So far so good for the maple season.  We’ve made both Light and Medium amber syrup and have a complete assortment of sizes available.  With any luck we’ll get a touch of the promised ‘sugar’ snow tonight.  We were disappointed to have missed a touch of the storm that went south over the weekend.  But it got cool and we should see some more sap flow tomorrow and Thursday.

Hours this weekend will be 12-4 pm Sat and Sun and we should be boiling both days.

The season is at hand. Brian started tapping on Monday and we had our first boil on Tuesday.  A full week earlier than last year.  So all week he’s been working on getting more buckets out.  It ran well yesterday and he just finished boiling again tonight.  We’ve had lots of folks asking over the last 2 weeks  about the effect that no snow will have on the season.  Brian’s usual remark is “I’ll tell you in April.”  We have had seasons with no snow and done ok so it’s anyones guess.  Mostly it’s the weather patterns now that will dictate how it turns out.  We are happy for the cold snap coming.  It’s good roller coaster weather we need for the next month.  Here’s a shot of a typical old maple we have tapped already.

Last week was the annual NH Maple Producers Meeting which means the season is near.  Brian has been busy the last few weeks getting things in order.  The stack to the evaporator needed to go back up with a fresh paint job.  Spiles and buckets had to be cleaned.  Some new buckets & spiles were ordered to replace old worn ones and we’ll have some “DIY” sets for customers to buy too.  Next week looks like the start of tapping while the temperature hovers around freezing.  Then we will wait.  Everyone wants to know how the season will be but we can’t predict Mother Nature’s whims.  The summer and fall weren’t too bad for the trees.  It was a bumper seed year for maples.  Wish for lots of  mild days and freezing nights.  That weather over the next 6 weeks will make the season a good one.  At least there will be no need for snowshoes right now.

And we can’t forget to say “Go PATS”.  

Happy New Year one and All. It is hard to believe another one has slipped in so quickly.  Time may fly when you’re having fun but I think it has to do with my age.  The older I am the faster it goes!

Our thanks to everyone for all the support through last year and the many before.  We had our best year ever and met loads of great people.

We had an interesting opportunity during the NH Primary run up.  A gentleman named Peter, representing German TV, asked to come by the Sunday before to get a small bit on something New England while he was covering the Romney campaign.  So he and his cameraman visited and interviewed Brian.   It just goes to show how popular maple syrup making is even outside the US.

Brian will be at the Newburyport MA Farmers Market at the Tannery tomorrow from 10 am to 2 pm.

The time is upon us to get things planned for start up of this years maple season which is just weeks away.  Next Saturday we’ll be at the NH Maple Producers Annual Winter Meeting. And that means the NH Farm and Forest in Manchester is right behind.

Hours This Weekend:

Friday Dec 16th  12 pm to 4 pm

Saturday Dec 17th  12 pm to 4 pm

We will be at the Newburyport Farmers Market at the Tannery on Sunday Dec 18th from 10 am to 2 pm.

All remaining wreaths are now only $20.00 so they hopefully will all find a home for the holidays.  We have maple candy, syrup and cream; a few gift baskets and maple mustard and BBQ sauce.  Last weekend was terrific and we thank all those who came by to support us and get some great local NH products.

Wow!  What a perfect day we had for the Open House.  By the sounds of it all of Chester was abustle with folks visiting all the different events.  And we had a very successful day as well.  As always we are so appreciative of all the kind words about how wonderful our wreaths are.   (see photo taken courtesy of my sister Lynn) That is what makes it all worthwhile for us.  But we still have a good variety of wreaths available and plenty of pure maple products for those holiday gifts.  We will be open Sunday Dec 4th from 10 am to 3 pm.

Hours for the next week are:

Tuesday Dec. 6th  through Sunday Dec. 11th      12pm to 4 pm daily

A selection of wreaths 2011

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE

DEC 3 AND DEC 4, 2011  SAT 9AM – 4PM  SUN 10AM – 3PM

We are just about ready for the weekend.  Brian made is last trip for greens last week and the wreaths look beautiful.  A few more to decorate though before we’re done.  For those who wonder what our decorated wreaths are like, all I can say is they are a mix of themes.  Some are inspired from the traditional, others with sparkle and shine and some folk art-ish.  Whatever we see that strikes our fancy is what we put into the wreaths.  Many are not geared to the holidays per se, just the winter season or some woodland whimsey with little critters.  Still others are of the Della Robia/Williamsburg feel.  Prices range from $25.00-50.00 for decorated wreaths.

Wreaths are limited so the best choices are available on Saturday.