Product is transferred from the feed tank by a Waukesha positive displacement pump to a Votator® scraped surface heat exchanger evaporator. In the heat exchanger, the product is heated to evaporate a controlled amount of water. The product then flows to a separation chamber where the water vapor is removed under vacuum. A Waukesha positive displacement pump transfers the product through a caramelization holding tube where it achieves the desired color and flavor. After the addition of any flavors, the product is cooled and sent to the use points. Any product that is not used, including offspecification product from startup and shutdown, flows to a recycle tank where it is kept warm for pumping into new batches of product.