Maple Syrupin

[Johnmn]

Anyone else getting ready to tap some trees? I don't have a huge operation I made 9 gallons of syrup last season. Planning on tapping more trees this year. Also gonna make some Birch syrup for the first time I have never had it before so I hope it's good! Probably be tapping within a week or two. I'll have to bring some to a gtg I hope to make it to all the MN gtgs this year at least.

 

[merc_man]

Anyone else getting ready to tap some trees? I don't have a huge operation I made 9 gallons of syrup last season. Planning on tapping more trees this year. Also gonna make some Birch syrup for the first time I have never had it before so I hope it's good! Probably be tapping within a week or two. I'll have to bring some to a gtg I hope to make it to all the MN gtgs this year at least.

I dont tap myself but i help an old buddy. He started tapping this past week.

I didnt know you could tap virch trees. Youll have to let us know how it turns out.

Sent from my SM-J320W8 using Tapatalk

 

[Johnmn]

Yea the ratio is more it's like 100/1 and it makes a red syrup that's a little spicy I guess like cinnamon or something

 

[Icepick69]

Anyone else getting ready to tap some trees? I don't have a huge operation I made 9 gallons of syrup last season. Planning on tapping more trees this year. Also gonna make some Birch syrup for the first time I have never had it before so I hope it's good! Probably be tapping within a week or two. I'll have to bring some to a gtg I hope to make it to all the MN gtgs this year at least.

Do you sell any syrup? My wife would love to buy a small bottle from ya.

 

[Johnmn]

Well I'm almost out of last year's but I'll keep this going as I'm collecting and boiling it down. I'll let you know what I end up with and see if you are interested

 

[stihl livin]

@Ryan Browne

 

[Icepick69]

Well I'm almost out of last year's but I'll keep this going as I'm collecting and boiling it down. I'll let you know what I end up with and see if you are interested

I think it's cool you can do that. Hope you'll have some when it's ready

 

[Johnmn]

I hope to have plenty of maple and some Birch syrup

 

[Icepick69]

I hope to have plenty of maple and some Birch syrup

Never tried birch

 

[Ryan Browne]

I'm about to start tapping tomorrow. We're putting out about 425 taps this year, mostly on vacuum for the first time. Pretty exciting year with the new tubing and a new 4x14 cooker.

Unfortunately, I had to go and slip on the ice and break my ankle two weeks ago, so I'm having to rely on my friends to come to me rescue. Got a big crew coming out tomorrow to tap and finish putting the evaporator together. I'll try to get some pictures.

 

[Icepick69]

I'm about to start tapping tomorrow. We're putting out about 425 taps this year, mostly on vacuum for the first time. Pretty exciting year with the new tubing and a new 4x14 cooker.

Unfortunately, I had to go and slip on the ice and break my ankle two weeks ago, so I'm having to rely on my friends to come to me rescue. Got a big crew coming out tomorrow to tap and finish putting the evaporator together. I'll try to get some pictures.

Please do, we don't have anything like that down here

 

[Johnmn]

Wow that is a big cooker how much syrup do you usually make?

 

[stihl livin]

I will say that the syrup from Ryan is very tasty. I'm running out of the quart I got from him in the last week of January

 

[malk315]

Here in Lancaster, MA our scout pack has a 10x20 sugarshack and boiler with 500 gallon hold tank and 350 gallon truck tank we tap about 120 trees around town every year -- it's our fund rasier.

Some pics:

 

[malk315]

To see a whole ton more pictures of our sugaring operation I have a gallery here:

https://malk315.smugmug.com/Scouts/General-Sugaring-Pictures/

Before we had our current boiler and sugarshack we needed 6 cords of dead and dry pine every year -- now with the more efficient non homemade boiler (came from a company in Canada) we only need like 3 cords of wood. We use pine because it burns hot and there are no shortage of dead pines around town people want removed anyway!

It was maple sugaring that got me more into saws!

 

[malk315]

To see a whole ton more pictures of our sugaring operation I have a gallery here:

https://malk315.smugmug.com/Scouts/General-Sugaring-Pictures/

Before we had our current boiler and sugarshack we needed 6 cords of dead and dry pine every year -- now with the more efficient non homemade boiler (came from a company in Canada) we only need like 3 cords of wood. We use pine because it burns hot and there are no shortage of dead pines around town people want removed anyway!

It was maple sugaring that got me more into saws!

If anyone wants some of our syrup we sell it by pint for $12 each. It is our primary fund raiser for the scout pack.
We do anywhere from 40 to 80 gallons of syrup each year. I'm a bit biased but it's some of the best stuff!
We bottle it at 219 Fahrenheit and use a maple syrup hydrometer to get the right finish every time.

 

[Icepick69]

If anyone wants some of our syrup we sell it by pint for $12 each. It is our primary fund raiser for the scout pack.
We do anywhere from 40 to 80 gallons of syrup each year. I'm a bit biased but it's some of the best stuff!
We bottle it at 219 Fahrenheit and use a maple syrup hydrometer to get the right finish every time.

I'll take a pint of this years

 

[Ryan Browne]

@malk315, what a BEAUTIFUL setup!

Huge roadside trees like that with a paved trail down the middle is a dream come true. Really nice looking cooker and shack too.

You're dead right about the efficiency of an evaporator with a flue pan. We used to get 10 gallons from a full cord of slab wood. Now we get 25 gallons from a cord.

What a great way to do a fundraiser. It sure is a fun thing to do this time of year, and it's super cool that you've got a lot of people involved. Thanks for sharing your pictures, and I hope you guys have a great year!

 

[Ryan Browne]

Wow that is a big cooker how much syrup do you usually make?

It's more cooker than I need for sure. I spent the last 5 years cooking on a raised flue 2x10 and running 425 taps with no vacuum. Averaged 105 gallons a year. This year I'm switching to mostly 3/16" vacuum tubing, and I'm hoping to make 200 gallons. I wanted a bigger cooker and this one was on Craigslist for a really great price. I figure this way I'm equipped in case I find another 500 taps nearby, and in the meantime I'll be able to keep up with my sap and still share meals with my family. I don't need to have 16 hour boiling days anymore . This cooker will evaporate 200 gallons of sap per hour and burn close to a face cord of wood in the same amount of time. I'm really getting excited to fire it up. It's my first year with it, so I've never even seen it run.

 

[malk315]

@malk315, what a BEAUTIFUL setup!

Huge roadside trees like that with a paved trail down the middle is a dream come true. Really nice looking cooker and shack too.

You're dead right about the efficiency of an evaporator with a flue pan. We used to get 10 gallons from a full cord of slab wood. Now we get 25 gallons from a cord.

What a great way to do a fundraiser. It sure is a fun thing to do this time of year, and it's super cool that you've got a lot of people involved. Thanks for sharing your pictures, and I hope you guys have a great year!

Hey Ryan Likewise! If you have some pictures of your setup to post certainly share!

I've been involved in Lancaster Pack 9 sugaring for 8 years now -- always enjoy it every year.
The boiler we were able to get from doing a kickstarter campaign to get the funds.
We have on average around 50 or 60 families in the pack and they are key to getting collection done and firewood gathering etc.
Some weeks it runs every night and we have to get up to 300 gallons of sap off the trees to our holding tank.
When both tanks are full -- about 800 gallons, we HAVE to boil!

My buddy Ken who is seen in some of the boiler pictures started the whole thing several years ago w/ a homemade boiler setup on his property.
Our sugarshack is on conservation land in town -- we planted about 70 maple trees we got from a state grant 5 years ago -- on a hill.
Hoping the next generation in 20 years or so can tap those!

See ya and good luck with this years run!