By the first week in March the sugarbush suddenly come alive with the rush of free-flowing maple sap.  Standing out under the early evening stars, you can literally hear it channeling down the mountain through the mainlines into the 5,000 gallon collecting tank! 

Raw sap is perishable, so Colin drives Ol' Sappy as fast as he can back from the mountain to the sugarhouse to begin the boiling process.  Maple sap contains on average of only 2% sugar.  In order to cut down on boiling time, we pump the sap through a REVERSE OSMOSIS MACHINE.

A Reverse Osmosis machine filters out up to 75% of the water from the maple sap by using semi-permeable membranes, and makes a concentrate of 8-10% sugar.  This technology is great for the sugarmaker and consumer because it saves both fuel and boiling time without taking anything away from the natural product.