2026 Maple Syrup Season Summary
The winter of 2026 in Northern Vermont turned out to be one for the record books, our second in a row truly old-fashioned winter. Jay Peak Ski Resort which is only a few miles from our sugarhouse ranked among the top snowfall ski resorts for the majority of the winter. They reported an amazing 300 inches of snow by January 27, 2026 and they finished the year with over 400 inches total. Also, like 2025 there were absolutely no thaws this winter so the snow just kept piling up, and up, and up.
The delayed start to Spring is reflected in the graph of Cumulative Growing Degree Days. We track this each year and it gives us a good idea of the pace of spring development.
The blue line represents 2026, the yellow line 2025 and the green line 2024. In 2024, we had numerous thaws in February and early March and we produced the majority of our syrup by March 15th. By comparison, both 2025 and 2026 remained well below the 30-year average through much of the winter. In 2026 we had one thaw about March 8th, but the temperature remained cold for several more weeks. Fortunately the temperatures in late-March and April were near perfect for sap production.
Needless to say, working in the woods and tapping our maple trees was a major chore again this year. We tried purchasing larger snowshoes but the snow was still above our waists in the drifts. Most of our sap lines were buried under several feet of snow and had to be shoveled out by hand before the system could be fully prepared. Tapping and preparing our sugarwoods took about three months, from December through February.
Our first meaningful sap collection and boil into maple syrup occurred on March 9th, several weeks later than typical. After that initial thaw, temperatures remained relatively cold for several more weeks. Fortunately the weather changed in late March and we enjoyed several weeks of near perfect sugaring weather. Having the season condensed into such a short period made for some around-the-clock days. We had some huge sap runs during this period. For instance, on April 3 and 4th we collected over 80,000 gallons of sap!
2026 Maple Syrup Flavor Profile
2026 was an exceptionally cold and snowy winter. Though this weather made production challenging, it did allow us to produce excellent tasting syrup. Our Amber Syrup had a balanced, classic Vermont taste and was more "buttery" than normal, with a hint of vanilla. Our dark syrup had a deeper, more commanding maple profile than normal, robust enough to carry through glazes, coffee, and baked goods. Shop our Sugarhouse Reserve syrups and taste the grade differences yourself.
Images From Our 2026 Season
