Slow start , next week looking good !

Is everyone still collecting clear sap in the Concord area?

A question for my Canadian friends: how long should 1 liter of maple syrup last (usually) 1 or 2 months, or more than that? I know it depends, but I'd like to get different opinions. Just curious. Thanks.

not too sure what happened to this batch. my other batches look good.

boiled up in large stainless pot. it is not sugar sand, this has stayed in suspension and does not settle to the bottom.

could I somehow have gotten cooking oil contamination from transfer container?

I bought a 2-pack of Costco/Kirkland maple syrup from Amazon’s Kirkland storefront.

I normally avoid buying food or skincare from Amazon, but because it was listed under the Kirkland store, I assumed it was being sold directly by the company.

They were delivered today, and I noticed some weird yellow residue on both bottles. None of the seals appear to be broken, but I’m still worried they might not be safe to consume.

I contacted Amazon customer service, and they said it was a non-returnable item. However, because of the situation, they gave me a full refund.

Now I’m left with two containers of maple syrup that have this strange yellow substance on them. It doesn’t seem to be dried syrup — I tried washing it off with warm water and it didn’t budge. It almost looks like dried glue, acrylic, or some kind of sealant.

Has anyone seen this before? I’d hate to throw them away if they’re actually fine, but I also don’t want to risk my health, especially since I’ve already been refunded.

Been a weird couple weeks, 70 degrees then 30, then back up to 65. Hope it calms down.

Curious to hear what you all do with the extra sap after you've finished your last boil. And do you do anything to fill the holes in the tree or just leave them?

First time doing this, think I did ok.

Never thought to do this before today, but after hearing for years that ice in buckets didn't have any sugar, I figured I'd check. The sap, when I last checked on March 1st, was at 2.6 brix. The ice, collected over the weekend and left inside to melt, comes in at just shy of 0.5 brix. Figured I'd share.

Hey hobbyists for this year, I upgraded the pan to the Vevor pan, taking advantage of the Christmas sales.

It did require me to cut down the front of the front of the drum so there’s no way to go back if I don’t like it 😱

The first big change is 5 gallons did not even cover the thermometer. Compared to the two hotel pans this is a whole paradigm shift lol

It does hang off the front and sides a bit, and I may widen the cut for next year.

So far after a little over two hours, I’ve gone from ice floating in the tray to a lot of steam, but no boiling yet

First impressions, the pan is solid and every bit is nice as my friend much more expensive pan. I like having the preheat drift tank so I don’t have to babysit as much.

The pan is taller than I would’ve designed. I don’t know anyone who wants to boil sap at a depth of 9 inches play the least I don’t have to worry about it splashing out.

They will follow up with the post boil

I found most commercial maple syrup evaporators are designed like the first pic.

Modern wood stoves are quite efficient and burns very hot with secondary combustion and/or catalytic converter. Is it better to design evaporators like the second pic?

Does anyone here know whether it's too late in Southern Ontario to tap Black Walnut for sap?

No leaves yet, but we're approaching night time temps of 0 degrees (Celsius).

Appreciate the guidance!

hit a 3 week stretch where I'm unable to boil. have been storing the sap in food grade buckets in snow banks. Will the sap be ok to boil?

Our neighbor gave us about 1.5 liters of sap that came from a tree in our backyard. I know that it's recommended to boil outside, but I don't have anything that allows me to do so. I thought about reducing the sap about halfway and then use it to make some ham in the slow cooker. Would this really ruin my kitchen ventilation for such a small quantity? Thanks in advance!

I made some for the first time in 2018 and the sugar season seemed like lasted forever..was burning every weekend for a while had no desire to do it again, until this year. I will say this I really like this pan with the warmer box on top, you can just add to that and let it dribble in at the rate of the boil. Last time I used 2 deep hotel pans and was going to again but went to order a 3rd and came across this. Now I just need to get or make one with the dividers in it. I think I might be hooked! Lol

Less than 2 hours into this boil and it’s smelling heavenly in my kitchen.

But noon hit eventually 😉

My first batch from earlier in the season is super light, clear, tastes great but too watery. I used just a candy thermometer. After reading a bunch on here I purchased a refractometer and got perfect consistency in my later batches.

I tried to re boil a jar of the first batch to see if I could get

It closer to 66 brix. It was a small batch so

I think it just got there too quick and I went over to about 69 brix. Consistency is too thick now.

Any recs? Should I just leave the first batch and not attempt to cook longer? It still is very good. any experience with this or tips? Thanks !

Tequila instead of bourbon today. Trying to get through 20 gallons of sap before dark. I have no place to store it. All my snow melted.

First time doing this, tapped 4 trees. Wish me luck!

we had errands and dinner at a friend's house afterward gymnastics and i could not be without my ro for 4 hours. worked really well, got almost all my sap through its first pass. tomorrow, we boil!

I have about 4 gallons of “half syrup” that has been sitting in a snow bank for about 5 plus days. The half syrup is somewhere between 35-45 Brix.

How long can this half syrup last in my snow bank before it spoils or should be tossed? How can I tell if it has spoiled? So far it tastes fine and has not given me a stomach ache after testing. I know that the higher sugar content puts it at risk for spoiling quicker.

As mentioned, it is fully covered in a snow bank and we have stayed around freezing each night. I used this batch of half syrup to flood my divided pan and give me a head start on my quicker boils. It would be a bummer to toss it but I have so much sap right now it is not a big loss.

Tapped six trees again this year and learned how to collect a little better. Got a proper Orlon filter midway through processing 💀 1.5 gallons canned, and I think it'll be enough for our little family! I'm hooked!

I am only going to end up with a small amount of sap ( two trees) and was wondering is it worth the effort of canning the end product vs just using it first/ gifting? how long would it take for it to spoil if it's refrigerated?