Prior to firing up the evaporator the concentrated sap is moved from the holding tank to the evaporator using a series of tubing. As the sap moves through the tubing it is slowing warming up before hitting the pans, this also speeds up the time it takes to become syrup once the sap reaches the pan. Once in the pan syrup begins to boil and moves through a series of channels as it becomes thicker, darker and sweeter. As a general rule sap becomes syrup at 7 degrees above boiling water, however there are several other factors that should be considered to make ideal syrup, which is why we use a hydrometer to test the syrup before drawing off from the pan. After we’ve tested the syrup with the hydrometer we set our automatic draw off to the desired temperature, as the name suggests this will automatically draw off the syrup when it reaches the set temperature and shuts off when the temperature drops below the desired temperature.

As the syrup is drawn off from the evaporator it is collected in a 15-gallon barrel with a heating element in it until full. When the barrel is full we filter the syrup using a filter press, after going through the filter press the syrup goes into a large pot with a spigot. Once filtered the syrup is ready to be bottled, to bottle our syrup we first heat it to at least 185 degrees then while still hot we put it into assorted bottles for resale. We use our syrup to make our BBQ sauces, Maple Dijon Mustard, Maple Vinegraitte, Maple Coated Nuts, Maple Cream, Maple Whoopie Pies, and more!