The Girl came for a visit so we decided to boil down the frozen sap that’s been sitting in our freezer for the last month. This was our first attempt at making our own maple syrup, and it was such a success, we’re already talking about doing it again next year {and possibly tapping our birch trees as well}.
How I started Making Maple Syrup For The First Time
The HH set up the camp stove with 2 pots on the back porch around 1pm. I had set out the frozen jugs of sap the night before we started, but they were all still about half frozen when we got started so it took a little longer than we were expecting.
After the sap had boiled down a bit and went from clear to a nice golden brown, the whole place started to smell like a pancake house.
By the time bedtime rolled around the 10 gallons of sap had been reduced to about 2 gallons and not wanting to stay up until the wee hours of the morning, we decided to stop the whole boiling process and start again in the morning.
After about another 2 hours of boiling in the morning, the HH transferred all the syrup to one pot.
And then we all had a quick taste test {even Lucy!} and we were all pleasantly surprised at how good it was.
Once the syrup reached 219 degrees on the candy thermometer, we transferred the syrup to a smaller container to finish it off inside.
The last stage {reaching 220 degrees and 62 Brix on the hydrometer} only took about 15 minutes.
Finally done Making Maple Syrup For The First Time
I had all that work {setting up taps, collecting sap, boiling it down} worth it. Those efforts produced just a little over a quart of pure maple syrup. Our total start up costs this year was right around $190. This includes {buckets, lids, taps, funnel, hydrometer and propane}!!!
Gaaa. The good news is now we have all the equipment so next year the only cost will be the propane. Not {unless we decide to kick it old school and boil our sap down over an open campfire}.
Tapping trees and making our own maple syrup, it was easier than I thought it would be. 🙂
Peace out,
~Mavis
Cindy says
Beautiful!
Mrs. C. says
Did you water bath can the syrup? For how long?
Mavis Butterfield says
No, it wasn’t necessary. I just added the clips to the jars as we were bottling it up. Here’s a link to the website we used for reference : https://thewoodenskillet.com/make-maple-syrup/
Gretta says
Hi Mavis,
I see you had the lids on the pots. They need to be off. The whole idea is to get rid of the water in the sap. The steam will escape so much faster with the lids off. Have a good day.
Mavis Butterfield says
We kept the pots covered while we were waiting for the sap to boil, then we removed them. 🙂
Christie says
What a cool project! Thank you for sharing!
Diana says
Beautiful end result!
Check out the YT channel Simple Living Alaska – they harvest birch sap. From what they’ve said, the sugar content is a lot less than maples and requires a lot more initial liquid with the end result not being as sweet or tasty. They don’t boil it down any longer – they just drink it once it’s collected. Apparently, the flavor is a lightly sweet water.
Also, if you don’t use that much syrup every year, you could convert to maple sugar instead of syrup. That’s probably what I would do. I don’t use syrup much, but I do use plenty of sugar. If we end up with the predicted shortages, that may be a better use for the maple sap.
Jennifer says
Just curious… did you use more than one propane bottle to boil it off outside? Or did one bottle do the trick? Looks fantastic, and I love the jars you chose to store it in!
Mavis Butterfield says
We used about 3/4 of a propane tank.
Mary G says
That looks fabulous! I almost wonder if it’s better to produce a smaller amount like you did rather than a massive amount, which I would think would be quite exhausting. I love those jars you used.
Annette says
Cool.
Did you immediately make pancakes or waffles?
Mavis Butterfield says
No, but I think we will this weekend.
Joely says
That is so cool. I love it!
Stacie says
This is totally awesome and I’m so jealous we don’t have trees to tap in south Texas!
Joyce says
I told you it was addicting; LOL You can tap box elder which is a cousin to a maple or black walnut and it will still taste like maple syrup.
This is the first year in many years that I haven’t tapped. I was house bound with the virus.
I still have plenty in the freezer but just knowing that sap was flowing and I couldn’t get it made me crazy LOL
Karen says
Have you tasted syrup made from birch tree sap before? Not all saps have the same properties, ie making pitch from pine trees.
Laura says
so did you filter it before you froze it initally or filter it after it boiled down somewhat?
Mavis Butterfield says
We filtered it after we boiled it down, before it went into jars.
Lori says
There is nothing better! Now deciding on the usual pancakes, waffles and French toast but oatmeal and making granola is amazing! Maple fudge and maple candy. Yum! So many choices so little syrup. Hahahaha I say that every year.
Peggy says
Yep! Most of your cost now will be your time! Congratulations!!! I want to do this next year, so I’m happy to hear it worked out! What’s a hydrometer?!?
Another Nancy says
Well done! I’m so glad you got a good result on a project that seems pretty tricky.
Susie says
I’m very curious to know what, if anything, you’ll do differently next year. Lessons learned? Start earlier, perhaps? I live in Florida, so I have absolutely NO ideas or advice! Just wondering about the learning curve. 🙂
Tonya says
Can you make a list of required supplies and the costs?
Nancy S says
Great job Mavis and girl!
Emily says
How cool! I’m so happy you were happy with the end result.
Kim says
You guys are soooooo fun!!!!
Beth Craven Connor says
Our maple trees are too young to tap but a woman here in the Poconos started a maple sugaring business. She has an open house each spring to show folks, especially kids, how it’s done. One thing I learned was that the best maple syrup with the strongest maple flavor is Grade B. Grade A has a lighter color and milder flavor and was graded A because it could be used as a general sweetener in the days before cane sugar was readily available. Yours sure looks like Grade B. How does it taste?
Tammy says
I bet it is the best tasting syrup ever! 🙂
I wanted to tap and make syrup when we lived in Michigan, but the only maple tree was our neighbor’s one tree, and we definitely didn’t have the outside setup.
Linda Practical Parsimony says
That was fun! I say this as I lived vicariously! Can you give a list with a link to items? What size pots did you use to boil the syrup? I cannot wait until you do it next year. Maybe you will share again. Thanks.
Cheryl says
Good job! Isn’t learning new stuff so much fun?
Dee says
Good job! Thak you for sharing this project with us. There is nothing better than making memories with your family! Many years ago, I ordered a bag of maple sugar powder from the Vermont Country Store. The instructions were to add hot water and enjoy real maple syrup. I used it for the syrup and for baking. It was handy to have on hand. I’m sure it was not as good as your syrup will taste.
ANN says
We do our own backyard maple syrup, too! It’s fun, but it’s a lot of work and time! We also tried birch trees and box elder trees… it was bitter, and took much longer… don’t recommend it!
Maple is much better!
Tom says
I tape one large maple tree and got 230 gallons of sap made 5 gallons of syrup
It’s the first time in 60 years we used to do it when we were kids with our father.
Brought back many good memories
Mavis Butterfield says
5 gallons of syrup! That is awesome.
Jeff says
I’d like to try it too. We have lots of Maple Trees here on our property. I love your big Tulip shaped Weck Jars.