Yes, add a little more Pomona and the calcium water. First add the sweetener and allow it to come almost to a boil, then add a lttle of the previously dissolved Pomona that has been run through a blender with a little water. Doing so will prevent thick globs. Add a little calcium water as the last step. As I have always said, its always a good idea to TASTE a product your canning before its pours into jars!! This includes any sweetened item or any pickle brine. Pomona is much more forgiving compared to other pectins.

I think I am afraid it is my berries. There seems to be almost a bitter taste. Is more sugar going to remedy that?

No if the berries themselves are bitter it likely can't be fixed. In addition to tasting the jam before jarring and processing it is also a good idea to taste the fruit first. Saves you a lot of wasted time and ingredients.

Dave

I used a portion of the berries to make cobbler and it turned out fine but I also picked out the better looking berries. Didn't occur to me until now. Guess next time I shouldn't let the four year old help pick so much :)

My belief is, if you add more sugar, the jelly will be much better. I make currant jelly and currants are the most sour berries in the world. Cranberries aren't much better.

Well, I went ahead and tried it again, figured I can't lose more than a cup of sugar and a little pectin. It seemed okay before I jarred it but it seemed okay the first time too. Didn't have any left over to cool and try so we'll see tommorrow! Thanks for the help, I'm gonna try strawberry tonight. Think I'm addicted.

Bitter is different from sour. I have never tasted a bitter blackberry, just a sour one. Same with blueberries. To help improve sweetness add a bit of lime to the berry patch and also a little bit of potassium (green sand). Lime will raise teh soil pH a bit and the potassium will give them more juice and sweetness. My red raspberries here always do well when I put down a bit of copper sulfate in early spring. I also use a fruit tree ferilizer from Gardens Alive, as it gets my reds up to the size of store bought. Sometimes when I make jam and its a bit bland, with Splenda, I like to add a bit of an acid blend to bring up the tartness and flavor. In your case, thats probably not going to help. I wish I could grow boysenberrries here, but its just too cold in winter. I am just not starting to pick a few red raspberries and the nearby black ones are still flowers.

Well, I added a cup of sugar and tried it again, it turned out pretty well, just wasn't as low in sugar as I wanted. Also made some strawberry lsat night and only used a cup of raw sugar to 4.5 cups of strawberry. Turned out fabulous!

Instead of adding more sugar, you could use a bit of honey and/or Splenda as an added sweetener. I use mostly Splenda and help it with a bit if honey, as opposed to any regular sugar. Keep in mind that raw sugar also contains molasses and that can actually offer a slightly bitter taste if too much is used. Raw sugar also doesn't dissolve clear, but a light brown color, and can scorch a bit easier compared to refined white.

Thanks for the berry tips hidden in here Ken! My berries are bitter and seedy this year so I'm not canning them or freezing them, just eating them. Next year I'm going to try and not neglect my bushes so much. I'm transplanting them to a spot where I can get at them easier.

I love thornless red raspberries. Most nurseries that sell raspberry canes tned not to mention whether they are thornless or not. Many years ago I had some blaclberry canes that reroted at the tips and seemed to reach out and grab me when I passed by. The thorns were worse than roses, and so those canes got dug up and destroyed. As mentioned, bitter is not a usual trait for berry fruits. Even the very sour choke cherries are very sour not bitter. Bitter to me is like the white pith of citruc fruits, and seems dry, while sour has a definate solution of sweetener to be added. I use my Villaware food strainer and smalled holed berry screen for getting the juices out for making seedless jam. It has all the pulp and taste without the annoying seeds. I mix the few black berries with the red raspberies. When picking, I simply fill quart freezer bags with them after picking. Once I get enough to make a jam, they all get thawed and strained.

I grew up in South Jersey back in the 50's and 60's where the state acquired its name Garden State. I'm addicted to blueberries, probably because Jersey grows and ships the majority of them in the USA (yes we lived in Maine for a while so I can discuss that another time). Lived all over since then but I've found the best way to get the tartness out of my blueberry jam is to very carefully add some baking soda to it. Tartness is caused by acid (which is why vinegar = acetic acid is sour) and the baking soda will neutralize it. The jam will foam up and if you taste it, you'll sense a little "carbonation" until the foaming stops and the reaction is complete. Stir it every few minutes to keep the mixture uniform and let the bubbles come out, and add just a little soda at a time and taste it. Even if it is still tart, wait for the foaming to die down before adding more. It will vary but I noticed it took about 1/3 teaspoon of baking soda for 3 quarts of jam in my last batch.

If you do the baking soda thing, you'll find you don't need nearly as much sweetener.

I detest tartness in fruit because we had many fruit trees in our yard and tree-ripened fruit was sweet like candy while unripened fruit was sour.

Hope this helps,
John

Thank you!