Beyond the Shelf: What You Miss Out On with Store-Bought Syrup

By Cyrus Papageorgiou

From pancakes to waffles (and sometimes even snow), maple syrup is a sweet and sugary breakfast staple that sits in the shelves of fridges around the United States, and graces both hustle-and-bustle diners, as well as rural New England homes. It is the "morning coffee" of a long ski day at the mountains and a necessary addition to the Belgian-style treats at the local waffle booth.

But, at the same time, why does the nutrition label on the bottle upon your kitchen table read further than ingredient one: maple tree sap? Why, after your third pancake, does the syrup start to feel bland and metallic? Can this chemical equation even be considered maple syrup?
Well, there's actually a strong argument to say no.

Imagine you are strolling through the breakfast aisle at the supermarket; you walk by the pancake mix, the instant espresso, and, eventually, the maple syrup. Each bottle is covered in orange-ish-yellow leaves, and each one says "for pancakes" or "natural," and even "organic." However, underneath those labels is a much more telling process which, surprisingly, contradicts each and every one of those labels.

The key difference between store bought syrup and homemade is not visual: it's in the process. In store bought bottles, that renowned amber-look is achieved by artificial dyes, usually Caramel coloring. That toxic sweetness that shocks taste buds? High fructose corn syrup. Okay, but syrup doesn't spoil for years, right? Your favorite brand prioritizes adding preservatives anyways. Even flavoring is artificially included into what now seems like a chemical soup.

The primary criticism of the added ingredients isn't that it doesn't back up the "health nut" mindset; it's that, somehow, the additions included age poorly within your taste buds, and it strips away the actual maple flavor from self-harvested sap.

So what's even the difference? To start, homemade maple syrup goes from tree to bucket to furnace to bottle, without adding anything. By only using 100% pure maple sap (and a little bit of fire), the true flavor of maple syrup can be embraced. That sweetness? Less sharp and more warm and silky. But won't the syrup spoil without preservatives? Not for at least three years. What about that color? Made from evaporation and caramelization. And, if you want to bring the health argument in, homemade syrup isn't just a better choice, it actually has its own health benefits. Zinc, potassium, and magnesium (only to name a few minerals) are all part of the freshly-prepared syrup package.

I know that my taste buds have left the masquerade that is store-bought syrup brands, and I now enjoy my waffles (I am NOT a pancakes person) with the real flavor of nature's sugar.