Monday, April 9, 2007

BOOK REVIEW: THE MAPLE SYRUP BOOK



The Maple Syrup Book
by Janet Eagleson, Rosemary Hasner, Rosemary Hasner, Rosemary Hasner (Photographer)

Published in March of 2006 by Boston Mills Press, this book is one of our favorite maple syrup books. This richly illustrated book relates Native legends surrounding maple syrup's discovery and explain its importance in the pioneer diet. The authors cover the sugar maple's exalted status in the maple tree family, and reveal why maple sap is still one of nature's great mysteries.

There are lots of great details, including about how sugar maples are tapped and how the sap is collected, as well as insights from producers who reveal their affection for a shared passion. It also includes a special "maple syrup flavor wheel" that describes the many colors, grades and flavor variations available

The recipe section includes maple salmon, maple-marinated chicken wings and maple sugar pecans.

Don't just trust us. Library Journal reported, "This is a fun and fact-filled work guaranteed to delight folks of all ages." Janet Eagleson is the author of Nature Hikes. This is her second collaboration with photographer Rosemary Hasner. Rosemary Hasner is a photographer whose images have appeared in books, magazines, and calendars.

2 comments:

Janice Coles said...

Hi,

The library I work at has this book, and one of our customers has reported some serious errors in the temperature conversions on pages 63, 65, and 67. He reports that the Celsius temperatures are sometimes wrong, and in other cases the Fahrenheit numbers are wrong. He believes that what has likely happened is that corresponding values on the actual markings of a thermometer have been naively matched in converting the TEMPERATURE RISE for one system to the other, which is not the appropriate way to do the math. (He adds that the figures on page 55, comparing 7.38 degrees in the Fahrenheit system to 4.1 degrees in the Celsius system, are correct.)

He is concerned that this is not just a simple matter of the authors making a few minor mistakes, but that they are providing the public and possibly some commercial producers with instructions on how to make a certifiable quality of maple syrup, one that is safe to keep in storage, and this erroneous information can result in a defective product being sold to the public. Plus he is concerned about a remote possibility of these faulty instructions leading to serious personal injury and lawsuits.

I know nothing about syrup making. Do any of you have any comments?

Thanks,

Janice Coles

Janice Coles said...

Hi,

The library I work at has this book, and one of our customers has reported some serious errors in the temperature conversions on pages 63, 65, and 67. He reports that the Celsius temperatures are sometimes wrong, and in other cases the Fahrenheit numbers are wrong. He believes that what has likely happened is that corresponding values on the actual markings of a thermometer have been naively matched in converting the TEMPERATURE RISE for one system to the other, which is not the appropriate way to do the math. (He adds that the figures on page 55, comparing 7.38 degrees in the Fahrenheit system to 4.1 degrees in the Celsius system, are correct.)

He is concerned that this is not just a simple matter of the authors making a few minor mistakes, but that they are providing the public and possibly some commercial producers with instructions on how to make a certifiable quality of maple syrup, one that is safe to keep in storage, and this erroneous information can result in a defective product being sold to the public. Plus he is concerned about a remote possibility of these faulty instructions leading to serious personal injury and lawsuits.

I know nothing about syrup making. Do any of you have any comments?

Thanks,

Janice Coles



We are maple syrup producers and in our finishing of the syrup, we concur with the book's assertion that the sugar content, specific gravity, and final temperature are extremely finicky measurements. The slightest mistake at this stage results in syrup that will be disappointing to the consumer and detrimental to the reputation of the Ontario maple syrup industry.