Maple syrup is made by collecting sap from sugar maple trees and then boiling it to evaporate the water content until the sap reaches the right density and concentration of sugars to become syrup. The main steps include tapping the maple trees by drilling holes and inserting spouts to gather the sap, collecting the sap via buckets or tubing systems, and then evaporating the sap in large pans called evaporators until it thickens into syrup. Typically, it takes about 40 gallons of sap to produce 1 gallon of maple syrup. The boiling causes the water to evaporate and the sugars to concentrate, and during this process, chemical reactions like the Maillard reaction give maple syrup its color, flavor, and aroma. After boiling, the syrup is filtered to remove impurities, graded, and then packaged for sale. Modern production often includes reverse osmosis to remove some water before boiling, making the process more efficient.
