · Post by **JaRiMi** » Mon Jan 05, 2015 9:27 am

Capn Jimbo wrote:Wrote him an email...

...By this I mean that although the common hydrometer may not give the exact amount of sugar, but is accurate enough to easily distinguish from a pure and unsugared rum - which is our goal anyway.

I agree with this wholeheartedly.

Dai · Post by **Dai** » Mon Jan 05, 2015 10:24 am

Are we any closer as to what equipment is to be used?

JaRiMi · Post by **JaRiMi** » Mon Jan 05, 2015 12:15 pm

Dai wrote:Are we any closer as to what equipment is to be used?

Professional labs use gas chromatography to determine many things like alcohol percentage.

Post by **Capn Jimbo** » Fri Jan 09, 2015 2:38 pm

My good friends...

I have not forgotten this project.

Unfortunately, some personal issues came up over the holidays, but please know this project is a "go", and I will shortly have a simple list of equipment which will include an inexpensive hydrometer (possibly two), and a simple glass test tube type column.

Cost should be around $20 to $30 maximum, I'd guess and then we can start testing reporting our own sugar findings...

Hang in there!