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Thread: Checking what VT sugar makers are doing

  1. #2551
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    Sep 2010
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    Vermont
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    Sap is slowing down and I am going to pull the plug later today. I thought yesterday would be better but it never really took off. I have to wait for some numbers to come in and then I will post it. This has been one of my best years for sure. The new electric releaser was like a gift from God. It worked flawless. It's now time to focus on apple trees.

    Spud

  2. #2552
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    Apr 2015
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    Bakersfield, VT
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    Yesterday turned out to be pretty good here, followed by another very light freeze in the lower sections this morning.
    flow has picked up a little in the last few hours but the strong south wind is definitely keeping things down. I'll go till the buyer says no more.
    4700 hundred taps
    7.5 hp Airtech Liquid
    2- 1.5 hp CDL electric releasers

  3. #2553
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    Apr 2012
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    poultney vermont
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    Quote Originally Posted by tcross View Post
    We ended our season last night. i believe my red maples are starting to bud or some have budded. half way through our boil last night we got a very nutty aroma from the steam. syrup still tasted as it should. about 3/4 the way through the boil we started getting the dirty sock smell... so we stopped! it was a decent year, but busy and quick! i believe if i didn't have the red maples, i'd probably be alright to continue. no real sign of budding on those. we still have a foot of snow in the woods! Let the clean up begin! good luck to all of those still at it!
    I have wondered this about the reds, we had that dirty sock smell couple years ago after an early tapping season but this year didn't seem to show up, only our last 15 gallons was sourish. I think it's Russ from New Hampshire taps mostly reds and he claims that they don't ever have an issue as they do flower before they Bud unlike sugar maples. Last year, to try to something, i even went out and pulled all my reds well keeping the sugars online and that didn't seem to change anything of course the tanks for pretty nasty.

    I certainly was not trying to clog up the forum and frankly
    Maybe instead of focusing on the things that I said read back three pages and understand how this conversation even came about. Instead of chiming in at the very end. Because all I remember saying was "you guys will be sugaring till May with the CVS"...... Then somebody wants to question my math and what I make for syrup when the sugar bushes are un-comparable and aside for my father boiling with me for 3 to 4 hours a day so I can run out if I have to to collect, I run 3500 taps on four different releasers without a stitch your help if I'm lucky I might have somebody to turn the RO on or off for me.....so I don't expect to make .6 gallons per tap although it would be nice .45 for me is ecstatic because it tells me my less than par trees are lower than that and my larger trees are over likely way over a half a gallon Pertap but I will never know because they all go in the same line and tank. I know a 3 to 4 inch red maple does not putting out half a gallon per tap it'd be nice if they did!!
    Quote Originally Posted by tcross View Post
    We ended our season last night. i believe my red maples are starting to bud or some have budded. half way through our boil last night we got a very nutty aroma from the steam. syrup still tasted as it should. about 3/4 the way through the boil we started getting the dirty sock smell... so we stopped! it was a decent year, but busy and quick! i believe if i didn't have the red maples, i'd probably be alright to continue. no real sign of budding on those. we still have a foot of snow in the woods! Let the clean up begin! good luck to all of those still at it!
    I have wondered this about the reds, we had that dirty sock smell couple years ago after an early tapping season but this year didn't seem to show up, only our last 15 gallons was sourish. I think it's Russ from New Hampshire taps mostly reds and he claims that they don't ever have an issue as they do flower before they Bud unlike sugar maples. Last year, to try to something, i even went out and pulled all my reds well keeping the sugars online and that didn't seem to change anything of course the tanks for pretty nasty.

    I certainly was not trying to clog up the forum and frankly
    Maybe instead of focusing on the things that I said read back three pages and understand how this conversation even came about. Instead of chiming in at the very end. Because all I remember saying was "you guys will be sugaring till May with the CVS"...... Then somebody wants to question my math and what I make for syrup when the sugar bushes are un-comparable and aside for my father boiling with me for 3 to 4 hours a day so I can run out if I have to to collect, I run 3500 taps on four different releasers without a stitch your help if I'm lucky I might have somebody to turn the RO on or off for me.....so I don't expect to make .6 gallons per tap although it would be nice .45 for me is ecstatic because it tells me my less than par trees are lower than that and my larger trees are over likely way over a half a gallon Pertap but I will never know because they all go in the same line and tank. I know a 3 to 4 inch red maple does not putting out half a gallon per tap it'd be nice if they did!!

    Hhmm mmm mmm--- spud just for the hell of it ream couple holes or drill a new one in just one tree and watch what happens, can then see a fully open tap hole in April!!

    Spud no hard feelings I get going like a runaway train and I do like to share some of the things I see
    Last edited by blissville maples; 04-18-2019 at 01:05 PM.
    18x30 sugarshack
    5100 taps high vac
    3x10 inferno with steampan
    7'' wes fab filter press
    10'' cdl air filter press
    D&G 3 post reverse osmosis w/recirculation

  4. #2554
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    Apr 2013
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    Northeast Vermont
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    i guess i'm sort of assuming it is the red maples that are causing the stink when boiling... however i honestly don't really know what it was. the buds on my treeline are very much swollen however the sugar maple buds aren't even visible yet. i have about a 50/50 split. in years past i've taken the reds off and continued. for whatever reason i didn't this year. i've never experienced the smell... only heard about it. my syrup tasted typical of a dark robust even with the smell coming off the steam. guess the only thing i do know is the smell is what made my wife and i decide to call the season. i'm ready to take the fishing rod and golf clubs out either way!
    Awfully thankful for an understanding wife!

    “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.”
    - Vincent “Vince” Lombardi

    Good luck to all!

  5. #2555
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    May 2009
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    UVM Proctor Maple Research Center, Underhill Ctr, VT
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    Quick check in. Season is over. Last boil today and boiled out the pans. Season provisional total is 3,340 gal syrup or 0.65 gal/tap. Five boils.
    Last edited by DrTimPerkins; 04-18-2019 at 07:12 PM.
    Dr. Tim Perkins
    UVM Proctor Maple Research Ctr
    http://www.uvm.edu/~pmrc
    https://mapleresearch.org
    Timothy.Perkins@uvm.edu

  6. #2556
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    Nov 2010
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    Barnet, VT
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    Made 15 gallons of very dark. Froze good last night but did not run great. Not sure if it was strong south wind or if the trees are done. Still running. See what tomorrow brings. Still no off flavor or smells.
    William
    950 taps
    3 X 12 Thor pans on a Brian Arch
    CDL 600 expandable

  7. #2557
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    Mar 2019
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    Middlesex, Vermont
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    Quote Originally Posted by DrTimPerkins View Post
    Quick check in. Season is over. Last boil today and boiled out the pans. Season provisional total is 3,340 gal syrup or 0.65 gal/tap. Five boils.
    That is freakin awesome! I wanted to comment on the videos you had posted, couple of which I had seen previously. Amazing to be able to concentrate that high and boil that infrequently.
    Big question is why wouldn’t anyone want to feed dozens of cords of wood day after day into a dragons mouth though...


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Mead Maple "It's for the kids..."
    Paul Cerminara
    2019 - First season ever
    -Goal: 3 gallons
    -Season Total: 7.5 gallons - pulled taps after running out of firewood and time
    2020
    Built 2'x8' Oil Fired with Thor drop flue pans
    -Goal: 20 gallons
    -Season Total: 55 gallons

  8. #2558
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    Dec 2015
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    Weston, CT
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    Quote Originally Posted by DrTimPerkins View Post
    Ah...spring in Vermont.

    Just a few short points.

    I'm the first to admit that I don't know everything about maple.
    NO ... you are closer to the last!

    But that's OK cause you do know more then anybody about maple, and thanks for all your help, research and innovation that works.

  9. #2559
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    Apr 2009
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    Bristol, VT
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mead Maple View Post
    Big question is why wouldn’t anyone want to feed dozens of cords of wood day after day into a dragons mouth though...


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Because then you can call your syrup "reverse-osmosis free" or "traditional"...

    On the subject of red-maples causing buddy syrup, that's an interesting one with lots of opinions on the matter. I tap about 15% red maple and have made good syrup when the red maple buds had visually swollen. I have also made buddy syrup when they were visually swollen so my experience has been mixed. I have heard some sugarmakers say they just shut down and stop giving sap before the flavor will be affected but I'm still getting sap from red maples on vacuum and they are in full on flower stage. I have also heard sugarmakers say you should pull taps on red maples early. How and when trees bud and impacts to syrup flavor seems to generate lots of debate amongst sugarmakers.

    My personal approach is to boil until the syrup is no longer table grade as it's just about impossible to visually determine when a tree's level of "budding" will negatively impact the syrup flavor IMO. But I tend to be someone that relies more on scientific evidence than my personal intuition.

    I turned the vacuum back on yesterday to pull taps and as is usually the case, the flow picked right back up to about 1 gpt/24hours level. Most tapholes are still very productive, though many south side taps have shut down. I wouldn't want to try to make syrup with the sap though...

    I also was able to get most of the last syrup we made through the filter press. It's a little ropey it seems, probably due to concentrate spoiling in the head tank towards the end of the last boil. But it filtered so I'll trade it for next seasons taps with my C grade buyer.

    I love this time of year. The wildflowers are coming up, the birds are singing and it's refreshing to work outside.
    About 750 taps on High Vac.
    2.5 x 8 Intens-O-Fire
    Airtech 3 hp LR Pump
    Springtech Elite 500 RO
    14 x 24 Timber Frame SugarHouse
    16 x 22 Sap Shed w/ 1500 gal. + 700 gal. tanks
    www.littlehogbackfarm.com

  10. #2560
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    Jan 2006
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    Oneida NY
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    It's now my understanding that on reds the buddy syrup doesn't start until the leaf buds pop, that comes after the flowers. I also think it was Dr Tim who said they will dry up before the leaf buds open.
    Dave Klish, I recently ordered a 2x6 wood fired evaporator from A&A Sheet Metal which I will be converting to oil fired
    Now have solar, 2x6 finish pan, 5 bank 7x7 filter press, large water jacketed bottler, and tankless water heater.
    Recently bought another Gingerich RO, this one was a 125, but a second membrane was added thus is a 250, like I had.
    After running a 2x3, a 2x6, 3x8 tapping from 79 taps up to 1320 all woodfired, now I'm going to a 2x6 oil fired and a 200-425 taps.

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