For some reason two of the three trees were having yellow sap from the get-go. In years past these particular trees were usually our super-producers. This made no sense to me, since it was no where near warm enough for them to start blooming (the usual reason for yellow sap) but after a few days of the same – just some small yellow drips – I pulled the taps out. Now I just had one tree left.
On March 17th I boiled my first batch of sap on the kitchen stove.
In total I had 5 small batches of sap to boil during my short five-week sugaring season. The batches are shown (from left to right) first to last.
Batch 1 was beautifully clear sap but I made a rookie mistake and boiled it for too long making it more like candy. It's already starting to crystallize.
Batch 2 was yellow sap. I'm not sure why it happened maybe because it froze and then thawed while in the bucket thanks to temperature swings. I was almost going to throw it out but my husband suggested I try it. He even tasted it and said he liked it so here it is, super dark. At least I didn't over boil it so it's more like syrup instead of honey.
Batch 3 was a mix of some slightly yellow sap with a second run of clearer sap. It turned into a medium syrup but it was a very small amount.
Batch 4 was crystal-clear sap and boiled to a good consistency, however there is a ton of sandy sediment at the bottom that I should strain out.
Batch 5, the last one, was also beautifully clear sap but the smallest amount yet. I boiled it to a good consistency and the color is amazingly light, just like Batch 4, but batch five has less sediment at the bottom. Perhaps that is only because it hasn't been sitting in the fridge as long.
I pulled the tree tap yesterday because even the nighttime temperatures were supposed to be above freezing. That is not sugaring weather.
Yet the next morning I, along with the rest of Northwestern VT, woke up to this:
Maybe sugaring season is not quite over, but I am over sugaring season.
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