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How is organic maple syrup made?
From Wisconsin’s Driftless Area to your table, discover how maple syrup is made.
01
It starts with a tap.
Caring for the trees.
Great maple syrup starts with healthy trees. At Tappers, we carefully select mature sugar maples at least 10 inches in diameter before tapping. Through responsible tapping and thoughtful forest management, we help protect the health of our approximately 4,200 maple trees for years to come.
Tappers facts: A maple tree must be at least 10 inches in diameter before we'll tap it. This helps ensure it's mature enough to handle the process.
02
Timing is everything.
The short maple season
Maple season is short and unpredictable. From late February into April, freezing nights and warmer days create the conditions needed for sap to flow. With changing weather, sudden thaws, and freezing equipment, our team stays ready to make the most of every opportunity.
Tappers facts: Sap flows best when nighttime temperatures dip below freezing and daytime temperatures rise above it.
03
Let the sap flow.
Once the sap begins flowing, a network of tubing carries it through the woods to our collection system. Our vacuum technology helps us collect sap efficiently, even on days when it wouldn't naturally flow as well under gravity alone. It's one way we make the most of Wisconsin's short maple season.
Tappers facts:
Vacuum-assisted collection allows us to gather sap on marginal weather days when traditional gravity systems may collect very little.
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04
Less water.
More maple.
Reverse Osmosis
Fresh maple sap is mostly water. Before boiling, we run it through a reverse osmosis system that removes approximately 85–90% of its water. This concentrates the natural sugars, reduces fuel consumption, and helps us produce high-quality syrup more efficiently.
Tappers facts: Our reverse osmosis system removes up to 90% of the water from fresh sap before it reaches the evaporator.
05
From sap to syrup
The final transformation
After concentrating the sap, we keep it chilled until it's ready for our evaporator. There, careful boiling removes the remaining water and transforms the sap into rich, pure maple syrup. The finished syrup is immediately hot-packed into food-grade steel drums to preserve its quality.
Tappers facts: Early-season sap generally produces lighter, milder syrup, while later-season sap creates darker syrup with a stronger maple flavor.
Better syrup starts in the woods.
OUR COMMITMENT
Making great maple syrup is about more than what happens in the sugarhouse. From responsible forest management to efficient production technology, every decision we make reflects our commitment to quality, sustainability, and the land we love.
Certified Organic
Sustainable Forestry
