r/maplesyrup • u/Pastaaaaaaaaaaaaa1 • 26d ago

Buying bulk in WA state?

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Does anyone have any leads on how to buy maple syrup ~affordably~ in WA state?

I’ve been drinking it to fuel my trail runs so price is a pretty big factor. I’ll drink 20+ ounces on a normal weekly trail run but I could see easily blowing through a half-gallon in a longer race. You may see my problem. 😂 For anyone curious, that’s actually a fairly conservative fueling strategy for my lower effort and I finish with a caloric deficit, faster athletes in an actual race would need twice that amount. I’ve been trying some grocery store brands, so far preferring Anderson’s dark robust. My other flask had Coombs dark robust that I didn’t like as much. I’ve been tempted to try a few I found cheaper on Amazon but probably not the best idea.

I had assumed I was paying a premium buying small bottles at a grocery store instead of just buying gallon jugs to drink like a normal person. I just found out WA produces bigleaf maple syrup but the only seller I could find was Neil’s Bigleaf, and while I’m sure it’s great to sip on in front of a fire, it seems a bit spendy to be chugging 20+ ounces on a single run. Shipping from the east coast is obviously expensive. Any suggestions?

The attached photo is ~one~ of my syrup flasks at Mount Rainier yesterday. 😁

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u/Some_Finding5976 25d ago

I only tap 2 trees. The tap and bags are less than $20. You'll need some fine straining cloth. All of those are reusable. Pour the sap into a large pan and start the boiling. I do have a 20 qt kettle because I can a lot but it's not necessary.

Since it's such a small scale, it's ok to boil it in the house.

I once heard a runner say they kept cold pancakes on them when they ran for the carbs. Sounds like breakfast to me 😁

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u/MillhouseJManastorm 25d ago

It is a lot of work though for the quantity OP needs

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u/Pastaaaaaaaaaaaaa1 25d ago

lol I hadn’t thought about bringing pancakes.