this post was submitted on 16 Feb 2026
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[–] hector@lemmy.today 8 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

I make maple syrup, and much of it has wildly different taste, the only ingredient is maple sap, but it doesn't all taste like the syrup in stores. I'm afraid when selling it I will be accused of faking it too, even though other producers will tell you that as well.

I do know someone that bought a gallon at a farmer's market that turned out to be some nasty corn syrup abomination, guy disappeared. As to fake honey, honey has a particular taste, as does maple syrup, even the stuff that's different, it's more than just sugar, just as you can't well fake fruit juice with sugar water. Mapoline is easily identifiable, I suspect honey would be the same, but I think your cases is probably more them mixing real honey with syrups and the like?

Because artificial flavors, known as natural flavors to the US government, (as they were naturally made in a lab from chemicals, after all isn't everything part of god's plan?) are a poor substitute for real ones, in my experience. Artificial strawberry, blueberry, Vanilla, mapoline, and so forth are all easily identifiable, and abominations to anyone used to the real thing.

[–] evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world 2 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

From what I understand, they dont try to build syrup from scratch, it's more that they cut the real thing with sugar and water. According to wikipedia, maple syrup is basically 2/3rds sugar and 1/3rd water, with about 1% "other".

If you added the right proportion of sugar and water to real stuff in a 50:50 ratio, I'd have a really hard time distinguishing that from the natural variation in taste strength.

Luckily I have a steady supply from people I trust. I can't get enough of the stuff made over a wood fire.

[–] hector@lemmy.today 1 points 3 hours ago

I make maple wine from it too, especially off tasting syrup, and also from the washings of it, when I bottle it all the goop on the sides of the containers, I wash it all into a mix and throw yeast and nutrient in there, sometimes spruce or white pine needles, yarrow, blackberry roosts, burdock root. None of which are that great, the spruce and white pine are ok. Nettle was good too, and a substitute for nutrient.

But that is really interesting in the types of tastes you can get from it, it's very complex, but depending on the yeast, and if wild yeasts get in there. Then the vinegar mother gets in there if you aren't careful, I've so much vinegar, way more than I can use I'm pickling entire 5 gallon buckets of vegetables with it.