Wrapping Up the Sugar Season

Just as soon as it began, it’s come to a close… as I’m sitting here typing this post I’ve got a small batch of maple syrup finishing up and I’m hoping to get a few more batches cooked down before it’s time to wrap up the maple syrup season. Sugar-makers in the eastern part of the state have already started pulling taps and it won’t be long here. Once the maples begin to bud the sap starts to slow, discolor, and you can get a slight change in the smell and taste, then you know the season is over. The weather forecast is looking good the next few days, with below-freezing nights and above-freezing days, so fingers crossed the sap still flows and the budding holds off. The season wasn’t as great as I was anticipating this year, but I think we did alright and we’ll have a few small batches of syrup to sell this spring… and I’m pretty sure my sister-in-law came out ahead of me, so I’m sure she’ll have some to sell, as well . So I’ll be spending the rest of the week collecting my final jugs of sap and loading up more firewood to burn to cook down the last gallons in the evaporator.

Our homemade wood-burning evaporator. It takes approximately 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup!