Fermented syrup recovery ?

[adironmaple]

At the end of last season we got to the point on our last boil that we couldn't push syrup thru press. We were tired (34 boils) and our main business was heating up so we just shut down and barreled all the contents of the syrup pans topped off with a few gallons from flue pan and put a cap on it. We were thinking we maybe could reboil this year to salvage this close up syrup. I took the the cap off yesterday, it looks good but has a fermented odor. Today will be our last boil for the season, can we reboil this fermented syrup to recover it?

[Michael Greer]

It will likely not be worth your time. That fermented aroma is the yeast converting all your sugar into alcohol. Don't throw it away. Put it into some sort of container that can be air-locked and let it ferment in a warm (room temperature) place. It will bubble away for a few weeks until it's converted all the sugar. When the bubbling stops completely, decant it into a clean barrel or big crock, add a vinegar "mother" and cover it with a cloth. at cool basement-like temperatures it will convert all the alcohol into vinegar. It'll take all summer, but a nice Maple vinegar is worth twice the price of Maple Syrup.

[upsmapleman]

I think it will work for you. Have done it a few times.