Red Maple Syrup Preference?

[Andy VT]

I guess I've got red maple on the brain. It is for absolutely no practical reason.
But I saw an ad for maple syrup somewhere... I think either craigslist or marketplace... definitely by a hobby producer. It said it was syrup from red maple trees as though that is a selling point.

Is that a thing? Do any of you prefer, or run into folks who say they prefer, the syrup from red maple trees? If I were a betting man, I would bet that studies on flavor have been done and that they showed no perceptible difference in flavor, but that sort of thing doesn't necessarily change opinions, perception, or lore!

Just curious.

[DrTimPerkins]

Is that a thing? Do any of you prefer, or run into folks who say they prefer, the syrup from red maple trees? If I were a betting man, I would bet that studies on flavor have been done and that they showed no perceptible difference in flavor, but that sort of thing doesn't necessarily change opinions, perception, or lore!

You'd win the bet...at least on the part where studies have been completed recently by Dr. Abby van den Berg. The flavor studies haven't yet been presented/published. Sorry...no previews of coming attractions (should be soon).

Red maple is a great example of folklore vs science. For decades it was said that red maple produced less sap and less sweet sap, budded earlier, tasted different...etc, etc. Much of that is just myth (at least on vacuum). However, to really do the work to answer that question we had to set up an entirely new portion of our woods with about 500 red maple trees and 500 sugar maple trees all intermingled and run two independent tubing systems to keep the sap from each species apart. This meant that in addition to the separate tubing systems, we had to build a road and get power to a new sap collection shed, acquire and install pumps/releasers and the means to measure sap production from both systems, have two completely separate tanks for the sap from each group of trees, and then transport the sap separately to the research sugarhouse. It then had to be RO'd separately (with an RO wash/rinse between the different sap), and then boiled in identical evaporators. Finally, collect, filter, and standardize the syrup and arrange and conduct the taste panels. A lot of effort and a huge cost to do it...but now we finally have real answers. Several of the myths about red maple myth have been busted so far.

[blissville maples]

You'd win the bet...at least on the part where studies have been completed recently by Dr. Abby van den Berg. The flavor studies haven't yet been presented/published. Sorry...no previews of coming attractions (should be soon).

Red maple is a great example of folklore vs science. For decades it was said that red maple produced less sap and less sweet sap, budded earlier, tasted different...etc, etc. Much of that is just myth (at least on vacuum). However, to really do the work to answer that question we had to set up an entirely new portion of our woods with about 500 red maple trees and 500 sugar maple trees all intermingled and run two independent tubing systems to keep the sap from each species apart. This meant that in addition to the separate tubing systems, we had to build a road and get power to a new sap collection shed, acquire and install pumps/releasers and the means to measure sap production from both systems, have two completely separate tanks for the sap from each group of trees, and then transport the sap separately to the research sugarhouse. It then had to be RO'd separately (with an RO wash/rinse between the different sap), and then boiled in identical evaporators. Finally, collect, filter, and standardize the syrup and arrange and conduct the taste panels. A lot of effort and a huge cost to do it...but now we finally have real answers. Several of the myths about red maple myth have been busted so far.

Can't wait to read it!