First Time Maple Syrup Tapping !!!!

Kir7 said:
When making the syrup, how much sugar do you add?
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You don’t add any sugar. You boil the sap until it reaches 219 degrees. Thats 7 degrees above boiling water. It takes about 5 hours to boil 5 gallons of sap collected. We currently have about 2 half litres of syrup

Here is some info about birch sap
Birch sap benefits - CDL
 
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Michael Z said:
We have like 5 maple trees on our 30+ acres and I don't even think they are even the right type :(

We have lots of Balm of Gilead (Balsam Poplar) trees however, and I have considered harvesting all the sticky resin to sell.
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There is no wrong type of maple tree. Grab a 7/16th drill and do a slight upward angle : 11/2 inches . If there’s sap, it will instantly start flowing. The tapping holes close up within the year. It’s really fun making your own syrup. The taps cost about $. 75 each.

Apparently Birch sap on it’s own is a natural appetite suppressant. I’m tapping one now. I can use all the help I can get.

We have some popular too. It’s nice carving wood. I love the greenish grain too. Poplar really is pretty
 
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We currently have approximately 15 to 20 gallons of maple sap. We boiled down 5 gallons and made 1/2 a litre of syrup. We filter it through coffee filters before bottling and storing it.

I’m going to try making those maple leaf candies. I think it will be a great gift to add to the Christmas cookies I make.

When it gets cold here’s what happens.

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Some one complained that "Maple Syrup costs a small fortune " ! Not really, when you figure in the investment in equipment and hours spent producing the product, it is dirt cheap. Peppermint Patty's operation down east is a really small scale thing, but the commercial producers in Ontario and Quebec can have a half a million dollar investment in their business.

Due to the vagaries of the weather this winter and spring, the 2024 maple harvest will be a poor one, with low sugar concentrations in the sap, and low amounts of sap, too. Any business that relies on the weather is liable to suffer, be it the car wash when it rains, or the guy who plows snow in a winter when it doesn't snow much at all. JimB.
 
Paco Dennis said:
Did you ever make maple syrup wine? Is there such a thing? The reason I ask is we got into turning anything and everything into wine around here for about a year. The plum wine we made was probably over 20% alcohol. :eek:
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Being non drinkers, that would be a no!
When we bought our house it came with about 50 cases of wine making kits. We gave it all away. Thanks for the suggestion though.
I like using it in place of sugar when and if possible.
 
jimintoronto said:
Some one complained that "Maple Syrup costs a small fortune " ! Not really, when you figure in the investment in equipment and hours spent producing the product, it is dirt cheap. Peppermint Patty's operation down east is a really small scale thing, but the commercial producers in Ontario and Quebec can have a half a million dollar investment in their business.

Due to the vagaries of the weather this winter and spring, the 2024 maple harvest will be a poor one, with low sugar concentrations in the sap, and low amounts of sap, too. Any business that relies on the weather is liable to suffer, be it the car wash when it rains, or the guy who plows snow in a winter when it doesn't snow much at all. JimB.
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This is our first time doing this so we have nothing to compare it with. Some trees don’t have much sap and others have an endless supply. We must be lucking out cause we are having a hard time keeping up. We are boiling down the sap from sunrise to sunset. It’s actually exciting and the end product is delicious.
 
We now have 1 & 1/2 gallons of bottled maple syrup. It’s interesting that each batch gets darker and darker but according to others, it’s normal. We also made a fire pit to cook down the sap. Using propane was costing too much. There’s nothing quite like having dollar pancakes with homemade maple syrup.

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PeppermintPatty said:
We now have 1 & 1/2 gallons of bottled maple syrup. It’s interesting that each batch gets darker and darker but according to others, it’s normal. We also made a fire pit to cook down the sap. Using propane was costing too much. There’s nothing quite like having dollar pancakes with homemade maple syrup.

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I'm gonna eat the whole thing!!!

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