Aluminum or Stainless

[Flatlader]

Can you boil sap in aluminum or is stainless the standard? I'm new at this and just starting a small backyard hobby. Made some last year in an aluminum turkey fryer. It tasted great but was very dark. I'm going to boil more this year but hoping for a little insight into equipment. Thanks for any help.

[Ravenseye]

I use an aluminum fryer to help boil it down before it goes into a nice, flat, stainless steel tray. The fryer lets me get a whole lot more sap done even though it's not ideal for surface area. However, since I tend to use the fryer to feed the evaporator pan, I think my syrup is darker as well. This year, I'm going to shoot for smaller batches so that the sap spends less time being heated before I filter and bottle.

[maple flats]

The darkness is not related to aluminum vs. stainless. It is related to everything that happens to the sap between the tree and the finished product. Things like, time, sanitation of equipment, time spent boiling along with other factors. The faster sap is made into syrup, the lighter it will be, the sanitizing of equipment help and the harder it is boiled helps get lighter syrup. However you may want to remember one fact, the darker it is the more maple flavor it has, as long as it is not burnt. While I sell all grades, my sales of dark far outweigh all other grades, at least until I sell out of dark. Mine lean that way so much that I even blend light with extra dark to get more dark.
The aluminum question, yes it can be boiled in aluminum, however some people, myself included can taste the aluminum in the syrup. If that is all you have, you may want to get an SS pot or 2. In my early days I used SS pots I got a Big Lots, they were light weight, but they were SS, later on I got 2 or 3 heavy gauge SS pots from Walmart. While I had SS evaporators from the beginning, I used the SS pots to finish, and then to reheat for filtering. If you are looking for a flat pan I strongly urge you to get SS.

[Tor Haxson]

If you can not afford a stainless flat pan a common beginner rig is to use stainless steel steam pans, or buffet pans or trays, the standard things that go into a buffet table. I found mine used on Craigslist.

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Tor

[buckeye gold]

Let me make one suggestion on SS pots. If you go to buy a pot to cook in don't purchase one of those ultra heavy duty jobs at a kitchen store. They are made to hold up and last over time, but they take a "LOT of heat to bring sap to a boil and it all goes in the metal. That is why evaporator pans are made thin and steam trays work well. Heck go to walmart and buy the thinnest pot you can find. Sure, in two or three seasons you'll burn it up, but you'll save a lot of fuel and time. By the time you ruin it you'll be wanting a pan anyway.

[BillinTennessee]

I am a backyard Syrup guy. I doubt I'll ever produce more than 5 or 6 gallons and it must be done in 1 or 2 gallon batches. I used a large Aluminum Cauldron my first year and I think it did affect the flavor. I switched to all Stainless Steel this year. I am using a 2 feet by 4 feet flat SS Evaporator to boil the sap.
I have learned a couple things.
Bigger isn't always better. For a small producer a large pan has problems too. On one batch I only had 50 Gallons of sap to boil and when I got down to Syrup there was barely any depth to the syrup in the pan. About 1/5 inch and if the pan isn't perfectly level you will get a bare area at one end and it will scorch. It happens fast, too, when it gets that close. You really have to watch it.
It is nice to have all that surface area to evaporate but it can get pretty risky in that last few minutes if you have a really hot fire and not a lot of syrup
I would like to have a smaller pan, perhaps a 2 feet by 2 feet for the smaller batches. It would take longer to boil it down but would be easier to control. Also the draw off spigot is 1/4 inch above the bottom of the pan so the pan must be lifted and tipped to pour out the syrup. Another issue if you are alone. The stuff is Very hot.

I finish in a heavy SS 8 quart pot and it does take longer to boil it down but it also holds the temperature longer when I filter it right before bottling.

[Flatlader]

Thank all for your responses. Amazing how much you can learn in this forum. 2 feet of snow last night here. So today is a plow day. Going to get a couple SS steam pans to boil in. Thanks again for the info.

[Etown Maple Syrup]

I am also a 5 gallon a year producer on a homemade oil tank evaporator. I used aluminum pots to finish my syrup the first year and I believe I could taste the metal in the syrup. The next year I bought a thin walled SS pot to finish. Nothing but Maple flavor, easy heatablitity and clean up. I use 4 SS steam table pans on top of my evap to boil away. The bottoms are black and insides are "seasoned" but they work great and easier to control the boil. Got them on webstaurantstore.com