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Maple Sugaring
The First Sugarmakers The first American Sugar makers were early Native Americans of New England who called their maple syrup "sinzibukwud" which translates to mean "sweet buds". The people of the First Nations of the Lawrence and Great Lakes areas also developed an old age collecting technique in the warming days between winter and spring. As the warming days caused the sap to flow in the maple woods, the people of the First Nations would cut a diagonal slash in the lower trunk of each tree and insert a hollow reed through which the sap would drip. The sap would collect in bark containers to be transported to larger containers or hollowed log containers. In the larger containers the people would drop fire heated stones in until the sap had boiled down to a dark sweet syrup which was sometimes called "sweet water" often used to cook venison in. The people could then further boil the syrup to make maple sugar. The early European settlers picked up the trade and basically followed the pattern, replacing bark containers with metal, and eventually modernizing it to what we see today.
The Sugaring Season
The maple syrup gathering season has always been short and often
unpredictable due to variable weather conditions.
Time and weather are very important to a successful harvest. Weather
plays the biggest role in maple sap production; the maples rely on the
freezing and thawing periods that usually occur in late February and
early March. In order for the sap to flow, the weather must grow
warmer until temperatures rise above freezing. It takes nearly 40 years for the Sugar Maple, or Hard Maple - to grow larger than 12" in diameter, when it becomes ready for one tap. When the time comes, “Sugarmakers” will head into their “maple orchards” or “sugarbushes” - in late February and begin drilling the 7/16" holes, to a depth of approximately 2 1/2", into the trunks of the maples.
The Process
If
the weather has been cooperative, the sap, which is clear, and only
slightly sweet, will slowly drip from the “spile” into buckets that
are collected and brought to the sugarhouse for boiling. If a
pipeline system (sapline system) is used, the sap flows directly
downhill through a tubing network to a central collection point. Jim
Williamson uses a sapline system. The “sap run” continually starts
and stops as temperatures rise and fall above and below freezing.
Each tap will usually yield approximately 10 gallons of sap during a
six-week period, producing 1 only quart of maple syrup per tap.
Sugar Shacks have huge evaporator pans that are powered by wood, oil, or
gas to heat the sap to the boiling point. Billows of steam escape
through a vent or “cupola” at the top of the shack.
The Final Product
The
highest quality syrup comes from the freshest and cleanest sap. If
the sap doesn’t receive immediate attention it will deteriorate and
the syrup will not be high quality. The boil-down process takes a
lot of attention and time, it can continue for hours in order to get rid
of all water content in the sap. Once
the boiling process is complete, the syrup is filtered and packed for
distribution to eagerly awaiting consumers around the world. The
Vermont Department of Agriculture has strict quality requirements on the
making and selling of Vermont maple products. Every product sold
is required by Vermont State Law to carry a label showing the grade of
the syrup and the name of the producer.
The Maple Sugaring System
Interesting Facts Maple syrup:
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