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Thread: 2019

  1. #61
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
    Location
    Aitkin, MN
    Posts
    71

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    NW Corner of Lake Mille Lacs - planning 3rd cook tomorrow. Grand total of about 390 - 400 gallons on 67(?) taps. Curious to see if this upcoming warm spell will curtail the good runs that we've had.

  2. #62
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Alaska (East Central Minnesota For Sugaring)
    Posts
    302

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bombadil View Post
    My first two batches look good, my 3rd batch formed sugar sand one day after bottling. So that batch will not get sold, I may have been too hot on that batch for the bottling. What temp do you guys bottle the syrup at?
    185-190. I try to bottle right after final filtering without reheating.

  3. #63
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Location
    Oakville, ON
    Posts
    144

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bombadil View Post
    My first two batches look good, my 3rd batch formed sugar sand one day after bottling. So that batch will not get sold, I may have been too hot on that batch for the bottling. What temp do you guys bottle the syrup at?
    Bottle at 185-190. We typically pack a day or two after it's made so has to be reheated. On reheating we try to stay below 195.
    2023 - 130 taps, 90L from 4,000L as of mid March
    2021 - 84 taps, 50L from 2100L
    2020 - 100 taps on buckets, 21L syrup from 2700L so far (FEB 26-Mar 13) and then the pandemic hit! End of our season!
    2019 - 62 taps on buckets, 95L syrop from 3215L sap
    2018 - 62 taps, collecting by hand, 90L syrop from 3200L sap
    2017 - Lapierre Waterloo Small mini pro with 40 taps
    2014 - 2016 40 taps making one or two batches on a 2x6 flat pan over an open arch as it would have been done in 1900

  4. #64
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Marshall, MN
    Posts
    321

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    What an interesting year! (as always)

    In SW MN, the epic snowdrifts made the tapping the most difficult its ever been for me; and then flooding made sap collection at times impossible. But boy this past week the trees really let loose and made up for lost time, thank goodness my RO is humming along! No records here, but looks like we are going to end up solidly in "average" territory for the year. No complaints! Flower buds are opening now so I'm about to start pulling taps. Looking at the potential snowstorm later next week I might leave a few in just to roll the dice. I think those of you farther north may be able to squeeze out another week or two...
    Dan
    -15 years sugaring and counting - hoping to create a tradition my kids will always remember
    -400 taps, mostly buckets (Silver Maples + a few Boxelders just for the heck of it)
    -Custom-built 2x6 evap with Smoky Lake Maple raised flue, boiling in dad's old farm granary, now converted to sugar shack
    -Cobbled-together RO with XLE4040 membrane
    -New in 2021: experimenting with 3/16 tubing & a Shurflo pump.

  5. #65
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Eden Prairie, MN
    Posts
    1,636

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    We had a couple of good runs over the last few days with the freezes. Made 10 or 15 gallons of light syrup, which we haven't seen for a few years here. Some of our earlier syrup had metabolism off flavor, and I am trying the Proctor Mitigation, to see if we can recover the syrup. Silvers are beyond budded all around here and our Sugar sap is starting have a bit of a smell. We stopped collecting, but if the snow comes through might try a small batch. Well over 50 gallons for the year so far.
    John
    2x8 Smokylake drop flue with AOF/ AUF
    180 taps on sacks
    75 on 3/16 tubing with shurflo
    Eden Prairie, Minnesota

  6. #66
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    McGregor, MN
    Posts
    135

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    We have 750 gallons of sap to cook down tonight and tomorrow (20+ hours). It's been a great year and we will probably run out of wood before the sap quits running.
    2017 160 on 3/16th

    2x6 homemade arch

    2x4 copper drop tube flue pan

    sawmill shed converted to sugar shack

  7. #67
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Mound, MN
    Posts
    46

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    Sugar decreasing, sand increasing, syrup darkening. Will pull the taps on this last collection and call it a season this weekend.
    JC

    44° 55' 23" N

    2x6 smoky lake divided pan custom arch ‘The fire truck’

  8. #68
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Farm Island Lake, MN
    Posts
    17

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    Our Syrup has been consistently dark this year. So far we have canned 31 gallons but have over 700 gallons of sap to cook. We are hoping for another couple weeks as the frost is still in the ground. Trying to get the most out of the season !
    4th Generation Maple Syrup
    Our Group consists of 7 families (and growing) on 5 properties.
    Every year we seem to add more taps....
    70 gallon flat pan
    2013----56 gallons of syrup made.
    2014----50 gallons of syrup made.
    2015----73 gallons of syrup made.

  9. #69
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
    Location
    Excelsior MN
    Posts
    7

    Default Wrapping Up

    Strange year here.
    Ended up with about 10 gallons of syrup.
    Trees were very slow here. Had one run on 3/16 and it out produced another run of 3/16 8 to 1.
    Checked that slow run multiple times for leaks and to no avail.
    No metabolism and I’m not that far away from Maple John Riley.
    The slow run has a few big trees that have just started to produce.
    I didn’t even get the RO dirty this year...
    Less cleanup with that anyways...
    Sap tested tonight at 4 brix and syrup ended up very light which is nice.
    Did not tap the black walnuts due to lack of time.
    Those do make great syrup.
    I made a lot of progress in the operation this year but l sill have some updates to do next year.
    I still have my lines up and will see what I can collect before things head south
    2019
    60 on natural vacuum
    Smoky Lake StarCat with Hybrid pan
    Smoky Lake Auto Draw
    Home Made RO
    Did not tap black walnuts this year as I ran out of time...

    2018
    75 on natural vacuum
    Modified barrel stove with AUF
    Home Made RO
    10 Black Walnut

    2017
    25 buckets
    Barrel stove

  10. #70
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
    Location
    Aitkin, MN
    Posts
    71

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    If I have the right sappers -
    Are you cooking at Ruth's this year? Rumor has it you have an R/O …

    Quote Originally Posted by Sugar Bush INC View Post
    Our Syrup has been consistently dark this year. So far we have canned 31 gallons but have over 700 gallons of sap to cook. We are hoping for another couple weeks as the frost is still in the ground. Trying to get the most out of the season !

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