March means business
March means business - forest business! Every year there is maintenance and repair work to be done to our lines before the sap runs. In the photo a tree has fallen onto three of our sap collection lines that transport birch sap. The lines are resilient and once the tree is removed they will bounce back. With smaller lines we are not so lucky. Some will have been chewed by animals or broken by trees falling on them. These have to be repaired.
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The upside is the weather is warmer, the forest is silent, and despite the work involved the stress of life melts away and it is easy to focus on each task. We enjoy being out in the fresh air, seeing some of the animals of the forest, and the solitude! It really is "back to nature". There is nothing like it!
Celebrating our 10th Anniversary in Business!
This March, 2021, is the beginning of our 10th year. On March 4th, 2012 we started our new venture - The Canadian Birch Company. To celebrate we are doing two things - Looking back and looking forward.
Looking Back - March 2012
One of our first February to early March jobs in year 1 was marking all the trees in the area we were planning to tap and flagging birch trees that were at least 8 inches in diameter or more. The flagged trees could be easily identified in preparation for trimming trails to allow access for our tapping team.
Fun Fact - Unlike maple trees, birch trees should not be tapped ahead of time. The holes can dry up and scar over, causing a decrease in production. This means that with Birch, as soon as the sap starts to run, an army of tappers needs to into the forest to install taps in all the earmarked trees. It is a marathon not unlike the grape harvest in wine country...timing is key and the job needs to be done as quick as possible to maximize production.
[See our blog, Birch vs Wine, an interesting vignette discussing how birch syrup and wine making have many similarities]
Late in March 2012, we prepared a level packed limestone pad for the arrival of the huge water tanks you see in the photo below.
Fun Fact - running birch sap through a reverse osmosis system creates a massive amount of purified water, which we, in turn, use to clean the reverse osmosis equipment, evaporator and other equipment. Reuse & recycle!
Looking Forward - 2021
Monthly giveaways are starting this month! Watch Instagram or Facebook for a post announcement. This month our feature is Birch Bacon Jam.
Unlike many bacon jams out there, this one is BACON with onion and garlic not ONION with a little bacon flavouring. This is the REAL DEAL. Our bacon jam is not overly sweet and the Amber Birch Syrup produces rich flavour ending with a beautiful savory finish. It is the Birch Syrup that makes this condiment extraordinary!
New Recipes on our blog
Our March cooking theme is centered around backyard fires so we have put up some classic favorites with a Birch twist. Imagine S'mores and Fire Roasted Bannock with Birch Bacon Jam!!!
Don't forget to visit our our recipe blog on our website which features numerous recipes with our Birch Syrups and our Birch Sweet & Sociable gourmet collection as ingredients. The recipes are easy, our Birch gourmet collection does all the work!
New products to come
We are working on a few new additions to our Sweet and Sociable Collection.
HINT: Backyard BBQ and Cocktails!
We are not going to say anymore just yet - Except that we are having a lot of fun creating, tasting and collaborating with family and our culinary consultant, Executive Chef Christine Couvelier (Culinary Concierge).
Stay tuned!!!
No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. - Hal Borland
Nice!
Way to Go!
ps. where would landowners purchase 5-gallon pails for their hobby tapping?
Thanks,
Ken Fosty