Making Real Maple Syrup

Take a short journey down the road of a New York sugarmaker. Watch the making of the real thing, pure maple syrup.

Walling’s Maple Syrup is officially certified organic!

Making maple syrup is a production rich in heritage and steeped in Native American tradition. We have gathered sap from maple trees and turned it into pure maple syrup for over 25 years, increasing our knowledge with every passing year. Acknowledging that this product is a special gift from the earth.  It is humbling to be a maple producer, in which nature is your boss.

At Walling’s Maple Syrup we believe in having the best quality product for your health and have been pleased to maintain organic practices for many, many years without any certification.  But, for JUST US to know that we have quality products, free of pesticides and anything synthetic, is not good enough.  Unless you are a local who is directly involved with us, you may not know important information about our manufacturing process.  Because of this, we have decided to become certified organic, to let EVERYONE know the standards we are upholding.

Some may wonder – isn’t all pure maple syrup organic?  The fact is, that while we support all pure maple syrup and it is ALL better than the “fake stuff,” not all syrup is created equal.  Several things differentiate organic from non-organic maple syrup.  One such example is:  There is a step in the sap boiling process that requires a defoaming agent (every syrup producer must use a defoamer or else the syrup & pans will burn).  We use and will continue to use organic, plant-based oil, because we believe it is healthier than alternatives sold by maple equipment dealers, that have synthetic ingredients.  When you have perfectly, sweet, maple water flowing straight from the tree, only to add a synthetic, man-made ingredient is – to us – doing an injustice to what nature is providing.  We want you to know exactly what our syrup entails, and that it is produced with everyone’s health in mind – including our own!  Our retail prices will also remain at their regular rates, and will NOTchange in accordance to the organic certification.

This is exciting news for us, and we hope you are excited about it too!  As always, our syrup operation is a family venture and becoming certified organic was no different.

Pure Maple Syrup: It doesn't come directly out of the tree

There's a process to making pure maple syrup, it starts with sap.

Over the years we’ve come into contact with many people who think that maple syrup comes straight out of the tree as the sweet, sticky, amber liquid they pour over their pancakes.  It may be basic information for some people, but how is one really supposed to know if they’ve never talked to a maple producer, researched it, or experienced it themselves?  So, the fact is, what you get in your jug of pure maple syrup does not come directly out of the maple tree that way.  

Maple sap

It comes out as sap – a semi-clear, slightly-sweet liquid – also known as maple water.  It is a thinner substance, and is generally 98% water and only 2% sugar.  Maple trees expel their sap in the early spring, when the snow starts melting, the ground is a muddy mess, and the temperature goes from above to below freezing (& vice versa) in no time flat. 

Kern unloading maple sap on a rainy March day in 2013

 Simply put, this water-like liquid flows out of a drilled hole in the tree, and goes through a tubing system or in a bucket.  It is then collected and boiled in an evaporator.  Boiling drives off excess water, leaving behind the thicker, sugary substance.  If only you could capture the smell of a night of boiling – so sweet!  Steam fills the air as the water evaporates, and eventually, once boiled long enough, it becomes pure maple syrup.  Having the opportunity to taste this maple sap every season is such a pleasure, and being able to turn it into pure maple syrup is a privilege. 

Maple Syrup

 

 

 

 

 

Maple Sap

Maple Syrup