mixing?

[collinsmapleman2012]

so heres a question thats been burning in my mind for a while: i have about 30 taps right now and am looking to expand. they are all on sugar maples and a couple years ago i tried making box elder syrup.
behind my house there are 2 different areas overgrown with boxelders... if i tap them again would it be ok to mix the sap and make extra syrup, or should i tap and keep them seperate, and sell the boxelder syrup as a sort of niche market? Dr. Tim, any suggestions any help would be appreciated

[DrTimPerkins]

Dr. Tim, any suggestions any help would be appreciated

There are several people on this list who can answer far better than I on the topic of marketing. Hopefully they'll chime in.

Wouldn't be a problem mixing the sap, but if you think you can make more by keeping it separate (and it doesn't increase your expenses disproportionately), and you have a market to sell it...then give it a try. Worst case....it doesn't sell as Boxelder maple syrup....mix it with the other syrup you make and just sell it as maple syrup.

[C.Wilcox]

Collins,

I have made box elder sap for the past 5 years or so and everyone that's tried it liked it just fine. I've made it as pure box elder and also mixed it about 50/50 with maple sap. Everyone that's tried it has liked it in both forms. I don't sell my syrup, but I think you might be able to find a small niche market for all box elder syrup if you spread the word around. People have said they would definitely pay for it if I started selling so I say give it a try.

[SilverLeaf]

The downside to keeping it separate is that you have to process it as a separate batch. Depending upon your setup, that can either be a minor annoyance or a major pain.

The upside, though, is that you keep the Boxelder syrup "pure" and then you can really tell the difference between it and the regular stuff. And some people actually prefer the Boxelder stuff.

If it's not too much work for ya, I'd say keep it separate.

[SilverLeaf]

Oh, as for selling it, you may find that you need to keep the price a little lower than the regular syrup at first to give people an incentive to try it. My experience is that people are a little bit hesitant to try it for the first time, (they want "maple" syrup, darnit! not this "trash tree" stuff) but once they do they really like it.

[collinsmapleman2012]

i have a small pan and can run it in small batches, but iif i dont get time to do that, is it ok to mix it?

[SilverLeaf]

i have a small pan and can run it in small batches, but iif i dont get time to do that, is it ok to mix it?

I guess that really depends, then, what you mean by "ok". It won't hurt anything. You'll still make syrup. But it will probably change the flavor, more or less, depending upon how much of the Boxelder you mix in. The boxelder stuff is definitely more molasses-tasting.

[C.Wilcox]

Mix away if you don't have time for separate batches. It will make great tasting syrup. As I said, I don't sell my syrup so I'm speaking a little out of turn here, but I would hesitate to offer it at a lower price. People may think it's a subpar product because the price is lower. It doesn't cost you any less to make than it does to make maple syrup so selling it for less means you're working just as hard for less money. It's easier to drop a price than it is to raise it so if it doesn't move at a higher price you can offer people a "deal" on it when they come for maple.

[Rossell's Sugar Camp]

If it were me. I would mix it and not say anything. But that is your choice and i agree that you should sell it at the same price as normal syrup. Either way you win. So go for it if you want.

[TF Maple]

I haven't done boxelder syrup yet but might do it if I want to tap more trees. Anyway, I think the sap has a lower sugar % so it will take more boiling to make syrup. So that will make a darker syrup. If you want lighter colored syrup then mixing would not be a good idea. If you don't care about boiling time and syrup color then mix away because it should all be good stuff.

[collinsmapleman2012]

If it were me. I would mix it and not say anything. But that is your choice and i agree that you should sell it at the same price as normal syrup. Either way you win. So go for it if you want.

its like you pulled the words out of my head.

[Rossell's Sugar Camp]

its like you pulled the words out of my head.

Hey 16 year olds think alike