Demerara Simple Syrup (Classic Syrup for Cocktails)

This demerara simple syrup recipe is perfect for adding a deeper, more complex sweetness to cocktails, coffee, and more! This syrup is a popular ingredient in many tropical classic cocktails like the Aku Aku cocktail and the daiquiri. It’s a great way to bring a bit of depth and warmth to your morning coffee drinks as well! Try using it in an iced shaken espresso recipe or a homemade lemonade and see if you can notice the toasty caramelized flavor this syrup can bring to beverages!

With over ten years of experience making homemade beverages, I’ve come across a lot of unique ingredients. I first came across demerara sugar when I was a student in baking and pastry school— we used it to top baked goods to give them a crunchy, sweet finishing touch!

🛒 ingredients

• demerara sugar - this minimally refined sugar is the key ingredient in making this simple syrup. Demerara sugar has subtle notes of toffee and caramel taste, thanks to the higher molasses content in each sugar crystal.
  
• filtered water - filtered water works best for simple syrups since the water will not be cooking at a rolling boil. Using filtered water keeps the flavor profile pure and clean, without any funky flavors.

See recipe card for quantities.

🍳 instructions

Step 1: Pour water into a small saucepan and place it over medium-low heat.

Step 2: Add demerara sugar to the saucepan and stir until the sugar dissolves.

Step 3: Allow the mix to cool before bottling for storage.

Step 4: Strain your syrup through a fine mesh sieve to remove any granules that didn't dissolve or small rocks from the sugar. This happens sometimes with less refined sugars!

Step 5: Pour your simple syrup into a sterilized airtight storage bottle and store it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze it for longer storage.

Step 6: Use your syrup in all of your beverage cocktails, from cocktails to coffees!

Hint: The longer you allow your syrup to simmer, the more water will evaporate, and the thicker it will get!

💡tips & tricks for getting it right

🍽️ serving tips

Simple syrups are best used as a liquid sweetener in beverages because they are so thin in consistency. They don’t work as well for topping desserts like ice cream or on breakfast foods like waffles and pancakes. You can still use a simple syrup on food, but just be aware that it will be thin and may soak into porous foods quickly.

Cocktails

One of the best uses for this simple syrup is in cocktails! Demerara sugar brings a depth and dimension to cocktails that brings a whole new flavor profile front and center.

• Cuban daiquiri- this classic cocktail is one of the OG bespoke beverages for a reason! Using demerara simple syrup in this daiquiri
• demerara margarita - swap out agave nectar for demerara simple syrup for a deeper, toasty twist on this classic citrus cocktail!
• demerara old fashioned - by using this simple syrup in an old fashioned recipe, you get a deeper, more warm flavor profile than when you are using regular simple syrup.

Non-Alcoholic Beverages

You can also use this simple syrup to sweeten non-alcoholic beverages and mocktails! I love using it in homemade soda or lemonade recipes— it’s the perfect treat on hot summer days!

• demerara iced espressos - If you find yourself needing a daily caffeine fix, you’ll love adding your homemade simple syrups to your morning coffee routine. This demerara sugar syrup adds a wonderfully rich flavor to iced coffee beverages like double shot iced shaken espressos and iced Americanos!
• demerara iced tea - demerara iced green tea is a delightfully refreshing drink on a hot summer day! The complex sweetness of the syrup plays up the delicate floral flavors of teas beautifully!
• demerara lemonade - swap out the regular granulated sugar in your lemonade recipe for this simple syrup to take your lemonade to the next level!

Cooking, Baking & Gifting

• keep baked goods moist - use this simple syrup to brush layer cakes and keep them moist between layers! This demerara simple syrup would pair nicely with chocolate cake or vanilla cake! It would be absolutely wonderful on this graham cracker cake from my friend Tasia! 🤤

ℹ️ troubleshooting tips

Even though this syrup only has two ingredients (3 if you’re adding lemon juice)…things can go awry! Try these troubleshooting tips if you run into any issues.

• too thin - if you want a thicker syrup, like a rich syrup, you can simmer your simple syrup for a bit longer to allow extra water to evaporate.
• too thick - if your syrup simmered for too long and is too thick, you can add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it gets to a consistency you like.

🔆 top tip

If you want a thicker syrup for lining glasses, use a ratio of 1 part demerara sugar to .5 parts water. Alternatively, you can allow the syrup to simmer longer to allow more water to cook down. Keep in mind, a thicker syrup will not mix as easily into drinks, especially cold drinks.

♻️ substitutions & variations

♻️ substitutions

Missing an ingredient? No problem. Check out these tried-and-true substitutions, or comment below with your question. I’m here to help you troubleshoot!

• brown sugar - you can use either light brown sugar or dark brown sugar as a substitute for demerara sugar if you can’t find it. While the flavor won’t be exactly the same, it will be similar enough!
• sugar in the raw - this type of sugar is a type of turbinado sugar from Hawaii. It has similarly sized brown sugar crystals to demerara sugar, and can be used interchangeably with demerara sugar in this recipe.

🎛️ variations

Feeling like a rebel?! 😈 Feel free to stray from the recipe card using these variations, or leave me a comment with your own!

• add citrus - swap out limes or oranges for the lemon juice in this recipe, and add in a bit of zest to the syrup to really brighten up the flavor profile. Try using demerara sugar in this recipe for lemon simple syrup to deepen the flavor!
• add spices - add in a cinnamon stick, whole cloves, or half of a split vanilla bean to add some smooth and spicy flavors to this simple syrup.
• rich syrup - reduce the water you use by half to create a 2:1 ratio of sugar to water. This ratio makes a rich demerara syrup, which has double the sugar content to water, and results in a thicker syrup.

🧰 equipment needed & storage tips

🧰 tools needed

• 1.5-quart nonreactive saucepan - you can use whatever saucepan you have on hand, I love this 1.5-quart saucepan from All-Clad. The heavy bottom ensures even heating throughout the cooking time! A non-reactive pan is a pan that is made from a metal that doesn’t react to acidic substances, like stainless steel or enameled cast iron.
• measuring glasses - measuring cups - if you don’t have a kitchen scale, you’ll likely need some measuring cups. I love using this Anchor Hocking glass measuring cup set because the cups can tolerate the quick temperature changes that happen when I’m making simple syrups.
• kitchen scale - using a kitchen scale has so many benefits, from being more precise to helping you do less dishes! If you use a scale, you can put everything right in the pot as you measure it. No need to dirty up a bunch of extra dishes! I have and love this OXO kitchen scale.
• airtight storage container - I like to store my simple syrups in glass stopper bottles from Bormioli Rocco or BPA-free plastic OXO squeeze bottles. I also use Mason jars in a pinch!

🫙 storage tips

Your finished brown sugar simple syrup will keep for up to 2 weeks in the fridge.

If you want to store it longer, you can freeze your syrups! They’ll keep for up to 3 months just fine in the freezer.