Anyone make syrup?

[Pullstart 66,405]

We've been tapping our 7 big maples around our house for a few years now, we usually average about 4 gallons of syrup each season.  I just collected 20 gallons of sap today, that'll be good for about 2 quarts of finished product.  Let the fun and hot fires begin!

[SylvanLakeWH 28,232]

I used to tap our big maple when the kids were young. Mostly just to show them how it's done without the use of corn syrup...

 

Lots of fun, not much syrup, priceless time and memories...Oh yea - it tasted good right off the pan!

[Ed Kennell 41,662]

Sure did....back in the '50s when I was a kid living in the Allegheny Mts. of Somerset Co. Pa.      We collected sap till we had 3-4  barrels, cut firewood for the fire, then had the boil off in two butcher  kettles for up to 20 hours.        I don't make my own now, but  100% pure maple syrup from back home is the only syrup we use. 

If we go to Waffle House, we take our own syrup. 

[russellmc301 600]

we did it once,

 

it was a memory and hard work my dad put some of the carbon off the pot on my face i was a native american

[JPWH 6,334]

First time for me was cane syrup when I was about 10 years old. My granddad had a little donkey hooked to a pivot pole that powered  the stalk press. My job was feeding the cane in the press.

[Ed Kennell 41,662]

 

 

http://www.pamaplefestival.com/            Here is the link to our annual maple festival in April.

[Pullstart 66,405]

23 minutes ago, Hank01 said:

First time for me was cane syrup when I was about 10 years old. My granddad had a little donkey hooked to a pivot pole that powered  the stalk press. My job was feeding the cane in the press.

 

 

We've talked about moving to TN where some other family has relocated to and talked about coming home for maple season then growing cane for molasses to mix it up a bit!  Could use a  and a kid hooked to the pivot pole now!

[Pullstart 66,405]

We ended up running about 40 gallons of sap yesterday, good times with a new evaporator we made this weekend.

 

Mrs. Pullstart laying down some beads with me

 

 

 

Firing up the sap

 

 

 

Finished product

 

[Ed Kennell 41,662]

                                                                                                                         

     That evap sure beats the butcher kettles we had to use.  And your syrup  is not laced with wood ashes like mine was.    Is your syrup always that dark color ?

[Pullstart 66,405]

This is our 4th season this year, the first was open fires around turkey fryer pots and that year it had a smoky taste to it.  But it was a good flavor!  The past 2 seasons we used this same method with the oil barrel, but the barrel was on it's side.  there was a lot of heat loss from the round sides and it was low to the ground and a back breaker.  And another claim to the words "nut roaster!"  My buddy I and came up with the name "Man-tucket Maple Syrup" because that's the only way to save the jewels from roasting temps for so long.  This batch was pretty dark and we let it go pretty thick too, trying to get my oldest to like it more than Aunt Jemima's from the store but it didn't help.  We've never really gotten a light amber, but not usually this dark either.

Edited February 22, 2016 by pullstart

[Ed Kennell 41,662]

1 hour ago, pullstart said:

 "Man-tucket Maple Syrup"

 

Better be careful with that name....you may get accused of importing your syrup from  Nantucket Island, Ma.

Light amber to dark, smoky  or not.....it's all good.    It took a few years to wean my wife and sons off the King and Aunt J ,  but after they acquired a taste for maple, it's all they use now.

We use about 2 gallon/ year and I always try to get the dark amber.

Nice set up and keeping the family involved.      Super topping on the home made vanilla ice  cream also.

Do you use tubing or buckets to collect sap?

[Pullstart 66,405]

taps and buckets, we only tap 5-7 trees on the property.  I've heard of some university in the north east growing saplings then topping them and pumping sap out of them.  I've wanted to try it but haven't built a pump setup yet.  They said something like "you would think the ground would start to dry up and crack for all the sap we can pull out of a sapling but they stay healthy and continue to grow" 

[tunahead72 2,539]

On 2/20/2016 at 8:39 AM, ekennell said:

 

http://www.pamaplefestival.com/            Here is the link to our annual maple festival in April.

 

 

Hey Ed, thanks for that link.  I've never been to that particular festival, but I will look into it.

 

Here's a couple of others you guys might be interested in:

 

First, from member gapper, the Potter-Tioga Maple Weekend, also in Pennsylvania, March 19-20 this year:

http://www.pamaple.com/2016-maple-weekend.html

 

And my personal favorite so far (been there several times, planning to go again this year), the Highland Maple Festival in Highland County, VA, March 12-13 and 19-20:

http://www.highlandcounty.org/events/maple-festival/

 

By the way, there used to be (maybe still is) a vendor or two at the Pennsylvania Farm Show every year who made pure maple candy, absolutely melt-in-your-mouth delicious!  I haven't seen it anywhere else, but I'm still looking.

 

[Ed Kennell 41,662]

Hey Ed,  Try to make it to the Meyersdale festival.  You can find all the Maple products made,,,syrup, molded candy, ground sugar, brittle.

Meyersdale is where I spent my High school days playing baseball for the Red Raiders.  

Some other places to visit while there are;

Mt Davis....highest mountain peak in Pa. is about 10 mi away.

Flight 93 memorial crash site at Shanksville is about 15 mile north     IMO, this is a must see for all Americans.

[wheelhorseman 3,219]

 I haven't been on here much lately but came across this topic today.

My sons and I put taps in late Thursday afternoon and collected sap tonight and got about 50 gallons of sap, here is a picture of my two younger sons helping collect sap.