Solarsplace,
many thanks for clarification. i've previously tried going past toffee and ended up burning. this led to my spice frying trials and adopting 1 chef of base in with the spices which gives me consistency - i guess the chef of base is effectively the water in the tom puree as i currently use puree straight from the tin. i'm very happy with my current method but obviously will give the Az method a try for sure.
well pleased you went on the trip. loving the feedback