Maple syrup 2020

[kingOFgEEEks]

Evaporator is up to speed, but sugar house isn’t warm yet...

 

[beaglebriar]

We boiled Wednesday and Thursday night. Taking tonight off, plan to fire up early tomorrow morning. Boiled 70 or so gallons with another 50 to go. If we end up with two gallons of syrup from this run I'll be surprised.

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[beaglebriar]

Evaporator is up to speed, but sugar house isn’t warm yet...
View attachment 228702

How's the boil tonight? Wednesday seemed slow but it was ripping pretty good last night.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

Ripping pretty good, till the wind swirls. If it would calm down, I’d probably be pushing 20 gallons an hour. Tuesday was crap here. Couldn’t get much over 10.

 

[kingOFgEEEks]

 

[Ryan Browne]

A couple more pics my wife took today.

 

[beaglebriar]

Kind slow to boil this morning but we're getting there. 50 gallons to go then I'll finish this run off.

 

[Lightning Performance]

I've seen a lot of people saying the sugar content is low this year. I haven't tested anything myself yet.

@Lightning Performance, did you make any syrup yet?

No. Have a broke right hand.
Missed the window this year for sap I do believe. We have leaves on the cherry trees but the buds are not flowering yet. Little green leaves on the bud bottoms. Weird year. Never had mosquitos in late December and back by February 27. A big stripped one was buzzing me yesterday.... hybrids. No snow this year. Bugs everywhere, mold and fungus. Mold makes me sick now. Fun year coming. If we get a freeze it will under twelve hours duration now.

 

[Lightning Performance]

A couple more pics my wife took today.View attachment 228722 View attachment 228723

Sweet set up.

 

[Ryan Browne]

Sweet set up.

Thanks! It's taken a LONG time to get here. They cooked the first batch out here in '75. It's only a side gig for us, so I have a twinge of envy when I visit guys who started only started a few years ago and have $100k+ in shiny equipment in their very nice "shacks". But this stuff is paid for, and it's a huge step up from where we were ten years ago. If all goes well, we'll keep making a little more syrup every year with little improvements along the way.

 

[Lightning Performance]

Thanks! It's taken a LONG time to get here. They cooked the first batch out here in '75. It's only a side gig for us, so I have a twinge of envy when I visit guys who started only started a few years ago and have $100k+ in shiny equipment in their very nice "shacks". But this stuff is paid for, and it's a huge step up from where we were ten years ago. If all goes well, we'll keep making a little more syrup every year with little improvements along the way.

Hell yeah!!!!

Fugged them commercial units you pay off in decades, no thank. The mother of invention lives there... and she's a bad *b-word... well done indeed.

Everyone says this year is extra light but plentiful. I would fit right in... below average most of the time but improving.

 

[Flint Mitch]

Could you good folks give me some ideas for simple boilers? I'm thinking about doing a little this year. Thanks.

Simple as it gets!

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[kingOFgEEEks]

Syrup finished Friday Night:

Saturday Night:

Sunday I drained the pan and finished off the last of it:


The weather here is turning warm, and I'm not confident I'll get enough good runs to be worth running again, but I won't pull taps yet, in case we get a good window of weather.

 

[beaglebriar]

Syrup finished Friday Night:
View attachment 229200
Saturday Night:
View attachment 229201
Sunday I drained the pan and finished off the last of it:
View attachment 229202

The weather here is turning warm, and I'm not confident I'll get enough good runs to be worth running again, but I won't pull taps yet, in case we get a good window of weather.

Nice! I'm thinking I'll pull taps this weekend, see what weather does though. The reds are gonna start budding soon with this warm weather.

 

[Johnmn]

Nice! I'm thinking I'll pull taps this weekend, see what weather does though. The reds are gonna start budding soon with this warm weather.

Kinda funny, your done and it's just starting to run here.

 

[Lightning Performance]

Were done... I do believe... over seventy here today and the shallow waters are warming fast. Guys started fresh water bass fishing last week. They're catching fish.

 

[Johnmn]

Were done... I do believe... over seventy here today and the shallow waters are warming fast. Guys started fresh water bass fishing last week. They're catching fish.

Wow crazy, we have I'd say 1 1/2 feet of snow still and I'm guessing 30 + or - inches of ice on the lakes still

 

[Johnmn]

Cool picture my wife sent me!

 

[Ryan Browne]

Kinda funny, your done and it's just starting to run here.

I've been tempted to do a maple season tour. Start somewhere like Illinois or Pennsylvania and end up in Quebec. Cook syrup for 5 months!

 

[Lightning Performance]

I've been tempted to do a maple season tour. Start somewhere like Illinois or Pennsylvania and end up in Quebec. Cook syrup for 5 months!

You got a cooker in mind? I have some extra trailers around. Full time sauna on wheels... could sell seats to the enclosed roof deck. BYOB soccer moms only. We'll be down stairs cooking syrup. Bet finding trees and places to set up would be easy. Sweet Tooth Steamworks.

"We make... while you bake "