Best Maple syrup brand ?
- Thread starter New York
- Start date
Here's what you always wanted to know on Quebec maple syrup but never dared to ask:
http://www.siropderable.ca/en/default.asp?section=0&IdArticle=21
Taste vary from within a brand, depending of when the syrup was recolted. Even within the same category, the taste might change slightly. So, from a batch made today and one made 5 days ago, some sensible tasters might taste a difference even if both batch are, let's say, AA category.
Personally, I buy direct from the farmer, where it's boiled in the shack next door and canned/bottled there.
http://www.siropderable.ca/en/default.asp?section=0&IdArticle=21
Taste vary from within a brand, depending of when the syrup was recolted. Even within the same category, the taste might change slightly. So, from a batch made today and one made 5 days ago, some sensible tasters might taste a difference even if both batch are, let's say, AA category.
Personally, I buy direct from the farmer, where it's boiled in the shack next door and canned/bottled there.
Last edited:
Sweet maple
All maple syrup sold under the name "pure maple syrup" is only that, maple syrup and nothing else. Otherwise it's illegal to call it that. Maple sap is 2 to 4 % sugar, syrup is 66%.
Syrup is obtained by concentrating the sap at a ratio of about 40 to 1, depending on the sap's sugar content. To be legal, the concentration must always be the same. It must boil at 209 degrees Farenheit, or read 32.0 degrees Baumé or 59.0 degrees Brix at the boiling point.
The taste (aha!):
Several factors, inlcuding the time of the season, the amount of time the sap has spent unprocessed, and the manufacturing process.
The later (warmer) in the season, the darker the syrup. The bacteria in the sap (destroyed during the transformation process) change the fructose into glucose-sucrose.
Wood evaporation versus oil. Also, some maple "factories" use reverse osmosis machines to reduce evaporation time.
Sap collection method: buckets versus pipeline. Some large operations also use pumps to change the hydrostatic pressure within the tree to extract more sap (would love to see those trees in 20 years...).
I make maple syrup on a limited scale, using buckets for collection and a wood-fired evaporator. 1st batch actually came out today...
Yum!
All maple syrup sold under the name "pure maple syrup" is only that, maple syrup and nothing else. Otherwise it's illegal to call it that. Maple sap is 2 to 4 % sugar, syrup is 66%.
Syrup is obtained by concentrating the sap at a ratio of about 40 to 1, depending on the sap's sugar content. To be legal, the concentration must always be the same. It must boil at 209 degrees Farenheit, or read 32.0 degrees Baumé or 59.0 degrees Brix at the boiling point.
The taste (aha!):
Several factors, inlcuding the time of the season, the amount of time the sap has spent unprocessed, and the manufacturing process.
The later (warmer) in the season, the darker the syrup. The bacteria in the sap (destroyed during the transformation process) change the fructose into glucose-sucrose.
Wood evaporation versus oil. Also, some maple "factories" use reverse osmosis machines to reduce evaporation time.
Sap collection method: buckets versus pipeline. Some large operations also use pumps to change the hydrostatic pressure within the tree to extract more sap (would love to see those trees in 20 years...).
I make maple syrup on a limited scale, using buckets for collection and a wood-fired evaporator. 1st batch actually came out today...
Yum!
Vermont Maid is a sugar syrup. It is made in East Hanover, New Jersey. 2% maple....EagerBeaver said:
0% maple...bond_james_bond said:
Last edited:
"Vermont Maid" and "Butterworth's" are what's called in Quebec "sirop de poteau". It's made with sap collected from telephone poles... 
Vermont syrup is the best
Québec syrup is very good, but Vermont syrup is the best (and New York's is just OK).
The grade of the syrup is as important as the particular brand or producer.
Vermont maple syrup is graded as follows:
"Vermont Fancy"
"Grade A Medium Amber"
Generally, the lighter the color and the higher the grade, the higher the price. However, many people, especially real lovers of maple syrup, find the taste of the fancy grade to be too light. So they prefer the cheaper Grade A medium or Grade A dark and some hardcore addicts prefer Grade B syrup.
If you want to buy maple syrup on the web, I suggest this producer, located near Woodstock:
http://www.sugarbushfarm.com/
They also make and sell some fantastic cheddar (and other) cheeses.
If you're ever in the Woodstock area, the farm is a place worth stopping. Tell them Capt. Renault sent you.
New York said:
Québec syrup is very good, but Vermont syrup is the best (and New York's is just OK).
The grade of the syrup is as important as the particular brand or producer.
Vermont maple syrup is graded as follows:
"Vermont Fancy"
- Light Amber color, delicate maple bouquet
- Delightfully mild maple flavor, excellent on ice cream or on foods which permit its subtle flavor to be appreciated.
"Grade A Medium Amber"
- Medium Amber color, pronounced maple bouquet
- Characteristic maple flavor; popular for table and all around use.
- Dark Amber color, robust maple bouquet
- Heartier maple flavor; also very popular for table and all around use.
- The strongest and darkest table grade maple syrup
- Some people prefer this syrup for the table and its stronger maple flavor makes it the best grade for cooking.
Generally, the lighter the color and the higher the grade, the higher the price. However, many people, especially real lovers of maple syrup, find the taste of the fancy grade to be too light. So they prefer the cheaper Grade A medium or Grade A dark and some hardcore addicts prefer Grade B syrup.
If you want to buy maple syrup on the web, I suggest this producer, located near Woodstock:
http://www.sugarbushfarm.com/
They also make and sell some fantastic cheddar (and other) cheeses.
If you're ever in the Woodstock area, the farm is a place worth stopping. Tell them Capt. Renault sent you.
Here's an odd question. Can I ship a can of maple syrup across the border to a friend in Arizona? Is this considered a food item? What are customs restrictions for shipping such items across the border? With the obsession about security, I can just see a US customs official tearing up the label and opening up the can to check if it doesn't contain nitroglycerin or something...
JustBob: Somewhere on this site will be your official answer!
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html
I tried finding it but I gave up!
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html
I tried finding it but I gave up!
JustBob, check this site out.
http://www.maplebymail.com/
Edit: for those who like ice cream, you should check out the maple syrup ice cream at Glacier Bilboquet on Bernard St west. They only make it in the spring and it's absolutely amazing.
http://www.maplebymail.com/
Edit: for those who like ice cream, you should check out the maple syrup ice cream at Glacier Bilboquet on Bernard St west. They only make it in the spring and it's absolutely amazing.
Last edited:
sapman99 said:
Sapman,
Captain Renault is correct, Vermont's maple syrup is the best in the world. Vermont also makes some terrific beef jerky, and of course is also the State that gave us the world famous Ben and Jerry's ice cream.
I have had the high quality Vermont syrup and it is top notch - this cannot be disputed. My post above about Vermont Maid was meant to be a joke, as it is not pure maple syrup.
chef said:
It depends on who is making it..............I have had home-made ranging from bad to excellent.
Cant go wrong with: http://www.auntjemima.com/ I know its probably not made from maple but...
I know its probably not made from maple but...
Last edited:
Similar threads
