what causes the odor from the steam when boiling if it's not due to the tree budding? i am curious to know because i can't think of what else would cause the steam to smell. when the smell first popped up, i was boiling fresh sap that was still coming in. it tasted normal and was crystal clear. bulk tank and feed tank were both cleaned that morning and evaporator cleaned the evening prior. like i mentioned before, my syrup still tasted just fine, but the odor from the steam started to increase rapidly after the first hour ... hour and a half so we quit before i ruined the batch and wasted wood. it's never happened to me before, so it would be kind of nice to know what the cause was. if that's even possible.