Maple Syrup Extraction via Spile

Just throwing this out there because on here you never know. Just ordered some spiles to try out in our maple trees. Processing the syrup looks pretty tedious but we're going to give it a go and see what happens. Anyone else ever try this?

 

I understand that if you cook it up and while it's hot you hurry and pour designs in the snow while it's still thin, that is how you make sugar candy.

 

Now that I have not heard yet. I suppose if there's snow on the ground here while we are cooking it down I'll have to give it a try.

 

That's how they made candy back in the day in the woods when they had log cabins.

Here's instructions on how to make the candy. Gotta click through the steps up on top of the page. They used a candy mold but I bet snow would be more authentic.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-Candy-From-Trees/#step1

 

Been doing it for a few seasons. You're looking at about a 40:1 sap to syrup ratio.

Tastes better boiled over a wood fire in an open pan. The trick is getting the consistency just right. Darker = stronger taste.

 

^^^ Good info, thanks. I realize it's ultra inefficient, but I'm into learning things like this.

 

It may be slow, but I don't think it's ultra-inefficient at all. We harvest syrup from our property, harvest firewood from our property and sit around and make a social event of the sap boil. We bottle ours in recycled whiskey bottles.

Inefficient to me is importing it, shipping it, packaging it, stocking it on store shelves and charging lots of money for a product that doesn't taste as good as the real craft stuff.

Good luck!