Maple Syrup Grades

Maple syrup is graded by color, the darker the color the stronger the maple flavor. The maple syrup season, form 4-6 weeks long begins in the deep snows of early march and ends with the budding of the trees amidst the song of the spring peepers in late April. As the seaon progresses from winter to spring, the trees the sap and the syrup change. Ideally a well-stocked kitchen should contain atleast 2 grades.

The first syrup we make is very light in color, sometimes almost clear. This is graded Fancy . It has an aromatic almost vanilla like maple flavor. It is excellent on ice cream, fruit and deserts as well as waffles french toast and pancakes.
Grade A Medium Amber comes as the season matures. It is a shade darker than fancy. It is still a light aromataic syrup but has a more pronounced maple flavor. This along with Grade A Dark Amber is the traditional the pancake maple syrup.
Grade A Dark Amber is produced toward the end of the season as the weather warms up. It ras a robust maple flavor and is great in yogurt and oatmeal. It is a good choice for baking. It if you're looking for good hearty maple flavor get Dark Amber.
Grade B is made last. It's strong maple flavor is hard core. Traditionally considered a cooking syrup it is gaining popularity as a table syrup. It is also well known for its benificial use in cleansing as written about by Stanley Buroughs in his book The Master Cleanser.

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