As the weather turned from winter to spring, students in the Culinary Arts Program at CT State Community College Manchester got to participate in the production of maple syrup, using sap collected from maple trees on the college’s campus.
The activity was organized by Garrett Dell, who teaches philosophy and English at Manchester. He said he taps about 55 maple trees at his home.
“This is a way to learn through personal experience that captivates the senses, not just theory,” Dell said.
In March, Dell and a dozen students and instructors gathered at a maple tree on the west side of the campus to learn the tree tapping process. Early spring is the optimal time for sap collection. During this period, sap flows more freely as temperatures fluctuate between freezing nights and warmer days. If temperatures rise too much, the sap can spoil before it is processed, said Dell.
Dell demonstrated drilling a hole into the tree at a slight upward angle to allow sap to drip out efficiently. He also advised tapping on the south-facing side of the tree, which usually receives more sunlight.
Students then inserted steel spigots or plastic tubing to direct the sap into collection containers, including repurposed milk jugs. About 40 gallons of sap are required to produce a single gallon of maple syrup.
The collected sap was frozen in the Culinary kitchen until it could be boiled down in April, transforming the raw sap into finished syrup.
Culinary arts major Lydia Alfred said she enjoyed getting out onto the campus.
“I thought the maple syrup activity was very interesting! As a culinary student it was a great way to see where real and raw maple syrup comes from as well as the process of making it,” she said.
Jasmine Rose, another culinary arts student, liked the hands-on project.
“Thank you … for taking the time to demonstrate such a simple but rewarding process!” she said.
Culinary Arts instructor Nicholaus Rajski said the syrup is currently being stored in the kitchen and he hopes to use it in some course recipes.
“Maple flavor goes so well with so many dishes,” he said.
