Sugar (Demerara)
Partially refined cane sugar with large golden crystals and some molasses still in them. That is a different thing from the soft brown sugar in most kitchens, which is usually refined white sugar with molasses added back.
Quick Facts
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Warm caramel sweetness with subtle molasses depth and a fuller mouthfeel than refined white sugar. Adds richness without excessive sweetness when used correctly.
Recommended Brand
Recommended
Supermarket demerara: the molasses edge is the whole point, and any bag has it
Storage & Handling
Store in a cool, dry place in an airtight container. Protect from moisture to prevent clumping. Syrup should be refrigerated and used within one month.
Shelf Life
Indefinite when stored dry and sealed
Usage
Used where the sweetener should contribute flavour rather than only sweetness: aged spirits, Old Fashioneds and tiki. It dissolves slowly because the crystals are large, so warm it into syrup rather than stirring it into a cold drink.
Partially Refined, Not Coloured
Demerara is cane sugar taken part of the way through refining and stopped, so some of the molasses that would otherwise be stripped out stays in the crystal. Most soft brown sugar sold in supermarkets is made the other way round: refined to white and then blended with molasses to put the colour and flavour back. The two taste broadly similar and behave quite differently, because demerara keeps its large hard crystals while soft brown sugar is fine and damp and dissolves readily.
The Family
Demerara has large golden crystals and a light molasses content, and it stays crunchy. Turbinado is very close, generally a little finer. Muscovado sits at the other end, dark, soft, sticky and carrying far more molasses, which makes it powerful enough to dominate a drink and better suited to baking. Light and dark brown sugars are the added-back versions described above. For cocktails the useful pair is demerara for syrup and muscovado for the rare drink that wants something genuinely heavy.
Why It Dissolves Slowly
Crystal size decides dissolution speed, and demerara crystals are several times the size of caster sugar. In warm water that is irrelevant and in a cold glass it matters a great deal, which is why demerara belongs in syrup form for almost every cocktail use. Muddled into an Old Fashioned it will still be grinding under the ice at the last sip. Warm the water first, stir until the liquid runs clear rather than cloudy, and the problem disappears entirely.
Where It Belongs
Aged spirits, and rum above the rest, because the molasses in the sugar meets the molasses the rum was made from. Bourbon and rye take it well, and an Old Fashioned built on demerara syrup is a noticeably different drink from one built on white sugar. It is wrong with a light gin, a blanco tequila or a vodka, where there is nothing for the caramel to attach to and the sweetener ends up the loudest thing in the glass.
Pro Tip
If an Old Fashioned tastes thin, try Demerara before adding more sugar.
Top Tips
- Convert it to syrup for anything cold. The crystals are too large to dissolve in a chilled glass.
- Keep it for aged spirits. Against a light gin or vodka the molasses reads as a mistake.
- Do not treat soft brown sugar as a substitute. That is usually white sugar with molasses stirred in.
Possible Substitutions
- Muscovado sugar (stronger molasses, heavier)
- Brown sugar (finer texture, slightly less depth)
- Demerara syrup (preferred for cocktails)
Production Method
Produced by partially refining cane sugar juice, retaining natural molasses before crystallisation. The result is large, golden-brown crystals with enhanced flavour.
History & Context
Named after the Demerara region of Guyana, this sugar has long been associated with rum production and colonial-era trade. Its adoption in cocktails reflects a preference for richer, spirit-complementing sweetness over neutral refinement.
Common Questions
Demerara versus white sugar?
White sugar sweetens and contributes nothing else, which is its purpose. Demerara keeps some molasses, so it adds caramel weight and a little colour alongside the sweetness. Use white where a drink needs adjusting and demerara where the sweetener can be an ingredient.
Demerara versus brown sugar?
Demerara is partially refined, so the molasses was never taken out. Most soft brown sugar is refined to white and then blended with molasses to put the colour back. They taste similar and behave differently, since demerara keeps large hard crystals and brown sugar is fine and damp.
Which drinks want demerara?
Rum drinks first, where the molasses in the sugar meets the molasses the spirit came from, then bourbon and rye. Tiki uses it throughout. It is wrong with gin, blanco tequila or vodka, where there is nothing for the caramel to hold on to.
Do demerara cubes exist?
They do, and they suit an Old Fashioned built the traditional way, saturated with bitters and stirred slowly. Be aware they dissolve more slowly than white cubes for the same reason the loose sugar does, so the drink needs longer stirring rather than more force.