Temp at which to boil sap to syrup

[Galena]

Hey all

I know this is a super-basic question but I have heard that I should boil from 207-215 in order to get syrup. Not at any high elevations so I doubt altitude is a problem (I am in the Ottawa Valley). I have already boiled down my first batch but it's still a little thin, so want to give it another quick boildown but don't want crystals. Any tried-and-true temp? Thanks!!

[Dan W]

The only true way to get it right is to use a hydrometer.

[Scribner's Mountain Maple]

Not sure what 207 - 215 are about. Water Boils at 211 and Sap is Syrup at 219. At least I am pretty sure. I know it's candy at 233 and sugar at 250.

[Galena]

...Water Boils at 211 and Sap is Syrup at 219. At least I am pretty sure...

Good to know...thanks...and how much does a hydrometer cost, approx?

[Scribner's Mountain Maple]

20-30 bucks and is worth it. gets it perfect everytime

[smokeyamber]

hydrometer for syrup is around 35 bucks, worth it. You can also use the sheeting test, search here for a better description. Or you can do it just by temp, measure what temp you water boils at that day with the same thermometer and then add 7.5 deg F to it, that should get you very close to syrup. My experience before we got the hydrometer was that going by just temp tended to get me not quite to syrup, but it was still good enough for pancakes :D

Oh and when you get close to syrup it can foam up quite dramatically so watch it like a hawk and you can keep some oil ( canola ) at hand ( in hand ) to drip in if it starts to foam up... it happens FAST ...

Have fun and it will be tasty ;)

[Galena]

OK, just went to Arkinson site and did see hydrometers listed approx at what smokeyamber and Scribner said. Wondering why there doesn't seem to be a combo sap/syrup hydrometer, but ah well. May spend the $35 for a syrup one. Can they be found in hardware stores or only through specialists like Atkinson?

Yep smokey, definitely have had that scarifyin' experience of watching sap roil up like a beast from the depths - aahhh! My mentors use milk to defoam, I just lift the pot up off the stove enough so it won't boil over and skim. Then I watch for those teeny tiny little bubbles crowding the pot and when I see those, that's when I consider it to be true syrup and pull it off.

[Zamkev]

BMR in Ottawa had one about a week ago. Not too sure where you are located. Might be best to call first.

[Galena]

BMR in Ottawa had one about a week ago. Not too sure where you are located. Might be best to call first.

I'm in Leeds/North Grenville, right next door to Lanark County. Grew up in Hottawa, so should be able to find BMR. Thanks for the info Zamkev, greatly appreciated.

[Zamkev]

Welcome.

Also worth mentioning is a poorly marketed CDL outlet in Lanark. They are at 40 George St in Lanark. 613-259-5554. They'll have everything you might need and more. They're much closer than Atkinson's.

[mapleack]

Galena, a hydrometer when used properly is the most accurate. You can use a thermometer, syrup is 7.5 deg higher than the boiling point of water, which changes with barometric pressure throughout the day, sometimes quickly. boil a small pot of water, check the temp when its a rolling boil, then add 7.5 deg, that's what your syrup should be boiling at when its the right density.

[happy thoughts]

galena- you also need a testing cup.

Now I have a question- are the yields in your signature sap or syrup? If it's syrup yields then that tells me something may not be right in how you're judging when it's syrup. Most would be overjoyed to get a US gallon of syrup/tap. The reality is usually much less. You either have super sweet trees and/or they put out an enormous amount of sap/ tap. Something doesn't look right there to me especially considering that imperial gallons are larger than a US gallon.

[Galena]

galena- you also need a testing cup.

Now I have a question- are the yields in your signature sap or syrup?...Something doesn't look right there to me especially considering that imperial gallons are larger than a US gallon.

LOL sap totals are the figures you see in my signature. In terms of the Imperial/US gallons, well, I knew a gallon was somewhere around 4 litres. Asked my mentor how many litres to a gallon and he said 4.5 litres. So that's what I've gone on. Now if someone wants to do the maff for me, cause I really suck at it, then I can re-post some really staggering annual sap yields!

In 2011 my best tree, #2, gave me 32 gallons of sap, out of a total of 62 gallons. I kid you not. And yep, that's in Imperial. Thank gawd I only tapped 4 trees that year and I had a helluva time keeping up with them! Got 12 lovely batches, trying to find the photo I took of sample jars of all 12.

[Kyle Baker]

Galena, I'm not for from Merrickville not far from you and I aimed for about 220F last year and it turned out great. I would like a hydrometer as well though...

[happy thoughts]

LOL sap totals are the figures you see in my signature. In terms of the Imperial/US gallons, well, I knew a gallon was somewhere around 4 litres. Asked my mentor how many litres to a gallon and he said 4.5 litres. So that's what I've gone on. Now if someone wants to do the maff for me, cause I really suck at it, then I can re-post some really staggering annual sap yields!

In 2011 my best tree, #2, gave me 32 gallons of sap, out of a total of 62 gallons. I kid you not. And yep, that's in Imperial. Thank gawd I only tapped 4 trees that year and I had a helluva time keeping up with them! Got 12 lovely batches, trying to find the photo I took of sample jars of all 12.

Well that clears that up :) Sap yields make a lot more sense because you had me wondering. I've also had some taps yield 30 gals or more in a good year. Too bad they aren't all good years. So far this year is sucking big time at my house. Still waiting for a good sap run. I know it's gotta be just around the corner......

Good luck this season and if you get a hydrometer, buy 2 because they break easy and don't forget to buy the hydrometer cup for it :). I've been going just by temp because for the little I make just for home use it just doesn't make $ sense to me to buy a hydrometer. I have to to agree with the generally unpopular opinion of a few others that you can get pretty close just using a thermometer if you do it correctly such as mapleack suggested. For the price of a hydrometer or 2, the cup, and shipping, I might as well just buy the syrup and spend these cold months someplace warmer. But where's the fun in that, lol? If I sold my syrup that would be a different story and I'd absolutely want a hydrometer.

[Galena]

Galena, I'm not for from Merrickville not far from you and I aimed for about 220F last year and it turned out great. I would like a hydrometer as well though...

I know where Jasper is, been through many a time when I feel like a more scenic drive to Smiths Falls :-)

@ happy thoughts...yep, I measure the yield from every single tree every single time I collect, so I have really super-accurate records to obsess over later. Also just finished checking my year-end summaries from each tree, recalculating a little and finally now have totally accurate numbers up in my signature, both US and Imperial gallons.

Jeez sounds like hydrometers are a leetle too fragile...maybe I'll just stick with the candy thermometer and sheeting method!

This year has been maddening. Put in spiles in late Feb cause forecast looked good. Collected 3.5 gallons (Imp) and boiled it down to about 300mls. Then a cold spell with highs of only -2 the last few days. Trees just waking up and deciding to get on with production now. But then, 2011 was also a little bit of a late-starting year and I recall a similar cold snap into the run that shut things down for a few days.

For fun here's a shot of my 10 best batches from 2011: http://www.dpchallenge.com/image.php?IMAGE_ID=1056827

[happy thoughts]

@ galena Your syrup looks so beautiful. Love the colors :) And good job on the updates. Now you need to add it in French for your French speaking fellow citizens:lol:

Have a great season!

[Galena]

@ galena Your syrup looks so beautiful. Love the colors :) And good job on the updates. Now you need to add it in French for your French speaking fellow citizens:lol:

Have a great season!

Figured it out at 3.80 for US gallons, is that right? Or is it 3.75 or 3.78...anyway...more pretty pictures coming later and much better ones. Thanks...or dare I write Mercy buckets? Quoi?! Moi, ecrier dans Quebecois Francais? Zut alors! Ma francais c'est tres terrible, CBoyer et ami will be rolling their yeux at this...merde. :lol:

[happy thoughts]

LOL galena. Are you kidding me? merde indeed lol. I've publicly admitted I can barely balance my checkbook :o This AM when I eyeballed your numbers I just googled "convert imperial gallon to us gallon" and voila! (keeping it French) there was a handy convertor that did the calculations.

[DonMcJr]

Boil a pot of water right before you are going to boil turn it to syrup. Whatever temp the water comes to a full boil add 7.5 degrees and that should be syrup. Also a Digital Thermometer is easier to use....

The hydrometer is nice and will tell you for sure but if you following the above you will be really close.

[CBOYER]

Thanks...or dare I write Mercy buckets? Quoi?! Moi, ecrier dans Quebecois Francais? Zut alors! Ma francais c'est tres terrible, CBoyer et ami will be rolling their yeux at this...merde. :lol:

Yes terrible Franglish....

Quoi? écrire en français pour les Québécois? Zut alors! (it is more european french)
Mon français est terrible...
CBoyer et mes amis vont avoir les yeux au ciel a cette....merde !

Syrup Hydrometer is around 13$ in BMR or Coop. you dont need sap hydrometer. it is very easy to use. to dont break them, always put it in a plastic pot filled with water between test (like a cleaned mayonaise pot).

[Galena]

Yes terrible Franglish....

Quoi? écrire en français pour les Québécois? Zut alors! (it is more european french)
Mon français est terrible...
CBoyer et mes amis vont avoir les yeux au ciel a cette....merde ![QUOTE=CBOYER;211880]

Thanks for the corrections! But I did warn you...that's what spending 6 1/2 yrs in BC does to you, where you are much more likely to have to be fluent in Mandarin than French. C'est la vie. FWIW I can read and understand basic French, it's writing and speaking it where I fall flat! Anyway, please don't take offense, I'm just having fun with the whole ignorant Anglo thing. You and anyone else are free to join in :-)

[QUOTE=CBOYER;211880]...Syrup Hydrometer is around 13$ in BMR or Coop. you dont need sap hydrometer. it is very easy to use. to dont break them, always put it in a plastic pot filled with water between test (like a cleaned mayonaise pot).

And thanks too for the further info on the hydrometer, I definitely might get one...we'll see.

[Maplehobbyist]

How do you determine when syrup is finished?
A thermometer is used to tell when the temperature is high enough to indicate that the syrup is finished. This temperature will be 7.1 degrees F above the boiling point of water at that place and at that time. Since the boiling point of water varies, depending on atmospheric pressure, it must be computed at least once a day. A density of 66.7 degrees Brix is reached at the above mentioned temperature.

I see many people in this thread saying 7.5 degrees above the boiling point but this quote comes from the FAQ at the UVM Maple website (http://library.uvm.edu/maple/faq) that it should be 7.1 degrees. Is this old info on the website? Has the density required for syrup changed and the temps been adjusted for that? Or is the difference in density between the two temps not noticeable?

[CBOYER]

as per the new international standards, Maple syrup must have a minimum of 66 brix up to 68.9 brix. Temperature of +7°f will give you the minimum 66 brix required, and +7.5°c will be in around 68 brix. i dont like to go over 68 brix, it will cause some cristal formation.

[happy thoughts]

I see many people in this thread saying 7.5 degrees above the boiling point but this quote comes from the FAQ at the UVM Maple website (http://library.uvm.edu/maple/faq) that it should be 7.1 degrees. Is this old info on the website? Has the density required for syrup changed and the temps been adjusted for that? Or is the difference in density between the two temps not noticeable?

That source seems like a general info piece for the public. I think that info is wrong and may not have even written by someone that actually makes syrup. I say that because of what they say here.....


"A thermometer is used to tell when the temperature is high enough to indicate that the syrup is finished. This temperature will be 7.1 degrees F above the boiling point of water at that place and at that time."

No one that makes syrup commercially will tell you a thermometer indicates when syrup is done. They'd use a hydrometer. The info as cboyer stated is correct to the best of my knowledge. +7.1F will not get you to the density required for VT standards which is higher than the 66 brix minimum required elsewhere.

The following quote is from a source at cornell on syrup grading...

http://maple.dnr.cornell.edu/pubs/NYMapleGrading.pdf


I recently attended the New England Maple Grading School in New Hampshire and came away with a better understanding of just how confusing this whole issue of maple grading can be. Since many states and provinces were represented there, our first task was to understand the different regulations. The state and province regulations vary
significantly and so do the definitions....

Even the trusted thermometer cannot seem to give a universally accepted syrup product. Not that the thermometer is wrong, the standards for finished syrup density differs from place to place. In New York, syrup is of legal density when at or above 66% sugar or 66º Brix at 68º F. That would require a finish temperature of 7.1º F over the boiling point of water. In Vermont, the lower limit is 66.9% sugar or 66.9º Brix at 68º F, this would require a minimum finish temperature of 7.46º F over the boiling point of water."

As I understand it, the higher brix of VT syrup gives it a more pleasant mouth feel but is also more expensive to produce. If you're selling syrup higher brix is going to decrease the volume of syrup you produce. If your state minimum is 66 brix you're going to want to get as close to it as you can. If you're making it for yourself you're probably going to want what they serve in VT :). Also since temp is more difficult to use to determine when syrup is syrup, imho it is better to err on the side of thicker syrup than thinner because syrup below 66 brix is more prone to spoil in storage.

[Galena]

Hey all

Seeing that images are kept kinda small on this site, and I have perfectly good easier-to-see images on another site, I've set up this link to a folder where I have already posted some pix from this year. If you scroll down below the images you can read my comments in the Photographer's Comments area, so you know what you're looking at.

https://www.dpchallenge.com/portfolio_mgr.php?collection_id=41009

ETA: Aw poo, the linky's not working properly...will fix it when I get home. Apologies.

[maplehillbros7179]

boil water and syrup is 7 degrees past