Norm and Judy Stoner's Maple Syrup
How We Make Syrup
Our trees are tapped with health spiles which are smaller than traditional spiles. In 2021, our bush has over 750 taps. Each tap runs into 'lateral lines' (five-eights inch tubing) that feed into the mainlines. The mainlines (one inch tubing) feed into a vacuum tank.
When the temperature rises above 0°C, the vacuum pump is started and sap is collected in two vacuum tanks. When enough sap has been collected, the sap is sent through a reverse osmosis process that removes at least 30 per cent of the water. (Reverse osmosis reduces boiling time and the amount of firewood required). This condensed sap is boiled in the wood-fired evaporator to remove more water until the sugar percent reaches 68.6 percent (maple syrup).
The syrup is taken from the evaporator, filtered and stored in a freezer until bottled. In the bottling process syrup is heated to 185°F, pressure-filtered and bottled.
In addition to maple syrup, Maple Butter and Maple Sugar Candy are made and sold on site. Our products are sold at the door, the Southampton Meat Market and at Smith's River Road Farms.