I tapped that....

[Granite Statah]

Anyone else doing backyard syrup production? I've got the most un-elaborate, non-economical setup you can imagine, but I started doing this a few years with my kids and now they really look forward to it. I have nice little stand of maples close to house which makes sap collection pretty easy for my little guys. Sugar content must've been high this week, because last night's batch was wicked good.

 

[Rich L]

Anyone else doing backyard syrup production? I've got the most un-elaborate, non-economical setup you can imagine, but I started doing this a few years with my kids and now they really look forward to it. I have nice little stand of maples close to house which makes sap collection pretty easy for my little guys. Sugar content must've been high this week, because last night's batch was wicked good.View attachment 225426 View attachment 225426

Hey Granite I like what your doing.I have a couple of Maples in my yard and would like to tap them but I don't know what I'm doing.Can you give me some info as to how to do it ? I bought a small wood stove that I can put outside to boil the sap and that's all I know.Thanks.

 

[Granite Statah]

First thing is to ID your maples. Sugar is obviously the best (highest sugar content), but silvers aren't too bad either. I don't have any reds but my local sugarers say those aren't very good. Then buy yourself a few taps. I'm sure you can find them online; I happen to have a supplier nearby, and more importantly I know someone in the business, so he gave me a couple of taps for nothing. Figure out what you want to collect the sap in. I use 1 gallon water jugs. I have 2 taps on one tree (about 18" dia) and when it's running it'll overflow those jugs by the time I get home from work. With my little burner I'll start boiling when I have 4-5 gallons of sap. I'll boil outside until it's down to a half gallon or so, then finish it inside where I can monitor the temp and control the heat. It's a fine line between maple syrup and rock candy, and believe me you'll cross that line more than once. My first batch this year was maple honey.....tasted great and worked best in coffee, not so great for pancakes. My last batch produced about 12 oz of syrup. Kids were dumping sap in all day so I lost track of how many gallons it took, but I'd guess 5-6. The old timers will tell you it's about a 40:1 ratio, but that depends on many things, starting with maple variety.

Since the season is just about over you might as well wait until next year. Living in eastern MA, you'll definitely be able to amaze + delight your flatlander friends with what you can make. And tell them that just like your firewood, it's all organic.

 

[Allagash350]

I plan on doing it next year. We used to when we were younger. Was just too busy this spring but it was pretty much perfect for it compared to the milder springs the last couple years.
In my yard I have probably 12-15 I could tap, and the surrounding woods are full of them. I’m thinking of doing the ones in the yard with a gravity line down to one large barrel, and doing a woodfire to cook it as I like the smoky taste.
How much syrup did you yield this year?

 

[Ctwoodtick]

I tried tapping a black birch a couple years ago. Tried reducing it down but sugar content is so low it would have taken me forever. Nice mild wintergreen scent in house. I ended up drinking a few glasses of sap as water and called it a day. It seemed like good clean water.

 

[walhondingnashua]

I missed it this year but want to get into this as well. I have an old homemade stove that I can weld cookers too and more then enough sugar and silver maples. I wonder if I can mix in other tree species ( like the birch for the wintergreen scent above)? So you do anything special to preserve it long term, like canning food to prevent mold?

 

[Rich L]

First thing is to ID your maples. Sugar is obviously the best (highest sugar content), but silvers aren't too bad either. I don't have any reds but my local sugarers say those aren't very good. Then buy yourself a few taps. I'm sure you can find them online; I happen to have a supplier nearby, and more importantly I know someone in the business, so he gave me a couple of taps for nothing. Figure out what you want to collect the sap in. I use 1 gallon water jugs. I have 2 taps on one tree (about 18" dia) and when it's running it'll overflow those jugs by the time I get home from work. With my little burner I'll start boiling when I have 4-5 gallons of sap. I'll boil outside until it's down to a half gallon or so, then finish it inside where I can monitor the temp and control the heat. It's a fine line between maple syrup and rock candy, and believe me you'll cross that line more than once. My first batch this year was maple honey.....tasted great and worked best in coffee, not so great for pancakes. My last batch produced about 12 oz of syrup. Kids were dumping sap in all day so I lost track of how many gallons it took, but I'd guess 5-6. The old timers will tell you it's about a 40:1 ratio, but that depends on many things, starting with maple variety.

Since the season is just about over you might as well wait until next year. Living in eastern MA, you'll definitely be able to amaze + delight your flatlander friends with what you can make. And tell them that just like your firewood, it's all organic.

Granite thanks for the info.Now when should I begin tapping the trees since you say it's to late now ?

 

[Allagash350]

Granite thanks for the info.Now when should I begin tapping the trees since you say it's to late now ?

Basically my understanding is any time it is below 32 degrees at night, and above 32 during the day.
They really go crazy when it is like 45 during the day and 20s at night.
I have also heard the temperature/time of year affects the taste and color of the syrup. I think earlier in the year it is a lighter color and later it is more amber. Not sure on that one though.

 

[EPS]

Everyone always equates Vermont with maple syrup, but here in New Hampshire we (well some people, not me) make it just as good, or better, than our Green Mountain friends.

 

[Granite Statah]

Everyone always equates Vermont with maple syrup, but here in New Hampshire we (well some people, not me) make it just as good, or better, than our Green Mountain friends.

As we say, "What's the best thing about VT?"

"The view of NH"

 

[tadmaz]

I've thought about tapping a few red maples, would certainly be fun with the kids. Seems like a lot of work, you may need to gather the bags every day for a few weeks. You've got to spend plenty of time boiling. The supplies from my local fleet farm I estimated to be about $40 for a couple of trees. Taps, bags, bag holders. I've got a propane burner that I used to use for homebrewing. Refilling a propane tank isn't cheap either. Might be a lot easier and cheaper to buy a few pints of 100% maple syrup at the grocery store.

 

[Granite Statah]

I've thought about tapping a few red maples, would certainly be fun with the kids. Seems like a lot of work, you may need to gather the bags every day for a few weeks. You've got to spend plenty of time boiling. The supplies from my local fleet farm I estimated to be about $40 for a couple of trees. Taps, bags, bag holders. I've got a propane burner that I used to use for homebrewing. Refilling a propane tank isn't cheap either. Might be a lot easier and cheaper to buy a few pints of 100% maple syrup at the grocery store.

I'm definitely not doing it to save money, not by any means. If I'm lucky this year I'll make a half gallon in total, which around here has a retail value of around $25-30. I'll have about that in propane costs, never mind my priceless labor. I do it purely as a labor of love, and my kids totally dig it. It's piqued their interest in tree ID's (not just maples), and leads into all sorts of others things not found on their Xbox. And when you get it right, it tastes really, really good.

I missed it this year but want to get into this as well. I have an old homemade stove that I can weld cookers too and more then enough sugar and silver maples. I wonder if I can mix in other tree species ( like the birch for the wintergreen scent above)? So you do anything special to preserve it long term, like canning food to prevent mold?

I don't make enough to worry about canning, but a few of my 'backyard burner' buddies do just that. Mixing varieties of maples is what several of the larger sugar houses do around here. They claim this gives them their own unique recipe and flavor. Not so sure about mixing species, you'd probably want to stop at a local sugah shack and get an educated opinion.

Basically my understanding is any time it is below 32 degrees at night, and above 32 during the day.
They really go crazy when it is like 45 during the day and 20s at night.
I have also heard the temperature/time of year affects the taste and color of the syrup. I think earlier in the year it is a lighter color and later it is more amber. Not sure on that one though.

That seems to be a good rule of thumb. Even the big guys with their reverse-osmosis setups and multi-channel boiling pans still have to play by Mother Nature's rules. If the weather ain't right, you ain't gettin sap. I haven't had squat in the last 5-6 days because it's only been in the 30s for a high and teens/20s at night. I'm hoping for a couple more runs this week before I shut down, and the forecast is looking good. Little league baseball is cranking up and we finally got outside this week as the fields dry out. Once you start to see buds you know that the sugar season is over.