sour sap

[plabarr]

We had about 200 gallons of sap start to turn sour today in the heat, is it ok to boil it still? Will the syrup turn out with an off flavor or just darker?

[adk1]

Try boiling a small pot on the stove if it smells bad it's too late

[Russell Lampron]

More than likely it will make bitter or ropey syrup. Try boiling some of it down to syrup and check it to see if it is ropey. If it is ropey it will come off of the scoop or spoon in strings. If it's not ropey taste it. You can't always tell if it is bad by the smell when boiling.

[Midwestguy]

EDITED POST! I boiled some late sap last week and it was a bit cloudy, not water-clear like the early sap. I noticed that when we pumped it from the collection tank into the insulated SS storage tank through a milk strainer pad, the pad needed to be changed 5 or 6 times for app. 210 gallons. There seemed to be minute particles on the pad, enough to slow the straining process. Though the finished syrup isn't "ropey" (I'm guessing what that would look like), it is quite dark with a strong maple flavor but no "bitterness". It's about 3 or 4 shades DARKER than my early syrup and, rather than the sediment settling to the bottom, a thicker, darker product rises to the top in 1 gallon glass jars. What can anyone tell me about this, I'm kinda new at the game...

[saphound]

EDITED POST! I boiled some late sap last week and it was a bit cloudy, not water-clear like the early sap. I noticed that when we pumped it from the collection tank into the insulated SS storage tank through a milk strainer pad, the pad needed to be changed 5 or 6 times for app. 210 gallons. There seemed to be minute particles on the pad, enough to slow the straining process. Though the finished syrup isn't "ropey" (I'm guessing what that would look like), it is quite dark with a strong maple flavor but no "bitterness". It's about 3 or 4 shades DARKER than my early syrup and, rather than the sediment settling to the bottom, a thicker, darker product rises to the top in 1 gallon glass jars. What can anyone tell me about this, I'm kinda new at the game...
If it's for your own use and you like the taste of it, eat it. As for what's rising to the the top, that's a new one on me. Has it been kept cold? All I can think of is maybe it's a mold. Whatever it is, if still in your gallon jars I'd make something up like a pool skimmer, skim it out, reheat to around 185 and use it up, as long as it tastes good.

[Midwestguy]

Thanks for the input, Saphound. It had been kept cool for 3 or 4 days after finishing. Definitely not a mold. I skimmed it off with a ladle. It remained separated and skimmed off easily. The syrup tastes just fine and we canned it this morning at 190 deg. The color is about like corn syrup.