Dark syrup is dark syrup is dark syrup??

[Andy VT]

I've been wondering: It sounds like there are a lot of ways we can make syrup darker than it needs to be, such as dirty pan or dirty collection buckets or too much time boiling in the pan. But I often hear "well, I like dark syrup anyway" or "my customers like it dark anyway" or some such. So here is my question: Is that actually the same? Is syrup that is made dark due to something in the processing the exact same as syrup that is dark because it is late in the season?

[DrTimPerkins]

Color is a relatively simple thing to measure quantitatively and get a good answer. Flavor....not so much. There are over 150 flavor molecules in maple syrup, and each sugarbush and process is somewhat unique.

[ennismaple]

Interesting topic... Now that we're able to process sap much faster using RO and more efficient evaporators there are many different ways that syrup can be "darkened" - some of which we control and some we cannot. It might be sap chemistry, atmospheric temperature, how long sap sits before processing, cleanliness of tanks and other equipment, the Brix of RO concentrate, how long concentrate is allowed to sit before boiling, the flue pan to flat pan ratio of your evaporator, the depth of sap in your pans and a number of other factors. I lack the vocabulary to accurately describe the flavors in different syrups but I do know that I prefer the dark syrup we make at a specific point in the season.

[DrTimPerkins]

You can kind of think of "flavor" in maple as being notes or chords on a stringed instrument or piano. Like in music these individual flavors are also referred to as "notes". There are 6-10 dominant notes in maple, but lots of minor notes. Also like in music, these flavor notes have a strength or intensity associated with them.

The true "maple" notes are generally found primarily in lighter syrups. Darker syrups characteristically have far less of the true "maple" notes, and far more and far more intense "confectionary" "burnt sugar", "coffee", "nutty" and "woody/herbaceous" notes.

Some of these notes are derived from molecules in the sap itself, but some are derived from the decomposition productions caused by microbes in the sap, and the types and level of microbes themselves can influence the flavor. Then you get things like sap temperature, storage conditions, processing, etc. superimposed on top of the whole thing and it becomes very complex very quickly, making it really difficult to tease out the specific influences on flavor.

[Andy VT]

These are helpful perspectives, thanks! I think my takeaways are:
It is at least plausible that inducing dark syrup during processing might not taste the same as syrup that is dark just because it is the season for dark.
It may be difficult to be sure which of the above applies.
I might as well feel free to make up new wives tales and perpetuate my favorite old ones about syrup flavor contributors... who will stop me

I'd love to hear more on the topic... any theories on how you make your syrup taste the way you want it to. Or even, what you do if you want to win a syrup taste competition. (Maybe... if you taste a batch and like it, set it aside for the event!)

[DrTimPerkins]

Or even, what you do if you want to win a syrup taste competition. (Maybe... if you taste a batch and like it, set it aside for the event!)

That is how most winners do it. But always be sure to taste it again before submitting it. Sometimes the flavor isn't exactly how we remember it.

[berkshires]

I might as well feel free to make up new wives tales and perpetuate my favorite old ones about syrup flavor contributors... who will stop me

Okay here's one: I've always thought that at least some of the reason late-season syrup tastes stronger is the simple reason that the sap has lower sugar to start. Think about it - if you could take 2.2% sap and magically remove some of the sugar, while leaving everything else the same - let's say you drop it to 1.5% sugar. By the time you take it to syrup, you'll have nearly 50% more concentrated everything else in the sap than you would the 2.2% sap. So if late season sap simply had lower sugar, and everything else was the same, you'd get stronger-flavored syrup just because you have more of every other chemical per volume in the finished product.

GO

[Ed R]

I've made syrup in S.E. Michigan for about 12 years now and have never made syrup lighter than the dark end of amber rich. I tap almost 100% reds and silvers and the soil I'm on is like a peat soil. Last year after season was over downstate I took my rig (a 2x6) to property I own in the UP. I only tapped sugar maples, it was late in the season up there, and 90% of the syrup I made was golden delecate. The soil I'm on up there is a light gravely soil. My gut tells me tree species has less to do with darkness of syrup than soil type but I'm not sure. The sugar content in the UP was actually lower than on the reds and silvers downstate.

[ennismaple]

I've made syrup in S.E. Michigan for about 12 years now and have never made syrup lighter than the dark end of amber rich. I tap almost 100% reds and silvers and the soil I'm on is like a peat soil. Last year after season was over downstate I took my rig (a 2x6) to property I own in the UP. I only tapped sugar maples, it was late in the season up there, and 90% of the syrup I made was golden delecate. The soil I'm on up there is a light gravely soil. My gut tells me tree species has less to do with darkness of syrup than soil type but I'm not sure. The sugar content in the UP was actually lower than on the reds and silvers downstate.

The increased sugar content going from reds to maples makes a big difference. You're likely getting double the sugar? That's half the time in the pans = less caramelization.

[Ed R]

Sugar averaged 1.3-1.5 on the sugar maples in the UP and 1.5 on the reds/silvers downstate last year. The syrup from the UP was some of the best tasting"fancy" I have ever had. Fresh taps and late season sap??? l was curious if I could make light syrup on that 2x6 rig. On the family farm 3x12 and 4x14 rigs I grew up making on we made lots of early season fancy ,especially the3x12. I was disappointed with the sugar conc in the up and if I make syrup up there again I will use an ro. No ro used ether place last year. Another thing, my sugar sand downstate is always quite dark and a pain to filter, in the up it looked like beach sand and filtered great.