What do You Need to Know When You’re Buying Your Syrup?

Don’t forget this important reminder: make sure you’re purchasing 100 percent all-natural maple syrup.

By Michelle Visser
Published on September 30, 2019
article image
by AdobeStock/Kate Wilcox

Make sure you’re purchasing 100 percent all-natural maple syrup. It’s an added bonus if you can assure that your syrup was made by a single-source producer, which you can’t do if you’re grabbing your syrup off a big box store shelf or buying online, where one syrup bottle can be a mix of syrups from hundreds of different sugarmakers.

You might consider stocking up, or even buy in bulk, when you find syrup you love. You can keep unopened maple syrup in a cabinet or cool, dark place for a long time. Mine has been fine in my root cellar for years at a time. Once you’ve opened your syrup, however, you do want to make sure you keep it sealed tightly in the refrigerator, or mold will start to form on that sugary deliciousness.

Just how sweet is syrup?

A crazy thing happened a few years ago in San Francisco. A whole bunch of scientific-minded professionals put their heads together and shared their findings at a huge symposium focused entirely on (drum roll please) maple syrup. It was the first worldwide symposium to focus exclusively on the health benefits of that ambrosial yumminess we boil down from tree sap.

I’ve done some deciphering of the notes from the symposium and, honestly, maple syrup continues to impress the hand-knit socks off of me.

It’s so impressive that I’ve weeded through the scientific jargon, talked to some experts, and boiled it down to some syrup adjectives you really need to know. According to these scientists, just look at all the things you can call this amber ambrosial sugar, in addition to delicious:

Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368