December Journal 2018

[GeneralStark]

What no December Journal? Been real busy around here wrapping up the farmer's market season and putting the final touches on my sugarhouse addition. We had a great market season and have sold almost our whole record 2018 crop. Should have enough to get through the holiday shipping season but we'll see. We have a baby arriving any day now and I'm pretty excited to meet him or her. They'll be in the woods and sugarhouse with us this winter learning one of the family businesses. This is the first season in a while where we're just maintaining and not changing much. Already have a good coating of snow in the woods from the November storms. I was fortunately able to clear the lines of blow down before the snow but I suspect there may be more to do after how many limbs came down with the heavy snow. At this point I'm planning to tap in January again this season unless it stays real cold. I hope everyone else is enjoying the early onset of winter.

[ennismaple]

We've been busy the last few weekends trying to get all our to do list items finished before the snow gets too deep and it's miserably cold.

The 400+ taps we replaced (10-year old tubing) have been stretched and the droplines cut in. I probably ran close to 2x the lateral lines for the same number of taps so we probably average 4-5 taps per line now. I can't wait to see the tsunami of sap coming from that hill this year! We still have a bunch of saddle manifolds to get installed to hook them all up but that project is almost done.

The 1200 feet of new mainline wire is up and tensioned and the vacuum line has been loosely run from the new pump to the remote releaser. This one needed to wait until we had ice on the beaver flood to allow us to run back and forth. All that is left is tensioning the mainline and wire tie it to the steel. We should get way more sap out of that woods on high vac this year compared to the dairy pump that was used before.

We got 2 more drums emptied, reheated and filled for a couple of fundraising orders. With 6 of us helping out we managed to fill, cap and label a drum of mostly 250mL, 500mL and 1L glass in an hour! We had quite the assembly line rolling non stop. We should have enough syrup to get us through until March but that depends on when the sap actually starts to run.

[maple flats]

I'm still wondering if I'll run out before the new season. At this point I have just 3 barrels of Dark left. I have gone thru 11 out of 14 barrels of dark, but in the same time, less than 1 barrel of amber. My customers just like dark.
With what is left (my barrels are 26.5 gal ea.). When I fill my next bourbon barrel that will use 10 gal leaving 2 barrels + 16.5 gal dark.
My November sales were by far my best ever by about 30%. If I run out I don't think I'll buy more bulk, but I'm not sure. I certainly won't buy another barrel more Amber if that sells out, might consider a 5 gal jug if the taste is real close to mine. I was making my bourbon barrel aged syrup using Very Dark left from the 2017 season, I made no very dark in '18. Thus my next batch of BB syrup will be made using Dark.

[unc23win]

Congratulations to you on the baby General!

This is my first year relying on some help on the farm and it has been great. We got a late start on our expansion project (no thanks to all the rain) but we are now making some pretty good progress. I anticipate that we will be working on it right threw the season. I've been doing some excavating (back hoe) behind the sugarhouse making room for our new sap tank and leveling for an addition for the tanks whenever we get to it. Hoping to prep the side for an addition as well.

Inside the sugarhouse we just about got the piggy back and new ro ready.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Congrats on the newborn General!

We are way behind in the big woods but fortunately the owner doesn't want to do as much as we have the past 3 years. This year is just maintaining and a bare minimum approach. All this snow in the woods won't help but we'll get it. Work on our operation is coming good, we'll be installing the hood soon for the evaporator and hooking up the oil/electrical lines.

[bmbmkr]

It's been a real wet year down here in Southern Ohio. We attended the KY Maple School last Saturday, came home with new knowledge and another 500' of mainline and enough tubing & taps for our 200+ expansion in 2019. Been rain/snow mix here since the weekend, been in the woods clearing wind falls, cutting brush, running new tubing and rearranging last years for better flow down the hill. Tap density is low in parts of my woods, hard to get more than 10 taps on some of my 3/16 laterals, but they all have a good drop over the bench down to the mainlines. Excited for January, even though I still have a ton of work to do to the sugar camp and setting up new collection tanks. We are shooting for 400+ this year.

[maple flats]

If all goes according to plan I should have between 900 and 1000 taps. While I did 1320 a few years ago, whatever I end up with this year will likely be at or near the biggest I'll ever have again. I sold one lease but maximizing the other lease as well as around the sugarhouse. I think I'll have about 300 at the sugarhouse and about 700 on my lease. Also changing the vacuum pump at the lease. That was on a vacuum tank and held to 19" max. This year I'm adding a releaser, bigger pump and should be able to get 24-25" I hope. Then maybe next year get a real pump for the lease to get 27-28"+. The lease is at 1400' elevation at the tank

[DrTimPerkins]

Then maybe next year get a real pump for the lease to get 27-28"+. The lease is at 1400' elevation at the tank


27" might be doable -- 28" will be considerably tougher given your elevation, but you won't know until you try. Good luck!

[buckeye gold]

Been working on Tubing and the evaporator. I replumbed the air manifold and added a variable speed control. I been fixing tubing every nice day. Man I have a ton of damage from blow downs and chews. I just pulled one line and ran it all new. I hope every year is not like this.

[maple flats]

My sugarhouse, which is at 450' elevation gets 27" if the leaks are in check. That is on an old BB4 pump. If it drops to 25" at the releaser I look for leaks

[spud]

Congratulations General on your new baby. Truly a gift from God during this Christmas season. I hope you get a .6 again this year. I'm so jealous. haha.

Spud

[wnybassman]

Took a 4-wheeler ride down to the property yesterday and saw that I still had 80-100 gallons of frozen water in the milk tank. Went down this afternoon and carefully got that ice out of the tank while it was somewhat warm out and not stuck to the metal. I feel better about that! :D

Also, eyeballed most of the tubing and saw no major damage to repair before the season. I'll walk all the lines after the holidays checking for chews and other damage, and put new taps on all the drops at the same time.

Made about 10 pounds of sugar yesterday too

[maple flats]

I'm doing some work around the sugarhouse, will tap that first, then between Christmas and New Years we start doing the lease. If all show up, I have 4 "volunteers", my oldest son, my oldest grandson, a close friend of my oldest son (he is working this year on my maple just to learn, then next year he wants to start his own) plus my brother in law. That's the most help I've had in about 4-5 years, back when I hired 3 college kids, all good workers from tapping thru the end of maple season, working around their classes and study time.
The extra help will be great, the lease did not get tapped this past season, thus it has 2 years worth of damages/trees/branch down. That in addition to changing the vacuum set up at the lease. Before it was on a vacuum tank and was held to 19" to protect the vacuum tank. This year I'm putting a double vertical releaser and swapping the pump from an Alamo 30 to an Alamo 75-100. Taking the 6.5 HP Honda off it and swapping it to a Honda 9HP? (270 CC). Going from 1 gas tank 4.5 gal to 2 at 4.5 gal each. Would like to get 400+ gal of syrup, time will tell.

[wnybassman]

Spent a few hours in the main woods and got all the new taps installed on the drops, roughly 140 there. Along my pump-out pipe to the road, I have it attached a pretty large black locust tree that has really taken on a lean the last couple years. The roots around the tree really move during the wind and it is a matter of time before it comes down. I REALLY need to move this pump out line to a post or something on the other side of the tree so when it comes down it won't take the pipe with it. Because you know it will happen at the worst possible time! I'll have some time right after the first of the year to get that done.

19046

[Russell Lampron]

I finally finished cutting and splitting wood for my OWB yesterday. I'll finally have a chance to get into the woods next weekend and start getting ready for sugaring season. After a slow start the sales for the month picked up and this is going to be one of my best, if not the best ever.

Merry Christmas!

[maple flats]

December sales for me have been my best ever, by a lot. I will have to get my final sales figure from my one retail outlet, but I'm guessing I did at least 30% over my best previous, counting sales from my home, online and that one retail outlet. There I have 12' of shelf space and I had to re-stock 2x each week, and 3x last week. Still, by a good amount, I sold more units of bourbon barrel aged maple syrup than all grades of maple syrup combined. That does well for the bottom line, I take syrup that would sell for an average of just over $60/gal (averaging all sizes) and turn it into $225+ /gal value added syrup. Before I started making the bourbon barrel aged maple syrup my best sales were when a customer bought 4 gal, or 6-10 half gal or 6 qts at a time. Now I have customers buying some of that but then they buy a nice quantity of the BB aged maple syrup too. I think it helps too, for gaining new customers that my retail outlet keeps samples out of the BB aged syrup and each grade syrup too.
Next Thursday my brother in law (BIL) and I are going up to my lease to assess the damage. That was not tapped this past season because of my cancer surgery, thus it has 2 years damages to repair. Then on Saturday I have 6 volunteers coming to start those repairs and change drops..

[wnybassman]

Made a plate of candy this morning for the dessert table at our dinner later today. Only the second time making it.

19050

[MapleMark753]

Made some Cream and some Candy for family members. I do both infrequently... and the Cream was too soft the first time...took it back to syrup and did it right the second time. Candy was the opposite, too hard the first time, took it back to syrup and did it right the second time. I do like to make both, and don't mind "learning lessons" but the time it takes is a bit annoying. lol...
Others probably know this already, but as long as its not burnt or scorched the first time, its not too hard to bring the stuff back to syrup and do a re-do.
I'm ready to tap now as most all supplies are in. At least here, days like today with sun and no wind make me want to tap RIGHT NOW but we'll wait a bit.
take care, Mark

[minehart gap]

My wife made maple chocolate chip cookies for everyone and a few of the guys had maple old fashioned's. My son started the maple clothing line for our syrup "business". He got a really cool sweat shirt made. Really neat.

Merry Christmas everyone.
Hope we all have a wonderful 2019 maple season.

[Paddymountain]

Have been taking advantage of the nice weather the last few days. I have all my tubing done out along the road. Just need to look over
the vacuum at the house. Two weeks ago we finished the ceiling in our kitchen area with ship lapped white pine.
Also installed two LED flush mount lights. Backed it up with one inch Styrofoam. It will be great to not have any
water dripping while bottling. I had done a few things to my evaporator late this summer. Hoping to squeeze out a couple more
GPH. Very close to being ready. Only around 50 buckets this year.

[maple flats]

I walked my lease today. This is the one I did not get to tap last season because of my health issue. I was pleasantly surprised. Just checked the mains and maybe 30% of the laterals. So far much less damage than 2 years ago. Also decided how I will change at the tank and add more vacuum. Will use the existing chassis on the Surge pump. Will just unbolt the Alamo 30 and bolt on the Alamo 75-100. Then will put on a new 9HP Honda in place of the 6.5 HP Honda. Then I'll rework the remote gas tank stand. It had 1 tank of 4.5 gal, the new will have 2 tanks that size, plumbed together for 9 gal to feed the 9 hp engine. That Alamo had the drippers opened up, if that seems too slow I'll put on some after market drippers for more oil.
I've been making drops, want at least 400 ready for my crew coming on Sat. Then the following weekend is the maple conf. and the following Saturday maybe finish the drops and lateral repairs, to tap if the weather looks right during the following week. Lots to do. In the week days I'll get the taps around the sugarhouse ready. There plan the 225 I had last year and about 75 new. The lease should end up with 650-700. Going to shoot for 24" vacuum this year on the lease and 27" at the sugarhouse. Then for 2020 maybe a better vacuum pump at the lease to try for 27" there too.

[Russell Lampron]

I finally had a chance to get into my woods today. I was really happy to find practically no damage. I found 2 broken fittings and a few limbs on laterals but that was all. I had to cut one tree out of one of my roads but it was far away from any of my lines and did no damage. Tomorrow I'll be cutting brush! Some places have been overgrown with hemlock saplings.

[maple flats]

I didn't make it to my lease today. But I did make between 450-500 drops, I now have to wait til the NYS Maple Conference where I will pick up 400 more Zap Bac taps I ordered. On Monday I am now going to work in my lease. Fix laterals and put in new drops. The lease needs all new drops, my sugarhouse woods has about 125 Zap Bac taps with one year, the rest were all new drops last year, thus just new taps on those. I plan the Zap Bac I'm picking up next week to go there for up to 175. The rest will go on the lease.
I hope everyone enjoys a great season.

[Sugarmaker]

Folks,
Happy New Year and may the 2019 sugaring season be productive for you!
Regards,
Chris

[maple flats]

Last day of 2018. I have a crew of 6 going to work my bush today.
May everyone have a safe and prosperous new year!

[maple flats]

Only had 5 working today. We were fixing laterals and installing new drops/taps. I started with a 30 minute demo and training session, since only one had ever done it before.