In a Facebook group for sugarmakers, others in the industry have made comments like, “flavor is entirely subjective” and “flavor is a matter of opinion.” When you're producing maple syrup, flavor is very important, so let’s take a closer look.
This will fascinate some people, inspire others, and maybe embarrass and outrage a few. And I recognize that I'm still learning. Last summer, I pursued a molecular level analysis of my amber and dark syrups for the purpose of food pairing. I know all the molecules in my maple syrup that people can taste and smell and their exact proportions. Not everyone needs to do that to be able to have an objective basis to talk about flavor and aroma.
When it comes to flavor, consider two perspectives: One is the consumer and the other is the producer. Consumers like what they like. In that sense, good taste is a matter of opinion. From junior high school Latin I remember De gustibus non est disputandum. Matters of taste are not to be disputed, or more commonly translated as “there is no accounting for taste.” In matters of taste, the consumer is king or queen. Using coffee as an analogy (I worked in the coffee industry for a long time), some people like espresso straight up and others like coffee with milk and sugar. Others like flavored coffees with a lot of cream and sugar. There is a huge variety of preferences.
As a producer, however, flavor is not a matter of opinion. Flavor is a tool to help you delight your customers, build loyalty, increase the size of your customer base, and increase price. It can be rigorous, scientific, and objective. The prize is that if you can make something your customers love. It's that simple.
Three questions: 1. How well do you know what your customers love in maple syrup?
2. How well do you know which choices you can make in the sugarbush, collection system, fermentation tanks, concentration, and evaporation to make the syrup that will get you more customers and make you more money?
3. If you are buying bulk or selling bulk – how well do you and the other party in the transaction agree on how to grade maple syrup to determine its value?
4. There is a 4th bonus question. How do you talk with consumers about flavor and how can you introduce them to better tasting maple syrup so they never go back?
The better your answers to those questions, the more money you can make for the same hard work you do.