Bacteria ????

[Harken]

What is this white, clotted substance forming in my boiling sap ? The raw sap tastes ok, so does the concentrated sap. Steam smells a little bit different. This is my 1st year of syrup making - this stuff looks nasty !!

[MaplePancakeMan]

i honestly don't know exactly what it is, but have you finished the stuff to syrup yet? last week i boiled and sap tasted fine, and tasted fine while i was boiling but finished product was close to buddy syrup which has a bitter aftertaste. I use it for cooking. is the white stuff like a film on the top? i'm not sure but could it be the yeasts of the late stage sap that helps in the fermenation? someone obviously knows more than me on here so they will help but thats my guess

[Harken]

I have not finished this batch to syrup yet. The "stuff" is whiteish in colour, appears to be sort of stringy when suspended in the boiling sap, but when I remove some to look at, it easily dissolves when touched.

[Johnny Cuervo]

Thats how my last batch looked, rolling white strings. Well it tasted like swamp water when finished!.
Let us know.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Sounds like it is a sign to call it a year.

[mountainvan]

Never!!!!!!

[powerdub]

It is happening to a lot of us this year. 802maple will also agree there is a lot of off flavor this year. I don't know if the white foam has anything to do with it or not but I had the same thing happen. We were making all dark A and B until things froze up for a couple of days and then it went right to fancy. That is when the aweful taste came and never went away. I can't explain it and have not seen it in the 25+ years I have been making syrup. I guess that is what keeps this darn hobby so interesting.

[markcasper]

As long as yout talking off-flavor. Did anyone notice their flue pans get white as snow? I'm talking about the scale (build-up) on the sides of the pan. Usually by the end of the season my flue pan is a nasty black, not this year. It looks as if all you ever boiled was pure water and the resulting white from the lime.
I have never seen this in 23 years of sugaring! And this off flavor. Its not buddy, its just some weird off flavor that I have never seen or smelled before.This year is no doubt making even the experts scratch there heads.

[Dave Y]

The syrup this year has been terrible. I didn't make anything better than Dark amber although the flavor was good. Last sunday my syurp went to light and has an odd taste and smells like cooked cabbage.

[Sugar Daddy's]

I ran into the same thing with the with the white foam and the off taste, I made 18 gallons for my first time this year and the last 7 gallons had that off taste. Sort of dissapointing!