Step 1

Tie the spices in cheesecloth and reserve.

Step 2

Pour the cider into a wide 10 inch pot, add the spice bouquet and bring to a brisk simmer.

Step 3

As the cider cooks, impurities will float to the top. Skim them off and discard. Put the pan on the burner off-center to make skimming impurities easier.

Step 4

After 30 minutes, discard the spice bouquet.

Step 5

After 60 minutes the reduction will be getting close to finished. You're looking for a little over 1 cup of finished molasses.

Step 6

When the molasses is done, pour the piping hot syrup into a room temperature mason jar and screw on the lid, label and date. For long term storage you can process jars in a waterbath, 10 minutes for half pints.

Step 7

Cool the syrup and store in a cool dark place.

Step 8

You can keep the syrup in the refrigerator. If you do it'll need to warm up for it to be usable.