VIRGINIA DARE JAMAICA LTD.

5 Leonard Rd. Kingston 10, Jamaica W.I.., Tel: (876)-926-6750, 926-6759, Fax (876)-968-9536, Email: flavor @virginiadareja.com

BRIX
Brix is a measure of the percentage sugar in a mixture. Beverages usually have a brix of 10 –13° , while
syrups should have a brix of 62 –65°. A brix refractometer is used to measure brix, these can be obtained
through suppliers of laboratory equipment. It is useful to measure brix to control the quality of your product and
to prevent wastage of sugar.

CITRIC ACID
Citric acid imparts a “tangy” taste to beverages. It should be used along with flavours, and can also be used
with natural fruit juices. If your batch size is small (under 50 gallons Beverage or under 10 Gallons Syrup) it is
helpful to first dissolve Citric Acid in water to make a solution. This will make it easier to measure accurately.

1.Place 5 lb 2.Add hot 3.Stir until

of Citric 1 GAL water till 1 GAL dissolved 1 GAL
Acid in a 1 it reaches
Gal the 1 Gal
container mark.

• Do not Add 1 Gallon of water. Rather, add enough water so that you get a gallon of solution when the citric acid dissolves.
• If you do not have 5 lb. of citric Acid, 1 lb. will make 26 fl oz (757mL Solution)
• Solution does not need to be refrigerated

CONVERSION FACTORS

WEIGHT VOLUME
1 Av Oz = 28.35 g 1 Teaspoon = 5 mL
1 lb = 16 Av oz 1 Fl Oz = 29.57 mL
1 Kg = 1000 g 1 US Gal = 128 Fl Oz
= 3.785 Litre
1 Litre = 1000 mL

EQUIPMENT
Stainless Steel tanks and mixing equipment is ideal. It is important to have accurate measuring equipment.
Scientific measuring cylinders can be ordered through suppliers of laboratory equipment.

FLAVOUR
The flavour of your beverage will depend on the amount and ratio of flavour, sugar, and citric acid used. These
can be adjusted to your preference. Too much flavour will impart a bitter taste to your beverage. Flavours
should be stored between 4-27’C (40-80°F) away from sunlight in full tightly closed containers, and used within
six months of purchase.
COLOURS
Food colours are sold either as liquids or powders. Powders should first be dissolved in some water before
addition to your product to prevent “hot spots” of undissolved colour. Food colours come in a variety of shades
and can be combined to produce more shades. Some colours are not accepted in some countries. To get a
cloudy beverage a cloudy flavour should be used.

PACKAGING
How a product is formulated may depend upon the package in which it is put. The quality of the packaging
depends to a large extent on how permeable it is to air. The best type of packaging is a glass or aluminum
container. Such a product, depending upon the content, may be capable of filling without excessive
preservatives. PET plastic is next in quality as it is only somewhat permeable. With a suitable cap, glass and
some PET bottles can be hot filled. This is done by first pasteurizing the product and packaging at about 82°C
(180°F) or more. The bottles should then be turned upside down to kill microorganisms in the cap. If this is done
properly, the product will not have to be refrigerated until opening.

Polyethylene bottles are quite porous and permit air to circulate around the liquid. A higher level of preservative
is required or the product should be pasteurized before packing. Products packaged in polyethylene bags are
the most susceptible to spoilage because of their thinness and presence of air to oxidize beverages. Products
high in juice must be pasteurized and beverages with dairy ingredients must be sterilized.

To increase shelf life, bottles and caps should be rinsed in a sterilizing solution, made and used according to the
manufacturers’ instructions.

PRODUCTION AREA
The production area should have cement or other type of floor capable of proper cleaning. The floor should
slope toward a drain which will prevent water settling on the floor. The walls should be of tile or cement, non-
porous material that can be easily cleaned. Electrical connections should be high on the wall. The production
area should be completely enclosed with screened windows or screened on all sides to keep out birds, insects
and rodents. It is advisable that the facility not be near a source of yeast such as a brewery, bakery, as yeast is
a major cause of beverage spoilage. Dirty beverage bottles should be kept away from the production area.

PRESERVATION
The shelf life of your product depends on many factors. Frothing of syrup/ bloating of bottles indicate
fermentation of syrup. The appearance of a white stringy substance in beverages indicates growth of
microorganisms. It will be especially noticeable in lighter coloured drinks such a pineapple. There are several
measures that can be taken to increase the shelf life of your product:

• Clean and sterilize all equipment before and after use. Commercial sterilizing chemicals are available and manufacturers
instructions should be followed.
• Sterilize bottles and caps by rinsing in a sterilizing solution, made and used according to manufacturers instructions.
• Do not keep dirty bottles/ packaging/ garbage near the production and packaging area.
• All persons involved in production should practice good personal hygiene
• Use chlorinated and filtered water
• Check the brix (sugar content) of your syrup, if it is less than 62 % it will spoil.
• Convert dry sugar into a syrup and heat for at least 10 minutes or
• Pasteurize product at 71°C (160°F) for 30 minutes or at 82-88° C (180-190°F) for 10 minutes
• Package beverage hot (82°C/ 180°F) in heat proof bottles and turn upside down to kill micro-organism in the cap.

Add preservatives such as Sodium Benzoate and Potassium Sorbate. Sodium Benzoate is cheaper than Potassium Sorbate,
but can give a chemical after taste to your beverage at high usage levels
SODIUM BENZOATE
Sodium Benzoate should be added before citric acid. Sodium Benzoate must have at least 0.18 av oz of Citric
Acid per gallon of beverage/syrup in order to be effective. If your batch size is small, (under 50 gallons beverage
or under 10 gallons syrup), it is helpful to first dissolve Sodium Benzoate in water to make a solution as shown
below . This will make it easier to measure accurately.

1.Place 3 lb 2.Add hot 3.Stir until

of Sodium 1 GAL water till 1 GAL dissolved 1 GAL
Benzoate it reaches
in a 1 Gal the 1 Gal
container mark.

• Do not add 1 Gallon of water, rather add enough water so that you get a gallon of solution when the Sodium Benzoate dissolves.
• Sodium Benzoate will take much more time to dissolve than Citric Acid.
• Do not allow any Citric Acid to contaminate the Sodium Benzoate solution as this will cause bright white flakes to form and solution
will have to be discarded.
• If you do not have 3 lb. Sodium Benzoate, 1 lb. will make 43 fl oz (1.26 L) solution
• Solution does not need to be refrigerated
• The same method can be used to make a Potassium Sorbate solution
• Turn on blender and add gum/ sugar mix gradually, if it gets too thick, refill blender and add the rest
• Add to beverage/syrup and mix thoroughly

SUGAR
The extent of treatment necessary, depends upon the quality of what is received. Sugar can be pre-treated by
converting it into syrup (~ 62°Brix) and pasteurizing the syrup. However if for any reason, unflavoured syrup
must be stored overnight, or for a day, 5 g of citric acid or 8.3 ml Citric Acid Solution should be added per gallon
of syrup. This will retard the growth of microorganisms. The added acid should be taken into consideration
when flavouring the syrup for use.

STABILIZERS
Stabilizers / Food Starch can be added to a beverage to improve the consistency, mouth feel and to prevent
separation. Xanthan Gum is an excellent stabilizer and can be used as follows:

• For 5 gallons of beverage / syrup weigh ½ oz of Xanthan gum. This can be increased or decreased depending on the desired
consistency.
• Mix gum with about ½ lb. of sugar (this should be taken from the sugar that you would use to make the beverage / syrup)
• Fill a blender with water. (This should be taken from the water that you would use to make the beverage / syrup)
• Turn on blender and add gum/ sugar mix gradually, if it gets too thick, refill blender and add the rest
• Add to beverage/syrup and mix thoroughly

WATER
This most basic of ingredients should be of good quality. It is generally not a good idea to use water from the
source directly, without proper treatment. The water should be free from yeast, mold or other microorganisms,
which will cause spoilage. Usually chemical treatment is required if the water has not been pretreated or has not
been treated properly. A sand filter should be employed to remove particles, a carbon filter to remove
chemicals, and a paper filter to polish the water. The treatment required will vary with the source. The water
should then be treated to remove chemicals added to ensure potability, as some chemicals will cause
beverages to change taste and color.
PRICING
To find the cost of your beverage/ syrup insert the appropriate figures in the costing sheet shown below. Please
note that this costing sheet is based on Virginia Dares’ Bag & Bottle Drink or Syrup Formula Sheet in which
Sodium Benzoate and Citric Acid are first dissolved in water. The cost of the flavour will depend on the
packaging size purchased.

$ LB 1
1 COST OF SUGAR = X = $
PRICE PER LB (454g) AMT OF SUGAR

$ GAL 2
2 COST OF WATER = X = $
PRICE PER GALLON AMT OF WATER

$ ML 0.0079 3
COST OF SODIUM
3 = X X LB OF SOD. BENZ/ = $
BENZOATE
PRICE PER LB AMT OF SOLUTION ML SB SOLUTION

$ FL OZ 0.039 4
COST OF CITRIC
4 X X LB OF CIT. ACID/ = $
ACID
PRICE PER LB AMT OF SOLUTION FL OZ SOLUTION

COST OF $ FL OZ 128 5
5 = X / = $
FLAVOUR # FL OZ IN 1
PRICE PER GAL AMT OF FLAVOUR GALLON

$ FL OZ 33.8 5
OR = X / = $
PRICE PER LITRE AMT OF FLAVOUR # FL OZ IN 1 LITRE

COST PRICE OF 6
6 = 1+2+ 3+4+5 = $
SIX GALLONS

$ FL OZ
COST PRICE OF 6
X

GALLONS BEVERAGE SIZE OF PACKAGE $ 7

COST PRICE OF
7 = + = $
PACKAGE

COST OF
768 PACKAGING

# FL OZ IN 6 GALLONS

8 SALE PRICE = = = $
COST PRICE MARK UP