Outrageous Claim: Hickory Syrup > Maple Syrup -Convincingly

So I have now tried Hickory Syrup, as well as growing up with Maple. In a Side By Side with a few friends Last night on some Griddle Cakes and Bacon, Hickory won going away. It really wasn't even a contest it was so lopsided.

I will give you the first taste free, after that it is gonna be 1 face cord 2yr Seasoned Oak, Locust, or Ash per 8 fl oz

When I was young I actually made some syrup from a beech tree(not knowing the difference)...it wasn't to bad, but not as good as malpe.

Northern Woodlands has an article this month about birch syrup which sells for 3 to 4 hundred per gallon. The birch trees run later than maple trees so when the maples slow down, the farmers can switch to birch. With RO to reduce the water content I dont see it requiring any more heat but some horsepower.

There are two commercial producers of shagbark syrup that I know of. One is Hickoryworks in Indiana, and the other is Turkeywoods Farm in Mystic CT. Both of them talk about secret extractive and aging processes and make it sound like you need a degree in food science with a side in alchemy to make Hickory flavored syrup. It is $16.00 for 8oz.... or $256.00 a gallon

Thank You!

There was a old timer a couple miles down the road that made hickory syrup. I don't remember for sure, but I think it was actually Maple syrup with some hickory flavoring added in.

My wife and I strapped on the snowshoes yesterday and gathered up some Shagbark bark. We followed the recipe and it came out very good. We had it on French toast this morning. I would recommend trying this if you have access to Shagbark.

Augie, great thread! And BG, that link has got me thinking.....what would it taste like to use a bottle of my homemade maple syrup mixed with the hickory bark extract......hmmmm.....

Might be time for one of those redneck experiments in the kitchen. Wife is mad at me right now anyway, so I may have to get a quart out of the basment and give it a try. There's a small grove of shagbark around 200yds from my front door.......

Now I know what my next project will be..... I probably have enough bark on the 18 month old rounds/splits in the stack already.If not,I'll go for a walk next time I'm at parents acreage. Hmmmm...

Nabbed some bark today. Going to try it tomorrow night.

I'd really like to give this a try. I have to source out some hickory - don't have any of that in my stacks right now.

They sell it here, it's about $10-12 for a pint, so ~$85 a gallon.

Just made a batch. Oh my. Won't be buying syrup anymore.

Almost done making 1st batch now,just needs to simmah down nah to get the proper viscosity.Smells great & tastes even better....Will end up with just under 1 quart.

There's a company called Morgan and York out of Adrian Mi that makes really good Hickory Syrup. We got it a few years ago in a gift basket for Christmas and when I went to buy more it was $13 or $14 for 8 ounces ( YIKES ! ). So we never bought more its good but not that good.

Pee

Math was never my best subject....... Ended up with 1 quart,1 pint & one 8.5oz bottle.Just used 1-1 sugar/water ratio instead of the 2-1 they called for- its plenty sweet & very close in viscosity to pure maple.Will thicken up a wee bit more as it cools to room temp.

We cooked out syrup a little too long and it's thick at room temp. We warm it up before we use it. It is quite good and I would like to make some next fall to give away at Christmas.

Comparing maple syrup with hickory flavored cane syrup? 100 % pure maple syrup wins hands down, IMO.

And when it comes to maple syrup, I'll take grade B over grade A all day long. I grew up with maple as the syrup of choice and I have yet to taste any other syrups that measure up.

And WOW! on those hickory syrup prices. I can understand why maple is so expensive, not so much with the hickory. Definitely worth making your own if you like it!

Noah

Love that maple syrup. Its my 1st choice on a Peanut butter sandwich PB and MS Try it.

Agreed. Aslo, PB&MS on pancakes.