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Maple Water 2018

Posted by Dyberrycreek.farm on

Next week is ​our 2018 ​maple season.  We are pleased to offer… Maple Water! ​Maple season happens onc​e per year and only for a week or two max.  

​In early spring, when it’s below freezing at night and above freezing during the day, the maple trees that have been dormant all winter start sending a unique watery sap up from the roots to the branches during the day, and back down to the roots at night.  For centuries, people have tapped the trees during this brief early spring season to capture this flow.  (You literally pound a tap (like a little faucet) into the tree, and the water flows from the tap into your container.  After the season ends, you remove the tap and the spot seals itself back up, with no harm to the tree.)  Maple water can be boiled down to make maple syrup, or it can be enjoyed just as it is, as a refreshing beverage.  You may have seen “maple water” in your natural grocery store.  (It’s kind of like coconut water, but from maple trees, and even trendier!)​
As soon as the maple trees start flowing, we capture it right out of our trees and will bring it to you, ultra fresh.
Fresh, natural maple water spoils in a few days so it should be either drunk right away, frozen, or boiled into maple syrup.  The maple water you find for sale in high end supermarkets has been flash pasteurized to preserve it for a longer period.  It’s still good, but it’s sweeter and has literally been “cooked”, so it doesn’t taste quite as fresh and clean as the straight-from-the-tree stuff.  Just like with our eggs, ultra fresh tastes better and has everything in it just like nature intended.​  Maple water is actually being touted as the ultimate sports recovery / electrolytes drink.  The taste?  Pure, cool water…with the tiniest lovely hint of maple flavor.  

​Could you use our maple water to make your own homemade maple syrup?  Yes, but…  If you are thinking about making your own syrup, you should know it takes ​40 gallons of maple water ​to make about 1 gallon of syrup, and it’s a bit tricky.  In fact, our first year I almost burned our house down, so it is now an outdoor activity only.  We hope to offer maple syrup for sale ​later in the year.

We plan to offer the option to have half gallon jugs of maple water delivered with your eggs.  The timing is up Mother Nature, but it should be the first week in March.  

Due to the short window of the season and the perishable nature of the product, ​it​ will only be offered one time this year.  However, maple water does freeze well, so you can stock up if you have the ​freezer space.  (Freezing it does not alter the super-fresh natural flavor or nutrition 2017-02-25_11-42-59_001profile, unlike pasteurizing.)  We even recommend this, since there’s probably nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day than a glass of icey-cool maple water.  It’s also fabulous after a workout, or a post-indulgent-weekend recovery.  In season, we’ve been known to bring visitors to the farm right over to a tree with a wine glass, to fill up from the source, for a welcome beverage.  Even without your own backyard tree, you could certainly impress a guest or two by serving it well chilled (or frozen and blended) in a champagne flute​ for brunch….or use it to make coffee, tea, or cocktails to add a hint of sweetness and a great story to tell.​

Did you know???  Maple Water trivia from around the world….

  • North America (especially Canada) is the world’s largest producer of maple syrup from maple water
  • South Koreans revere maple water, and have a thousand-year history of going to the mountains to harvest it every year.  They drink it and use it for cooking water.  It is called “gorosoe”, translated literally as “the tree that is good for the bones”
  • Northern and Eastern Europeans tap both maples and birches, and drink the water as a health beverage in spring
  • Many cultures consider maple water to have health-giving properties including:  digestive health, immune system support, anti-inflammatory properties, high levels of antioxidants​, even cancer fighting compounds.  Read more here:  https://wildfoodism.com/2015/02/24/the-health-benefits-of-drinking-maple-tree-sap/ 


If you would ​like some (pickup in Honesdale PA or UWS – NYC Only), please pre-order by emailing bpaulphillips@gmail.com before the last day of February.  

Below is some marketing copy from a commercially available maple water and a pic of what it looks like on a shelf

​Brian​ and Eve
Dyberry Creek Farm

 

Marketing copy from a commercial maple water package:

Untouched. Unspoiled. Unboiled.
Only a tree could manufacture water this pure and this hydrating.
Maple water is low calorie, gluten-free, dairy-free and non-GMO.
It contains 46 naturally occurring vitamins, minerals, polyphenols,
antioxidants prebiotics, minerals and electrolytes.
It also has just half the sugar of coconut water
and more manganese than a cup of kale.
And oh yes, it is the only water with that little hint of maple flavor.

 

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