31–40 of 59 posts
Maple syrup seems to be endemic for North America. Not sure about the rest of the Europe, but I don't think it can be found in shops over here in Balkans (and maple tree itself is not uncommon).
I'm not sure this really explains how the price came to be that way?
That was all interesting... but did I miss the part where the author explains how it came to be that "the nominally inferior grade offer[s] decidedly superior flavor" and yet "sells at a significant discount"? The story seems to suggest that the milder (diluted or perhaps similar to diluted alternatives?) product would have been disfavored by the regime set up by the Pure Food and Drug Act, and thus assigned a lower…
It's really not that complicated. Maple syrup was originally a locally grown (American) sugar substitute. As such, what was valued was a neutral flavor, i.e., something that tasted as little like maple as possible, and as much like sweet liquid. Thus, Grade A (and Grade A Fancy, etc.) went to the lightest, mildest syrup, and Grade B (and Grade C, which is for industrial use) went to the darker syrup with a stronger m…
(The article talked about how people always craved the maple flavor, and were concerned about milder plain-sugar substitutes, as its lead-in to the 'truth in labeling'/authenticity-crusade era. That seemed to suggest tht even in 1906, an opposite grading emphasizing 'mapleness' could have taken root. Perhaps the regulators simply made the mistake of using the word 'grade' – implying a quality rank – when really their assessment was only of categories without any inherent preference ordering.)
The maple syrup I have from Trader Joe's says "100% Pure Vermont Maple Syrup Grade A Dark Amber" I'm not sure the article is correct. It's common for people to say Grade B has more flavor. But is more flavor better flavor? I usually like very strong flavors, like Double IPAs, but does that mean IPAs are better than more subtly flavored Belgian Ales? I've been under the impression that Grade B has more flavor, but not…
The grades are based purely on color, which aligns pretty directly with flavor. If you like the maple flavor, Grade B is definitely the best; Grade C is too dark, and is only for industrial use (it needs to be cut with sugar-water to be palatable.) Grade A is not more subtle; it is merely more neutrally sweet (i.e., has less flavor.)
The article gave me the impression that Grade A was from early in the season, and it is boiled less. Later in the season the sap has less sugar naturally so it is boiled more to concentrate the sugar, which also concentrates the other flavors. That later season sap makes Grade B. Is that the case? In that way grading makes sense, Grade A being more naturally pure, but knowing that it is only based on color throws out the whole point to me. I definitely have had maple syrup I felt had too harsh a flavor, maybe it was Grade B as I'm used to Grade A.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The grades are based purely on color, which aligns pretty directly with flavor. If you like the maple flavor, Grade B is definitely the best; Grade C is too dark, and is only for industrial use (it needs to be cut with sugar-water to be palatable.) Grade A is not more subtle; it is merely more neutrally sweet (i.e., has less flavor.)
Thank you for the clarification. The article gave me the impression that Grade A was from early in the season, and it is boiled less. Later in the season the sap has less sugar naturally so it is boiled more to concentrate the sugar, which also concentrates the other flavors. That later season sap makes Grade B. Is that the case? In that way grading makes sense, Grade A being more naturally pure, but knowing that it…
Generally speaking, you boil until you reach the right viscosity (specific gravity), which is tied to the sugar content. I used to count on boiling 40 gallons of sap to get one gallon of syrup, but this can vary a bit.
during the flow the sap picks up the maple taste from other bits of stuff in the tree - grade b is actually the first sap produced in the season and has the most of this 'stuff'. As the season goes on theres less and less of this stuff so then you start making grade a and fancy.
You can find it at any organic/health shop.
If you can't wait, here is a non-affiliated Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Shady-Maple-Farms-Organic-32-Ounce/dp/...
No artificial splitting over pages, links to offsite sources instead of only linking in-site, real links, no "click here" in the link text.
Amazing work.
Maple syrup seems to be endemic for North America. Not sure about the rest of the Europe, but I don't think it can be found in shops over here in Balkans (and maple tree itself is not uncommon).