Whiskey Maple Syrup Recipe Gift in a Jar {+Free Printable Labels!} - A Country Girl's Life (2024)

FAQs

How to jar homemade maple syrup? ›

Once syrup is boiling, remove pot from stove and place on counter. Take a mason jar and fill the jar using ladle, leaving about 1 inch of headspace at top (we usually fill until the point where the body of the jar meets the top). 7.) Quickly place lid and ring on mason jar and tighten, take care not to over-tighten.

Unlike spirits such as whiskey and gin, which are produced from starchy grains that need to be milled and pressed into a mash, the maple syrup can be converted directly into a wort that will be fermented by yeast to produce alcohol. Next, the wort is distilled into an 80-proof spirit, and aged in barrels for a year.

To make maple syrup, the tree trunk is drilled or tapped to allow the sap to flow out in the hanging bucket. The collected sap liquid is boiled until it reaches 219°F. At this point, the water evaporates and a thicker consistency develops. Then it is filtered through a cloth to prevent contamination before bottling.

Packing the syrup in hot sanitized containers of food-grade quality inhibits the growth of bacteria. According to the Ohio State University, small containers should be sanitized by boiling them in water for 10 minutes before using them.

Glass Mason jars with nice new lids work well. Just fill the jar with syrup that is between 180 and 190°F, put on the lid, and tip it on its side for a minute to kill any bacteria on the lid. Now you're good to store that maple syrup indefinitely.

After opening, move the bottle to the fridge to discourage mold growth. It will keep well for a year. That being said, maple syrup doesn't technically go bad, but your chances of it becoming moldy go up over time. For longer storage, stick maple syrup in the freezer.

There's something comforting about flavoursome maple syrup and maple syrup tends to be paired with whiskey and often rum in Old Fashioned and Sour style co*cktails. However, as the gin-based Old Vermont (below) proves, maple syrup's delicious richness can also work well combined with white spirits.

Maple syrup can be distilled into hard alcohols or can be added to finished products as a flavoring agent. Craft distilleries are becoming increasingly popular as many states enact legislation that supports these operations, rather than forbidding them as they have in the past.

Made from distilled Quebec maple syrup with no additives, acerum is a fermented spirit that can resemble cognac or whiskey in the glass.

Finishing — Once the water is evaporated to a 66-67% sugar concentration, the sugar starts to go through the molecular changes of candy making. Maple syrup is finished at roughly 7 1/4˚ above the boiling temperature. The browning reaction during finishing creates the familiar maple flavor.

How is 100% pure maple syrup made? ›

The sap of a sugar maple tree (Acer saccharum) is 98 percent water and 2 percent sugar—and it is that 2 percent that will yield a delicious sweetener. It takes 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup, and it is simply by boiling the sap to remove water and thus concentrate the sugar that makes maple syrup.

For example, maple syrup is lower in calories than honey, and therefore may be the better choice for someone looking to lose weight. Pure maple syrup also has fewer carbohydrates and is lower on the glycaemic index than honey, which may make it healthier for certain diets.

Maple Syrup mould (or bloom) is actually more common than you may think - especially in 100% pure Maple Syrup. DO NOT THROW IT AWAY - your Maple Syrup is completely salvageable. The mould that grows on Maple Syrup is a rare, weird little fungus knows as a xerophile.

This means if you do get mold on your maple, you can simply scrape it off the top, reheat the syrup to 180 degrees or more and then put it back away.

Glass maintains the flavor of the maple syrup indefinitely. It may darken slightly, especially if the syrup is not kept in the dark. Glass also allows you to inspect the syrup for cloudiness or sugar crystals. Glass containers are usually reserved for packaging small amounts—½ pints, pints, and quarts.

Unopened syrup can be stored in a pantry away from direct sunlight. Opened syrup should be stored in the refrigerator or freezer, and will last up to two years. If your container is unopened: It is okay to store unopened syrup containers in a pantry.

Syrups may be frozen instead of canned. If freezing, leave 1- inch headspace to allow for expansion during freezing. Frozen syrup will maintain high quality if used within one year of freezing. Syrups stored in the freezer should be kept in the refrigerator once opened.

Bottling Your Maple Syrup

No matter what you choose, make sure that your syrup is at least 180 degrees going into the jar. If it isn't, heat it up to between 180 and 200 before canning. Once the jar or bottle is full (with 1/4 inch headroom) and the lid is secure, let cool and store for up to two years on the shelf.

After opening, genuine maple syrup should be stored in the refrigerator and will last about a year. Opened jugs of imitation maple syrup can be stored in the pantry for about a year.