Only my second season trying to make syrup. Last year was really basic with taps and buckets on the trees. My evaporator wasnt much more than pans over an open fire. In the end made just over a gallon.
Got a little carried away this year and spent too much time reading on the internet. Going to have two tubing runs and about 60 trees tapped this year. Going to fabricate a proper evaporator out of an old 275gal heating oil tank.
The mass produced pure maple syrup you get at the local supermarket losses some of the flavor you get from smaller batch wood fired evaporators. Maple syrup also changes flavor depending on what part of the season it was made, early season is lite colored and mild flavored and late season is darker and richer in flavor. If you really get picky it changes flavor fom one stand of trees to the next. Not to knock those Canadians, I mean is syrup really big up there or something, but my syrup was super tasty.