Pure Maple Syrup

Pure Maple Syrup: The Algonquin Indians called it sinzibukwud, meaning drawn from wood. It was the Algonquins and the other Native American tribes of the northeastern United States and southeast Canada who first showed French and British settlers how to draw the Sap of Acer saccharum, the Sugar Pure Maple, and reduce it into a sweet, thick liquid known today as Pure Maple Syrup.

Raw Materials: Over 200 different species of Tree in the Pure Maple family, only a few produce Sap of sufficient quality and Sugar content to be used for Pure Maple Syrup. The northeastern section of North America is the only region in the world where the environmental conditions are capable of producing tappable Sap that will yield Pure Maple Syrup, and where one is able to find the Sugar Pure Maple Tree.

The Manufacturing Process: In the making of Pure Maple Syrup, one could say that the farmer comes last and not be wrong. The Sap of the Pure Maple will never become Pure Maple Syrup until the farmer intercedes. The following five components make up that transformation.

Season: In the winter, the Pure Maple does not grow, and it stores its Sap in its Roots. By late spring when the Trees begin to produce leaves and flowers, a chemical change will have occurred in the Sap giving it an unpleasant taste, which farmers describe as "buddy." It is only in early spring, usually February through April, when warm days cause the Sap to flow up from the Roots to the branches to feed new growth and cold nights cause the Sap to return to the Roots, that the Trees can be tapped.

Tapping: To tap a Pure Maple Tree, farmers drill a 0.5 in hole about 2.5-3 in To collect Pure Maple Sap, holes are drilled into the Trees and hollow spikes are inserted. Pails collected the Syrup that dripped out.

Collecting: Once the Tree is tapped, farmers gently drive a hollow spike called a spile into the hole. The spile is a round, hollow piece of wood about the diameter of a broom handle with a metal tip to help drive the end into the wood. Traditional methods use a canvas bag or a bucket hung from the spile to catch the dripping Sap. The bucket or bag is covered to keep out debris. Once a day, the farmer empties the buckets into a large gathering tank pulled through the fields by a horse or tractor. The tank is pulled to the building where the Sap is processed, called the Sugar house, and emptied into a holding tank.

Sugaring: Most important piece of the Pure Maple Syrup-making process takes place in the Sugar house. The initial Sugar content of the Sap, its clarity, and to some extent, its taste are all determined by weather, soil, and ultimately, the Tree, all of which are outside the control of the grower. It is only through the process of heating and condensing the Sap that it takes on the distinctive sweet flavor of Pure Maple Syrup.

Bottling: Once the Syrup is properly finished, it is poured through a cloth filter to remove any Sugar sand, called nitre. It is then poured into glass or metal containers while still hot. The container is filled to the very top and then tightly sealed. Because Pure Maple Syrup contains no preservatives, this final step ensures that the container is sterile and airtight and prevents any spoiling.

Quality Control: In order to be considered pure Pure Maple Syrup, a product must be 100% pure. Products containing other ingredients are labelled table or pancake Syrup. The grades listed on the bottle have nothing to do with purity or sweetness or even necessarily with quality or taste. The grades are based solely on the Syrup ability to transmit light. The more light that can shine through the Syrup, the higher the grade.

Wishing you all the best,
http://www.seeyourneeds.in