Maple Syrup Rum

[RandyMarshCT]

I have a friend who did something similar this year. He tapped a bunch of trees, collected a bunch of sap(?), and just boiled it down to the SG he wanted. No need to take it all the way to syrup if you're just going to dilute again.
Tapped his own trees and use firewood to boil it down, so no great expenses for him other than his time spent drinking a beer or two watching the stuff boil down. I haven't tried it yet, but he really likes it. Sounds tasty to me.

That's what I'm planning to do with birch sap if my first try at tapping is successful.

This sounds like a great idea ..

This absolutely sounds like a great idea! I wish I knew someone I could get birch sap from to try it myself. Let me know how that goes if you try it.

[thecroweater]

Great thread RM, back home we have a desert Santalum known as Sandalwood and it produces a very sweet sugary sap that readily ferments to a beer like drink that could best be described as a rum wash. One day I would like to be able to harvest enough to make a rum out of it. I am bemused that folks that exception to calling it a rum seeing how that is what it is. Brandy is simply an Anglicized verse of the word Brandt wein meaning burn wine literally and therefore an alcoholic drink made from the juice of a fruit of vegetable that is then fermented and distilled, Schnapps is similar and can be a grain that is stilled until almost a vodka. Rum is made from the sap of a plant either cane of beet and in your case maple. the only other word that might fit is toddy and I ain't making no drink called toddy or steve for that matter
PS just kidding about the toddy, Toddy is palm wine and distilled to arrack

[MichiganCornhusker]

Wow, this stuff is great. I didn't make it, but was fortunate enough to receive a bottle from RM himself!
Very, very smooth. Maybe a little too smooth for me. Drinks like a high proof liqueur, very flavorful but without the sticky cloying sweetness of a liqueur.
Bottled at 41%, very very mild burn, Stewart's Ginger Beer is much hotter than this! Only after the last tastings of my second pour am I tasting any alcohol flavors.
Full of maple flavor and a mild natural sweetness. Self control is the only thing that would keep a person from just drinking a whole bottle of this.
I have a friend that taps trees in the spring, and I will definitely be trying this out next year! Thank you for the sample, Randy!!

[LWTCS]

Wow, this stuff is great. I didn't make it, but was fortunate enough to receive a bottle from RM himself!
Very, very smooth. Maybe a little too smooth for me. Drinks like a high proof liqueur, very flavorful but without the sticky cloying sweetness of a liqueur.
Bottled at 41%, very very mild burn, Stewart's Ginger Beer is much hotter than this! Only after the last tastings of my second pour am I tasting any alcohol flavors.
Full of maple flavor and a mild natural sweetness. Self control is the only thing that would keep a person from just drinking a whole bottle of this.
I have a friend that taps trees in the spring, and I will definitely be trying this out next year! Thank you for the sample, Randy!!

Sounds delightful.

[Bushman]

Randy, have you made any changes to this recipe since you first posted it?

[BoisBlancBoy]

This absolutely sounds like a great idea! I wish I knew someone I could get birch sap from to try it myself. Let me know how that goes if you try it.



One thing I know is that the difference from maple sap and birch sap is that the resulting syrup from birch sap tends to be much more bitter! Not sure how it would result from ferment just some food for thought.

[RandyMarshCT]

Randy, have you made any changes to this recipe since you first posted it?

My most recent batch was aged in a 5 gallon cask (2nd use) for about 5 months and then aged on soft maple for 8 weeks after the cask. Also, I used 0.8% by volume maple syrup (instead of 1%) to flavor the final product (after proofing to 42% abv). Other than that, no. Same bakers yeast, same molasses and brown sugar proportions. I even used the GoFerm protect. I'm sure I didn't need it, but it was a huge investment in syrup (even at the low price) and I was too afraid to risk it.

In hindsight, I wish I had used a new barrel. I also wish I used 9 gallons of syrup instead of 8... I was a bit too liberal on the heads cut because I was desperate to have enough to fill the cask. My first experiments were with new barrels (5 liter) and I think the product was better... although, I would never get rid of the secondary aging on maple now. I like the flavor it adds.

[Halfbaked]

I have to say I have been fortunate enough to taste Randy's drop. Whiskey? nope. Brandy? nope. Non traditional Rum, yes. I am gonna call it Rhum. I think the maple gives a buttery mouth feel that is very pleasant. It is not as sweet as I expected. I would not add more and would not take any sweetness away. Butter, caramel and vanilla. SMOOTH no heat on the lips! Excellent drop!

[RandyMarshCT]

Thank you HB!

[Spankey]

Wow that sounds very yummy. Sorry about reviving a somewhat old thread. Are you still making it?

[rager]

Randy, have you made any changes to this recipe since you first posted it?

In hindsight, I wish I had used a new barrel.

not to sure if ive tried your maple syrup rum, so this is just what ever. but i think if you let it sit on new charred oak barrel it might come out almost to bourbon like. without tasting and really not knowing a whole lot , i bet using that barrel as a second round was probably the right call. what do i know

[Spankey]

Still I'd love to try a small bottle of that actually not a small bottle lol

[woodshed]

image.jpg

yum yum yum!

I have been lucky enough to pull off of a bottle just like that. RandyMarsh made quite the impression at S3.
Hoping he makes it out for S3:16.

[Spankey]

S3 what's that

[MichiganCornhusker]

Inspired by Randy's excellent maple spirit, I did a version of this this spring.
I started late in the season, but was able to collect enough sap to make almost a gallon of syrup.
It was the first time I've ever made maple syrup and it did taste amazing. It was very difficult to use all of it to make a maple spirit and not keep some for syrup!
I watered it down to 1.060 and fermented with bakers yeast. Distilled it and it smelled and tasted pretty awful.
I was so disappointed. Tasted like damp dirty woody mushrooms, but in a bad way. I tried adding the tiny bit of syrup I had left into it to see if a little sweetness would help but it did not.
I set it aside and didn't taste it for quite a while. About 6 months later there was some muck on the bottom of my jars and the spirit tasted MUCH better.
At this point I am actually quite happy with it, amazed at the transformation.
Going to let it continue to age and see where it goes. I am not aging it with any oak, just clear in a jar.

[RevSpaminator]

Maybe you should age on toasted maple wood.

[raketemensch]

I keep wondering how it would work out to use maple sap instead of water -- sap straight from the tree is one of my favorite tastes. I'd have to get a Brix refractometer, but I can't help but think it would go a ways toward letting me use less cane sugar in a UJSSM, and add a nice flavor as well.

[yakattack]

Raket- I do a seasonal whiskey subbing fresh maple saf for water, and using oats, wheat, and corn. After 6 months it is an incredibly smooth whiskey at 60% both white and aged on toasted maple,

This spring I plan to tap 30 to 40 local trees, and reduce the sap each night so I can save some for future batches.

Yak

[raketemensch]

Raket- I do a seasonal whiskey subbing fresh maple saf for water, and using oats, wheat, and corn. After 6 months it is an incredibly smooth whiskey at 60% both white and aged on toasted maple,

This spring I plan to tap 30 to 40 local trees, and reduce the sap each night so I can save some for future batches.

Yak

Any neighboring houses for sale?

[RandyMarshCT]

Wow that sounds very yummy. Sorry about reviving a somewhat old thread. Are you still making it?

Yup... I've been slow on the revival though... 10 gallons of maple syrup sitting in my garage for the last 4 months just waiting to be fermented. I need a solid weekend to do the 2 runs necessary to fill a 5 gallon barrel.

Rager, I brought a jar to Jedfest 2... it was on the table. Next time you stop by we'll have to throw a couple back. I'll be running the next batch in about 3 weeks, hopefully. I think you're right about the new barrel... I don't want to get to far into the "bourbon" territory with this stuff. Maybe I'll make a video when I do the next wash/run and post it on this thread (if I can figure out how to do that).

[Bushman]

I really want to try my hand at rum, I lost a good opportunity this last weekend as Grappa Gringo was going to bring me down a bunch of Black Strap Molasses as he crossed the border to celebrate his anniversary. We were going to meet up and I was going to buy it from him but I have a ton of work around the house I am trying to get done and I thought he should spend time with his wife rather than meeting up with me during his anniversary get-away.

[TDick]

Steve.

I don't want to get to far into the "bourbon" territory with this stuff.

Reading through this and wondering how this would work as a twist to the "gumball" part of "Jimbo's Wheated Bourbon & Gumball T&T Recipes

Label Credit +jimbo labelizer

[Shine0n]

Just saw this post for the first time, expensive to say the least but I'm sure it's a fine drop.

If I win the lotto I will give this a go. lol

[RandyMarshCT]

I love the label!

ShineOn, if you ever try it, make sure you keep things clean. The last batch I made got completely ruined, both 30 gallon fermenters. They had loose lids (I use them for bourbon... with a low Ph, it's no problem) and fruit flies got in. Got 60 gallons of vinegar. It was a heartbreaker, especially since I used 5 gallons of syrup for each ferment, so it was $400 down the shitter. That scared me away from this recipe for a while.

[ben stiller]

Randy,

Thanks for the advice about cleanliness. My new place across the border from you has a large stand of sugar maples and I have started making syrup. Being a rum fan I am giving this a go after sap season this spring.

[DAD300]

There was once a guy here who I think made this process cheaper and easier.

Make your best sugar wash, rum is sugar, sugar is rum, no?

Now, as you put it into the boiler, add a quart of maple syrup per ten gallons or so.

All the great maple taste with out fermenting vast $$$ amounts of maple syrup.

[thecroweater]

Make your best sugar wash, rum is sugar, sugar is rum, no?.

no NO and hell no, alcohol as in all alcohol is from sugar, rum is from molasses or some other like sap, what that will make is maple vodka.

[Old Town]

Don't have the money to make this one but sure would like to taste it..

[ShineonCrazyDiamond]

Pretty sure I got the only bottle left of the original batch. 3 years now I've been sitting on it. I really need to drink it. But, the longer it sits, the more I feel I need a better reason to open it. Maybe next time I get the ol lady pregnant, or the next time I stub a toe

[Shine0n]

Well hell SCD stop on by to Middlesex and crack it open , lol
I knocked up mine and looking for a reason to celebrate and can't find a better reason to open it and it's a little girl just like you had so.....................

Shine0n