I lived near Wasilla for almost 10 years...Used to buy birch syrup. Before we left I bought some birch taps...those nice plastic ones to hold the bucket..now living in Dalarna Sweden and want to make my own syrup...We have many trees the size you have as well. We are as far north as Anchorage and wondering what time of late winter - spring you like to harvest. Thanks for the good info!
First rate video, educational and enjoyable...the best way to learn. Never been to Alaska, let alone the bush, but then if I had, I wouldn't have anything to dream of, would I? BTW, you DO know dulce is Spanish for "sweet". It fits.
Oh hey thanks for getting back to me! I love it when people are just good folks like that! I live in maple sugar country...well second place I suppose in that regard because honestly VT has to take awards on that one, but in NH, a good friend of mine is sugaring right now and always gives me a quart of the best! I was asking because my 6 acres is mostly sugar maples and yellow birch, it think I have 2 paper birches here on the whole lot most people have more than that.
I tap both maples and birches in Québec. Interesting video. I started tapping the birches today, will get to 400 this year. Maples finish soon. About the vacuum pumps comments: 4 cycles engines with valves make pretty good pumps. Weld and intake onto the carburetor, replace the fly wheel with a pulley and put any engine you like on it. Can’t outperform SIHI or DELAVAL, but they’re super durable, not noisy, largely speed adjustable, uses less energy plus they don’t throw oil all over the place
You're a better man than I am Ginga Din. Man that is really cool! And I thought we were really something making Sorghum syrup. I'd give anything for some of your syrup on a stack of pancakes.....just to say I ate it. Good luck to ya! And don't let that idiot get your goat.
Hello, I loved watching this!! We visited Alaska the Fall of 2017 as part of a land cruise vacation. We Spoke to our "Guide" about Birch syrup as we process Maple syrup here in Western, NY. It has been an enjoyable hobby for us since 2007. Thus, we are in preparation for processing the first week of February 2018.
And the other two species are the red maple and the soft maple or silver maple. People locally to me say sugar, rock and red. Lack of science groan...but anyway thanks so much for sharing with all of us! Fascinating and good for you guys! I wish you much success! It is a great thing when we can responsibly take from nature to make our lives. I keep getting tempted to sugar my land, and then I think about the number of trees and think the lines would work then I remember the deer!...lol Thanks!
Great video. Wish there was more information as far as temperature when to tap/season,Spoiling rate and the brix or when it's done boil at what temperature . Tree size and tap per tree .
And I was happy to see your answer, for us with the maples its much the same in that you can use any maple tree but they differ in sugar content...same thing as what you're saying about the birch trees! The red leafed maples hold the least amount of sugar, then rock maples and then sugar maples, have the most sugar content. Rock maples are murder to fell and split, if they'll be used for wood. I think its why they call them "rock maples" .
Real eye opener...makes the memories of my grandfathers 1950's state sugar bush on his dairy farm in central NY come flooding back...except for the "sap sucker" .....he & my uncles dumped sap buckets into a horse drawn "sap sled".
This is so cool! Really love this! And maybe even more so, after living in Alaska for 16 years, my husband 21 years… I have never done any of this, but I am fascinated by this! We lived in Wasilla and Palmer and some in Anchorage. Of course traveling a bit to other places, like Fairbanks & Seward and Valdez, etc. where exactly is it that you live and have your business?! Good for you guys! And thank you.
In Latvia people collect birch sap and keep it mostly in big glass jars at their cellar,some would add few blackcurrant twigs and then drink it during hottest Summer days.Never heard people making any syrup,maybe sap just loses all good stuff by heating it.
Just white birch or are other varieties usable? For instance can yellow birch be used...she wonders after doing some yard work beneath a branch broken from a wind storm that ended up soaking me, it was dripping off so vigorously!...lol
I do not test my sap systematically, so brix could be higher at times. I use both hydrometer and refractometer, they read in accordance. The one thing that helps my ratio is that I finish my syrup at 60 - 61 Brix to get less of the scorchy taste, and it keeps well even opened at room temperature. I also noticed that trees flow less on tubing even with -15 vacuum. The one thing I notice is that I make 0,2 litre of syrup per tree, while you guys make 0,75 litre according to the numbers in video.
What's the sugar content of the syrup? My family has a small maple syrup operation, and our syrup is 67 degrees brix. Is birch syrup similar? and kudos to you sapheads for the effort to produce syrup at 100: ratio- an incredible amount of work!
We take our syrup to 67 brix as well. At this time there are no "standards" for birch syrup, unfortunately. It is something we are working on with producers. There are birch syrup producers in New England and across Canada who believe that 60-65 brix is sufficient. But it is not. There is some pretty poor syrup made out there, and some very good. We have been at it a long time - now we tap 10,000-16,000 trees. This year's ratio was 105:1 and last year's was 117:1!! One of these days I will upload our updated video. You can also check us out on Facebook for more current statistics, etc. facebook.com/alaskabirchsyrup. Thanks for your comments and kudos!
Hey, I’m been really curious about your ‘’harvesting’’ pump. Is it a piston or a gear pump? How many gallons per minute do you pump? How many is it rated for? How much does it sell for? But mostly, how does it deal with the priming and what is the length and material of the pipe?
+Rick V Hi Rick; glad you enjoyed it. I have a new video to upload that shows our transition to tubing/vacuum. We still use pails and sap suckers but are slowly moving away from it as we grow - now tapping 10,000 trees.
I had some of your birch syrup. Bought it at summit teas in Anchorage. The rich almost tart flavor is amazing. Keep up the good work. You should try to make a birch frosting donut or a birch candy.
Hi Clifton; I am not familiar with that type of system. Reverse osmosis works very well to accomplish that, but I imagine a different technology would be possible. Evaporation by boiling, however, is necessary to impart flavor and color to the syrup. Thanks for your interest!
Awww thanks! :) The music is an old recording by a friend of mine with her informal band, so not something I can share, sorry! You'll just have to watch the video over and over!
I am going to tell you something that you will find interesting I was born and raised on a small farm in Finland ( migrated to Canada in -78 ) we always tapped the birch ( by the way the same species what you have in Alaska .. slow growth higher density of the growth rings and so on also way sweeter sap than ones here in southern Ontario )there are companies that makes chewing gum and the sweetness comes fro " Xylitol" which is is derived from birch sugar not harmful to teeth causes no cavities as well is better digested in human metabolism. The Xylitol industry is big over there. as an alternative sweetener. I just thought that you might find this interesting all the best to you all!
Does the sap collecting hurt the production and wellbeing of the tree later?? Im always concerned what humans take away from the natural environment that we dont or cant give back.
No, we have been tapping birch trees for 27 years. We rotate trees, but even trees that have been tapped up to 7 times in those years show no signs of stress. The harvest takes a small percentage of the sap production for the tree in that year; approximately 7-15% depending on size of the tree. We do try to tap larger, older trees to minimize impacts to young trees.
Yes - there are small companies sprouting up across New England and even one in Pennsylvania. Search online, or we will ship it to you wherever you are! www.alaskabirchsyrup.com
Well I hope you aren’t tapping 10 000 trees still using buckets are you? I had my shoes full with 434 buckets to collect this season. I will install vacuumed collection system for next year. I did my last harvest yesterday, this season’s numbers are: 434 trees, 7200 Litres of sap, 0,7 Brix average, 81 Litre of syrup, 19 days of sap flow and an exciting ratio of 89:1. I tap everything: white, grey and yellow birch. White is best, grey isn't as good...
Just finding all these comments from three years ago ... sorry! Yes we use tubing/vacuum system on 8,000 trees - still hang pails on 2500 or so. Hope you are still at it!!
The rock maples I literally have to sharpen the chain before I start and then about 1/2 way through cutting it into logs if its a 15 inch in diameter tree, to give you an idea. I'm a woman I have my small but decent chainsaw...and I'm doing better sharpening by now. I have a hard time identifying between the rock maple and sugar maple though and usually figure it out on the first cut...lol. There are differing opinions on species some say the rock and sugar are one in the same.
the bush farming channel ok,thanks for answering me.i have around 400 white birchs I can tap here in northern new York and I was wondering how much I can get in finished syrup.i tapped 18 trees last spring because I was curious about it..i made just over a half gallon of syrup.i could have made more but I had just finished making almost 600 gallons of maple syrup and I was way to wornout to make more.i like it but it sure is much diffent then maple syrup. and it,s much harder to finish off into good syrup.
Ya, I know the drill. I also use the same evaporator for both maple and birch. The switchover when I finish maple and tap the birches always is a rough few days since they occur at the very same time. I also find that birch is harder to finish. I would have never have made it without a good refractometer, which I use to calibrate a densimeter that I use on a finishing stove (or even in a big pot). By the way, good maple syrup is 66,5 to 67 brix, but birch syrup will keep at lower brix!
+elleynde its a much more distinctive taste. Often used in pairing with fish and other meats. Very caramel and molasses in the taste. We will be producing birch syrup this coming spring from northern ontario if you are intested in placing an order let us know. We'd be happy to supply you!
Birch syrup is more complex in flavor than maple and varies quite a bit from season to season, from beginning of harvest to end of harvest, and from producer to producer - depending on methods/equipment used and care taken in cleaning and processing sap to syrup. There is some pretty bad birch syrup out there, and some really good syrup. It is not all the same, that's for sure. Some producers are not concentrating it fully to syrup. Many maple producers say that birch syrup is "not for pancakes". We make four "runs" of syrup; our first two - reserve (first day of harvest) and first run (usually first 8-10 days of harvest) are light and sweet and definitely can be used on pancakes. The are quite delicious. Our mid run (transition) is more complex and slightly deeper in flavor, but still quite sweet. Our late run is prized by chefs and brewers and very popular - and we use it as an ingredient in our caramels, brittle, mustard, and other wild harvested fruit products. Birch syrup is unique, and yes we do ship to Canada. There are several very good Canadian birch syrup companies as well. I hope you get to taste!
that was a cool video. though im guessing that stuff works out about 500 pounds a teaspoon. it must be like caviar when it comes to money. enjoyed that insight, well done. i wish you well
The sap spoils really quickly. Maybe the black currant twigs help to preserve it. Birch syrup still retains many beneficial qualities; there is quite a bit of information on nutritional qualities of birch sap and it is sold widely in Europe. Birch syrup sold as birch concentrate in Europe is sold as a health extract as well. Very interesting stuff ...
The bears are just coming out towards the end of the harvest. We had one knock a bucket off a tree one year way back, but just have never had bear issues.
Birch syrup varies quite a lot depending on where the sap is harvested and techniques used to cook it down. We sell four "runs" - varying from very light and sweet (reserve and first run) to deep, dark, and complex (late run). The flavor over all is more complex than maple - more caramel-like, a bit of fruity undertones in the early runs; dark cherry, coffee and chocolate in the later runs. It varies also from year to year. The syrup contains the same amount of natural sugars as maple, but they are different sugars and the sap contains about a third of the sugar in maple sap, so it requires average 110 gallons of sap to a gallon of syrup. It takes a lot more boiling down to get to syrup. This is why it can sometimes have a burnt taste. We use reverse osmosis to remove a large portion of the water before we start cooking it down to prevent over-caramelization of the sugars. Give it a try! You can purchase all runs at our website: www.alaskabirchsyrup.com.
Any chance of working for ya?, I'm not looking for money just work and room and board..... Im a former pipeliner and pipe layer .... and firewood cutter...
no you dont get it. it is sad to see people so brainwashed with this "exploitation" garbage. sorry you want to go back to the stone age, but still want the apple iphone you are probably listening too.
Sounds like you had a good harvest - that's a great ratio for sap that is such low brix ... maybe it's higher than you think? Do you use a refractometer or a hydrometer? We have 3500 trees on tubing and vacuum now; still 5000 pails and a few gravity tubing. We are working away from the pails, but still get better production with them. Jury is still out on vacuum with birch ... the maple folks said we would get higher production... still haven't started harvest here yet; very cold spring!
Hi - it is an oberdorfer gear pump mounted to a Honda engine - belt driven, that is designed to reduce the speed on the pump about 4:1. The are not really designed for this job and tend to wear out fairly quickly - you can baby them and get a couple of years, but with the number of trees we tap we replace them almost yearly. we are looking at other options and have already started running tubing and vacuum to some of our trees. Thanks for the interest.
Any birch will work - preferably in northern climates as the sap will spoil quickly in warm weather. However I have heard that the sugar content of yellow birch sap is lower than white birch, so for syrup you may be in the 150:1 ratio range rather than 100:1. Drinking the sap is good in any case!
Thanks for your support; not sure where that is coming from either. There are sure a lot more "exploitative" ways (and easier ways) to make a living ...
We will probably not start tapping for another two weeks. What species are you tapping? What is the sugar content of the sap? This video is a little outdated; check out our Facebook page: Kahiltna Gold Birch Syrup to see what we are up to now. 10,000 trees last year; not sure what it will be this one but we always aim for a bit more. Good luck with your harvest.
Thanks for your support on the "exploitation" issue. The birch forest is my cathedral ... unfortunately most use in Alaska is in cutting it down. Now you might call THAT exploitation.
Yes, we do sell some of the purified water to a local brewery, along with sap. Have heard they bottle the purified water back east from maple and call it "tree water". Now there's a concept! Would like to bottle sap; there is a market for it and lots of info on the potential health benefits - both sap and syrup. Thanks for your comment.
I am hoping to download some new videos to this site by it's a legacy site now and it is really hard to connect to a gmail account. So I may refer you to another channel. Stay Tuned!
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I lived near Wasilla for almost 10 years...Used to buy birch syrup. Before we left I bought some birch taps...those nice plastic ones to hold the bucket..now living in Dalarna Sweden and want to make my own syrup...We have many trees the size you have as well. We are as far north as Anchorage and wondering what time of late winter - spring you like to harvest. Thanks for the good info!
First rate video, educational and enjoyable...the best way to learn. Never been to Alaska, let alone the bush, but then if I had, I wouldn't have anything to dream of, would I? BTW, you DO know dulce is Spanish for "sweet". It fits.
Oh hey thanks for getting back to me! I love it when people are just good folks like that! I live in maple sugar country...well second place I suppose in that regard because honestly VT has to take awards on that one, but in NH, a good friend of mine is sugaring right now and always gives me a quart of the best! I was asking because my 6 acres is mostly sugar maples and yellow birch, it think I have 2 paper birches here on the whole lot most people have more than that.
I tap both maples and birches in Québec. Interesting video. I started tapping the birches today, will get to 400 this year. Maples finish soon. About the vacuum pumps comments: 4 cycles engines with valves make pretty good pumps. Weld and intake onto the carburetor, replace the fly wheel with a pulley and put any engine you like on it. Can’t outperform SIHI or DELAVAL, but they’re super durable, not noisy, largely speed adjustable, uses less energy plus they don’t throw oil all over the place
Very inspiring. I watch countless vids about Alaska weekly!!!
You're a better man than I am Ginga Din. Man that is really cool! And I thought we were really something making Sorghum syrup. I'd give anything for some of your syrup on a stack of pancakes.....just to say I ate it. Good luck to ya! And don't let that idiot get your goat.
Hello, I loved watching this!! We visited
Alaska the Fall of 2017 as part of a land cruise vacation. We
Spoke to our "Guide" about Birch syrup as we process Maple syrup here in Western, NY.
It has been an enjoyable hobby for us since 2007. Thus, we are in preparation for processing the first week of February 2018.
Hi Steven; I hope you got to try our syrup while you were here! Good luck with your harvest this year; we will begin in April. All the best.
ty for upload i love learning new things
And the other two species are the red maple and the soft maple or silver maple. People locally to me say sugar, rock and red. Lack of science groan...but anyway thanks so much for sharing with all of us! Fascinating and good for you guys! I wish you much success! It is a great thing when we can responsibly take from nature to make our lives. I keep getting tempted to sugar my land, and then I think about the number of trees and think the lines would work then I remember the deer!...lol Thanks!
Great video. Wish there was more information as far as temperature when to tap/season,Spoiling rate and the brix or when it's done boil at what temperature . Tree size and tap per tree .
Wisconsin does have good maple syrup, also Pennsylvania has a few good maple syrup farms.
Wow those are nice tools, i make maple syrup but only about 10 gallons a year. What taste better?
And I was happy to see your answer, for us with the maples its much the same in that you can use any maple tree but they differ in sugar content...same thing as what you're saying about the birch trees! The red leafed maples hold the least amount of sugar, then rock maples and then sugar maples, have the most sugar content. Rock maples are murder to fell and split, if they'll be used for wood. I think its why they call them "rock maples" .
had never heard of birch sap, living in newbrunswick canada i am very familiar with maple syrup and the process. great video guys, good luck.
Real eye opener...makes the memories of my grandfathers 1950's state sugar bush on his dairy farm in central NY come flooding back...except for the "sap sucker" .....he & my uncles dumped sap buckets into a horse drawn "sap sled".
This is so cool! Really love this! And maybe even more so, after living in Alaska for 16 years, my husband 21 years… I have never done any of this, but I am fascinated by this! We lived in Wasilla and Palmer and some in Anchorage. Of course traveling a bit to other places, like Fairbanks & Seward and Valdez, etc. where exactly is it that you live and have your business?! Good for you guys! And thank you.
Loved this film! thanks for posting :) x
In Latvia people collect birch sap and keep it mostly in big glass jars at their cellar,some would add few blackcurrant twigs and then drink it during hottest Summer days.Never heard people making any syrup,maybe sap just loses all good stuff by heating it.
Just white birch or are other varieties usable? For instance can yellow birch be used...she wonders after doing some yard work beneath a branch broken from a wind storm that ended up soaking me, it was dripping off so vigorously!...lol
I do not test my sap systematically, so brix could be higher at times. I use both hydrometer and refractometer, they read in accordance. The one thing that helps my ratio is that I finish my syrup at 60 - 61 Brix to get less of the scorchy taste, and it keeps well even opened at room temperature. I also noticed that trees flow less on tubing even with -15 vacuum. The one thing I notice is that I make 0,2 litre of syrup per tree, while you guys make 0,75 litre according to the numbers in video.
What's the sugar content of the syrup? My family has a small maple syrup operation, and our syrup is 67 degrees brix. Is birch syrup similar? and kudos to you sapheads for the effort to produce syrup at 100: ratio- an incredible amount of work!
We take our syrup to 67 brix as well. At this time there are no "standards" for birch syrup, unfortunately. It is something we are working on with producers. There are birch syrup producers in New England and across Canada who believe that 60-65 brix is sufficient. But it is not. There is some pretty poor syrup made out there, and some very good. We have been at it a long time - now we tap 10,000-16,000 trees. This year's ratio was 105:1 and last year's was 117:1!! One of these days I will upload our updated video. You can also check us out on Facebook for more current statistics, etc. facebook.com/alaskabirchsyrup. Thanks for your comments and kudos!
Hey, I’m been really curious about your ‘’harvesting’’ pump. Is it a piston or a gear pump? How many gallons per minute do you pump? How many is it rated for? How much does it sell for? But mostly, how does it deal with the priming and what is the length and material of the pipe?
Living the dream! very enjoyable video, thanks for sharing.
Nice video. Lots of work . thank you
Hello from Thailand. Amazing trees! i hope to drink fresh sap from birch three. Nice process of how to made birch syrup.
What type of pump to you use for the sap collecting? Does it run ok dry?
What kind off pump do you use when you are pumping the sap? What is the brand off that pump? thank.
Wow! That is amazing! I wish i could live in Alaska and do stuff like that!
Thank you fine people
Excellent video, thank you for the info.
+Rick V Hi Rick; glad you enjoyed it. I have a new video to upload that shows our transition to tubing/vacuum. We still use pails and sap suckers but are slowly moving away from it as we grow - now tapping 10,000 trees.
I’ve made birch syrup once and I wouldn’t waste my time to do it again .if you like burnt molasses you’ll love birch syrup
Did you possibly burn it ?
I had some of your birch syrup. Bought it at summit teas in Anchorage. The rich almost tart flavor is amazing. Keep up the good work. You should try to make a birch frosting donut or a birch candy.
We do make birch candy! Caramels and brittle both - check our website: www.alaskabirchsyrup.com. Just realized this is 3 years old. Sorry!!
Awesome operation and thanks for showing it.Would a low temperature vacuum distillation unit work to separate the water?
Hi Clifton; I am not familiar with that type of system. Reverse osmosis works very well to accomplish that, but I imagine a different technology would be possible. Evaporation by boiling, however, is necessary to impart flavor and color to the syrup. Thanks for your interest!
I did'nt know that.Thanks
This is really cool! Why you guys used white buckets with snow on the ground I have no idea though.
+joe mama White keeps the sap cool! And plastic pails are cheap. We mostly use tubing now; hope to upload our newer video one of these days.
Oh that's pretty smart I didn't think of that.
that chick at the end used the word satisfying like 4 times at the end of the video lol
good job! so you can just go stake land in Alaska and it's yours? PLEASE get back to me!
You are my dream guys. Thank you.
Please send me the music of this vid
Awww thanks! :) The music is an old recording by a friend of mine with her informal band, so not something I can share, sorry! You'll just have to watch the video over and over!
@@dulceben-east8307 hahaha thank you tho.
Hope some day I can go visit you there. I know I will
@@dulceben-east8307 im dead serious. I really like the life that ur living
I've always wanted to tap a tree or 2. I'll have to grab some if your syrup next time I'm at the fair.
We sell the spouts, bags, and give instructions at the fair too - and at our shop at Mile 1 on the Talkeetna Spur Rd. Stop by anytime!
I am going to tell you something that you will find interesting I was born and raised on a small farm in Finland ( migrated to Canada in -78 ) we always tapped the birch ( by the way the same species what you have in Alaska .. slow growth higher density of the growth rings and so on also way sweeter sap than ones here in southern Ontario )there are companies that makes chewing gum and the sweetness comes fro " Xylitol" which is is derived from birch sugar not harmful to teeth causes no cavities as well is better digested in human metabolism. The Xylitol industry is big over there. as an alternative sweetener.
I just thought that you might find this interesting all the best to you all!
Does the sap collecting hurt the production and wellbeing of the tree later??
Im always concerned what humans take away from the natural environment that we dont or cant give back.
No, we have been tapping birch trees for 27 years. We rotate trees, but even trees that have been tapped up to 7 times in those years show no signs of stress. The harvest takes a small percentage of the sap production for the tree in that year; approximately 7-15% depending on size of the tree. We do try to tap larger, older trees to minimize impacts to young trees.
Never heard of birch syrup!! Can you even find it in the lower 48!!
Yes - there are small companies sprouting up across New England and even one in Pennsylvania. Search online, or we will ship it to you wherever you are! www.alaskabirchsyrup.com
As the tube on which juice flows down is called
is the sap available all yr long?
This sounds strange but on a sort of bad year how many gallons tree just a guestiment
Generally about half a gallon per tree per day. SAP that is, not syrup. About 110:1 to make syrup.
Well I hope you aren’t tapping 10 000 trees still using buckets are you? I had my shoes full with 434 buckets to collect this season. I will install vacuumed collection system for next year. I did my last harvest yesterday, this season’s numbers are: 434 trees, 7200 Litres of sap, 0,7 Brix average, 81 Litre of syrup, 19 days of sap flow and an exciting ratio of 89:1. I tap everything: white, grey and yellow birch. White is best, grey isn't as good...
Just finding all these comments from three years ago ... sorry! Yes we use tubing/vacuum system on 8,000 trees - still hang pails on 2500 or so. Hope you are still at it!!
The rock maples I literally have to sharpen the chain before I start and then about 1/2 way through cutting it into logs if its a 15 inch in diameter tree, to give you an idea. I'm a woman I have my small but decent chainsaw...and I'm doing better sharpening by now. I have a hard time identifying between the rock maple and sugar maple though and usually figure it out on the first cut...lol. There are differing opinions on species some say the rock and sugar are one in the same.
I would love to purchase a bottle of our birch syrup. Is that possible in any way ?
Hi Donna; you can purchase at our website: www.alaskabirchsyrup.com
Thanks!
I tend too take a piss in these containers when I am out and about. Bon apetit!
for every 100 TAPS HOW MUCH FINISHED SYRUP DO YOU END UP WITH??
It changes a lot depending on the trees and the area, but I’ve seen anywhere between 150 to 750 mL per tree.
the bush farming channel ok,thanks for answering me.i have around 400 white birchs I can tap here in northern new York and I was wondering how much I can get in finished syrup.i tapped 18 trees last spring because I was curious about it..i made just over a half gallon of syrup.i could have made more but I had just finished making almost 600 gallons of maple syrup and I was way to wornout to make more.i like it but it sure is much diffent then maple syrup. and it,s much harder to finish off into good syrup.
Ya, I know the drill. I also use the same evaporator for both maple and birch. The switchover when I finish maple and tap the birches always is a rough few days since they occur at the very same time. I also find that birch is harder to finish. I would have never have made it without a good refractometer, which I use to calibrate a densimeter that I use on a finishing stove (or even in a big pot). By the way, good maple syrup is 66,5 to 67 brix, but birch syrup will keep at lower brix!
you could sell the purified water also
and about the taste, is there a difference with mapple ?
id love to buy some if you ship to canada
+elleynde its a much more distinctive taste. Often used in pairing with fish and other meats. Very caramel and molasses in the taste. We will be producing birch syrup this coming spring from northern ontario if you are intested in placing an order let us know. We'd be happy to supply you!
nice ill keep that in mind ,im in quebec so its not too far
Birch syrup is more complex in flavor than maple and varies quite a bit from season to season, from beginning of harvest to end of harvest, and from producer to producer - depending on methods/equipment used and care taken in cleaning and processing sap to syrup. There is some pretty bad birch syrup out there, and some really good syrup. It is not all the same, that's for sure. Some producers are not concentrating it fully to syrup.
Many maple producers say that birch syrup is "not for pancakes". We make four "runs" of syrup; our first two - reserve (first day of harvest) and first run (usually first 8-10 days of harvest) are light and sweet and definitely can be used on pancakes. The are quite delicious. Our mid run (transition) is more complex and slightly deeper in flavor, but still quite sweet. Our late run is prized by chefs and brewers and very popular - and we use it as an ingredient in our caramels, brittle, mustard, and other wild harvested fruit products. Birch syrup is unique, and yes we do ship to Canada. There are several very good Canadian birch syrup companies as well. I hope you get to taste!
Thank you for this reply ill look it up
You just don't get it, do you?
that was a cool video. though im guessing that stuff works out about 500 pounds a teaspoon. it must be like caviar when it comes to money. enjoyed that insight, well done. i wish you well
Nice vid! What's the music?
The sap spoils really quickly. Maybe the black currant twigs help to preserve it. Birch syrup still retains many beneficial qualities; there is quite a bit of information on nutritional qualities of birch sap and it is sold widely in Europe. Birch syrup sold as birch concentrate in Europe is sold as a health extract as well. Very interesting stuff ...
I guess the bears don't care for it? Or aren't out yet when the sucking is going on and buckets of it are hanging from the tress??
The bears are just coming out towards the end of the harvest. We had one knock a bucket off a tree one year way back, but just have never had bear issues.
OK, that makes sense. Thanks for answering!
Hows it taste compared to maple???
Birch syrup varies quite a lot depending on where the sap is harvested and techniques used to cook it down. We sell four "runs" - varying from very light and sweet (reserve and first run) to deep, dark, and complex (late run). The flavor over all is more complex than maple - more caramel-like, a bit of fruity undertones in the early runs; dark cherry, coffee and chocolate in the later runs. It varies also from year to year. The syrup contains the same amount of natural sugars as maple, but they are different sugars and the sap contains about a third of the sugar in maple sap, so it requires average 110 gallons of sap to a gallon of syrup. It takes a lot more boiling down to get to syrup. This is why it can sometimes have a burnt taste. We use reverse osmosis to remove a large portion of the water before we start cooking it down to prevent over-caramelization of the sugars. Give it a try! You can purchase all runs at our website: www.alaskabirchsyrup.com.
Never having it before myself would I think it was maple syrup???
No, very different flavor.
Its great your marketing jobs
War criminals realised im the Judge for the Hague?
Whats the price of 1 million iraqi children?
Any chance of working for ya?, I'm not looking for money just work and room and board.....
Im a former pipeliner and pipe layer .... and firewood cutter...
Please get help your modulation I like so far
2:05 “....photosynthetic process of feeding the leaves.”
I like regular amber maple syrup.
DHC Beaver one love
sweet!
100-150:1...damn no wonder its so expensive.
nice
Im from maine im willing to do just about anything...
You are killing the tree
certainteed insulation
no you dont get it. it is sad to see people so brainwashed with this "exploitation" garbage. sorry you want to go back to the stone age, but still want the apple iphone you are probably listening too.
Sounds like you had a good harvest - that's a great ratio for sap that is such low brix ... maybe it's higher than you think? Do you use a refractometer or a hydrometer? We have 3500 trees on tubing and vacuum now; still 5000 pails and a few gravity tubing. We are working away from the pails, but still get better production with them. Jury is still out on vacuum with birch ... the maple folks said we would get higher production... still haven't started harvest here yet; very cold spring!
Hi - it is an oberdorfer gear pump mounted to a Honda engine - belt driven, that is designed to reduce the speed on the pump about 4:1. The are not really designed for this job and tend to wear out fairly quickly - you can baby them and get a couple of years, but with the number of trees we tap we replace them almost yearly. we are looking at other options and have already started running tubing and vacuum to some of our trees. Thanks for the interest.
Any birch will work - preferably in northern climates as the sap will spoil quickly in warm weather. However I have heard that the sugar content of yellow birch sap is lower than white birch, so for syrup you may be in the 150:1 ratio range rather than 100:1. Drinking the sap is good in any case!
Thanks for your support; not sure where that is coming from either. There are sure a lot more "exploitative" ways (and easier ways) to make a living ...
We will probably not start tapping for another two weeks. What species are you tapping? What is the sugar content of the sap? This video is a little outdated; check out our Facebook page: Kahiltna Gold Birch Syrup to see what we are up to now. 10,000 trees last year; not sure what it will be this one but we always aim for a bit more. Good luck with your harvest.
Thanks for your support on the "exploitation" issue. The birch forest is my cathedral ... unfortunately most use in Alaska is in cutting it down. Now you might call THAT exploitation.
Yes, somewhat a labor of love; not a lot of money in it, but we get by! Thanks for your interest and well wishes ...
Yes, we do sell some of the purified water to a local brewery, along with sap. Have heard they bottle the purified water back east from maple and call it "tree water". Now there's a concept! Would like to bottle sap; there is a market for it and lots of info on the potential health benefits - both sap and syrup. Thanks for your comment.
I am hoping to download some new videos to this site by it's a legacy site now and it is really hard to connect to a gmail account. So I may refer you to another channel. Stay Tuned!
Yes, thanks ... had to live up to my name ;)