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re: I made some backyard syrup...kinda
Posted on 2/7/22 at 2:50 pm to TackySweater
Posted on 2/7/22 at 2:50 pm to TackySweater
quote:
I didn’t realize it was that clear and not thick and sticky
To show how ignorant I am, I thought it came straight out the tree and into a syrup bottle.
1
Posted on 2/7/22 at 8:34 pm to REB BEER
2 1/4 gallons harvested today. The black walnut killed it with one full gallon. The rest came from two maples. The third maple is still a dud. I guess you'd normally make two types of syrups from two different tree species, but I combined them because I need the sap volume.
This post was edited on 2/7/22 at 8:36 pm
Posted on 2/8/22 at 5:15 pm to BottomlandBrew
So you can make "maple" syrup from Walnut trees?
I've never heard of Walnut syrup?
I've never heard of Walnut syrup?
Posted on 2/8/22 at 6:29 pm to Enadious
quote:
Dude, a kid in socks standing on a stool is an accident waiting to happen.
If he starts to slip, he can steady himself by grabbing the handle on that pot of boiling syrup.
Posted on 2/8/22 at 6:44 pm to BottomlandBrew
Posted on 2/8/22 at 9:35 pm to BottomlandBrew
In my younger, more rambunctious days I set out on a calm, leisurely evening stroll through the beautiful Vermont countryside around the AirBnb where I was staying.
That is to say, I was piss drunk and took off like my hair was on fire.
Anyway, a person in my immediate vicinity (but definitely not me) might have plowed headlong through the darkness and the unexpected, elaborate system of hoses and tree taps that stretched from tree-to-tree for, well, who knows how far. They might have completely disrupted that entire convoluted system, and that individual might have temporarily caused my Airbnb rating to take a dive.
All that to say, I've seen what it looks like for people to do it with any degree of seriousness, and it's quite the undertaking. Really cool that you gave this a shot. Thanks for sharing!
That is to say, I was piss drunk and took off like my hair was on fire.
Anyway, a person in my immediate vicinity (but definitely not me) might have plowed headlong through the darkness and the unexpected, elaborate system of hoses and tree taps that stretched from tree-to-tree for, well, who knows how far. They might have completely disrupted that entire convoluted system, and that individual might have temporarily caused my Airbnb rating to take a dive.
All that to say, I've seen what it looks like for people to do it with any degree of seriousness, and it's quite the undertaking. Really cool that you gave this a shot. Thanks for sharing!
Posted on 2/8/22 at 10:18 pm to BottomlandBrew
I managed to get a little more than four gallons over the past two days. Had to bust out the ol' propane brewing equipment to boil it down to a small enough amount to bring it inside to the stove. I ended up with a little more than seven ounces of syrup.
I'm learning that my trees may not be giving me high quality sap. Research is telling me that the sugar content of good quality sap should be in the neighborhood of 2.5-3.5 brix, and my sap is 1.5 brix. This is what's causing my volume issues. It's not like I'd have a lot of syrup anyways, but I could potentially have 14 ounces instead of 7 ounces if my trees were giving me good sap.
More learning. More boiling.
For those worried about the kid, his sock bottoms are rubber grip. He inherited his father's gross motor skills and needs all the help he can get in order to successfully walk and talk at the same time. The kid can stop on a dime in those socks on hardwood floors.
I'm learning that my trees may not be giving me high quality sap. Research is telling me that the sugar content of good quality sap should be in the neighborhood of 2.5-3.5 brix, and my sap is 1.5 brix. This is what's causing my volume issues. It's not like I'd have a lot of syrup anyways, but I could potentially have 14 ounces instead of 7 ounces if my trees were giving me good sap.
More learning. More boiling.
For those worried about the kid, his sock bottoms are rubber grip. He inherited his father's gross motor skills and needs all the help he can get in order to successfully walk and talk at the same time. The kid can stop on a dime in those socks on hardwood floors.
Posted on 2/9/22 at 8:28 am to BottomlandBrew
Its 40 to 1 ratio - 40 gallon of sap for 1 gallon of syrup and the last part where you make syrup is the most critical. My mom and dad made 10+ gallons a yr for 15+ yrs (you do the math on sap collected). It a labour of love - have fun with it and I miss my dad and his syrup ......
Posted on 2/9/22 at 9:38 am to OntarioTiger
your wife is right
you are a yankee
now go steal some sugarcane like a real man
you are a yankee
now go steal some sugarcane like a real man
Posted on 2/9/22 at 2:49 pm to OntarioTiger
quote:
Its 40 to 1 ratio
I'm learning my trees are currently only giving me half that ratio, or double, however you say it. I'm closer to 80:1.
quote:
last part where you make syrup is the most critical
That's what I'm learning after two boils. Things can get a little tricky near the end. I'm shooting for 218 degrees, but I'm having a hard time doing it without overheating or underheating. When that syrup gets to bubbling, it starts throwing off some rogue bubbles that are like hot grease bubbles. My wife has yet to see the bubbles that hit the ceiling. She will. last night I put a grease screen over the pot to try and minimize collateral damage.
I really need a deeper pot, but to use a deeper pot I need more liquid volume, which I'm not getting because my sugar content is low and I'm only tapping a few trees.
quote:
OntarioTiger
quote:
labour
Checks out.
Posted on 2/9/22 at 5:06 pm to BottomlandBrew
quote:
My wife has yet to see the bubbles that hit the ceiling. She will.
This definitely made me laugh. Its great to occasionally read something refreshing oh here, thanks for the amazing thread.
Posted on 2/9/22 at 10:04 pm to BottomlandBrew
Will we see a maple flavored ale in our future?
Posted on 2/9/22 at 11:14 pm to BottomlandBrew
Great thread, keep us updated.
Posted on 2/10/22 at 7:34 am to Tigerlaff
Bottom
When my parents got serious they went to a local producer and got tips/tricks - that was pre youtube but there must be some videos for DIY syrup.
You dont need a deeper pot but a shallow evaporator pan for the primary evaporation - once it thickens up then you can transfer to a smaller pan to finish the syrup. My mom used a candy thermometer to get the right thickness and not burn the syrup.
The big shallow evaporator pan is a gamechanger and cuts time down alot - also do the evaporation outside or in a garage on a burner - if you do the evap in the kitchen you have a very sticky kitchen from the steam
When my parents got serious they went to a local producer and got tips/tricks - that was pre youtube but there must be some videos for DIY syrup.
You dont need a deeper pot but a shallow evaporator pan for the primary evaporation - once it thickens up then you can transfer to a smaller pan to finish the syrup. My mom used a candy thermometer to get the right thickness and not burn the syrup.
The big shallow evaporator pan is a gamechanger and cuts time down alot - also do the evaporation outside or in a garage on a burner - if you do the evap in the kitchen you have a very sticky kitchen from the steam
Posted on 2/10/22 at 1:10 pm to OntarioTiger
I found a pic from my buddy's backyard operation in Michigan
Posted on 2/11/22 at 8:47 am to OntarioTiger
quote:
You don't need a deeper pot but a shallow evaporator pan for the primary evaporation - once it thickens up then you can transfer to a smaller pan to finish the syrup.
100% this. My experiences have been limited but every place I've visited operates with a shallow evaporator pan. It doesn't necessarily get you from sap to end product but it gets you from sap to something looking closer to syrup, which then you can transfer to the finishing stage so as to not burn the sugar.
Bottom, when do you expect the sugar maple trees to start budding? How much more time do you have?
Posted on 2/11/22 at 9:08 am to BottomlandBrew
Just wanted to say this is a really cool thread.
Posted on 2/11/22 at 1:54 pm to McVick
quote:
shallow evaporator pan
If I scale up I will have to do something like this. As it is now, I have 4 gallons in a 12 gallon kettle, so my surface area to depth ratio is somewhat decent and works with what I'm doing...for now.
quote:
Bottom, when do you expect the sugar maple trees to start budding? How much more time do you have?
Not much time. The silver maples in my yard are already starting to show some swelling buds. The sugar maples won't be far behind. We hit 71 today. I haven't gotten any sap the past couple of days because we ahven't been below freezing at night. We have another cold snap coming this weekend, but that might be it before the trees start doing their thing for Spring. I got a late jump on it this year, so hopefully next year I can get ahead of the game.
This post was edited on 2/11/22 at 2:01 pm
Posted on 2/19/22 at 2:03 pm to BottomlandBrew
Update at the end of my first "season."
I ended up with 15 oz of syrup from an estimated 1280 ounces of sap. Somewhere around 85:1. That's a pretty lousy ratio, even by lousy syrup ratios. The good news is that I had fun doing it and learned a lot. There is a lot of room for improvement. I plan on expanding the operation next year in both my yard and my parent's place up on the Cumberland Plateau.
The red capped bottle is my final batch and the black capped bottle is my second batch. You can see some improvement in the clarity and color.
Flavor wise, it is different than store-bought natural syrup. Yeah, it has the "syrup" backbone, but it also has some butteriness, nuttiness, and even a slight tartness/twang (think sorghum, if you've ever had that). I think some of those flavors come from the black walnut. With expanded operations, I can make separate maple and black walnut syrups next year.
This was the first long-term project Ive done with my son, and I think he enjoyed it a lot. Being a toddler, patience is not a skill he possess. That said, he hung with it. He's been talking all week about getting to eat pancakes with the syrup he helped make.
So yeah. It was fun. Worth it for the meager final amount.
I ended up with 15 oz of syrup from an estimated 1280 ounces of sap. Somewhere around 85:1. That's a pretty lousy ratio, even by lousy syrup ratios. The good news is that I had fun doing it and learned a lot. There is a lot of room for improvement. I plan on expanding the operation next year in both my yard and my parent's place up on the Cumberland Plateau.
The red capped bottle is my final batch and the black capped bottle is my second batch. You can see some improvement in the clarity and color.
Flavor wise, it is different than store-bought natural syrup. Yeah, it has the "syrup" backbone, but it also has some butteriness, nuttiness, and even a slight tartness/twang (think sorghum, if you've ever had that). I think some of those flavors come from the black walnut. With expanded operations, I can make separate maple and black walnut syrups next year.
This was the first long-term project Ive done with my son, and I think he enjoyed it a lot. Being a toddler, patience is not a skill he possess. That said, he hung with it. He's been talking all week about getting to eat pancakes with the syrup he helped make.
So yeah. It was fun. Worth it for the meager final amount.
This post was edited on 2/19/22 at 2:05 pm
Posted on 2/19/22 at 2:49 pm to BottomlandBrew
Two cuties right there!
I look forward to next season’s progress and also to see your little helper’s growth.
I look forward to next season’s progress and also to see your little helper’s growth.
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