Why Vermont maple syrup could look and taste 'lighter' this year

FAIRFIELD, Vt. - Maple syrup makers in Vermont say the warm end to 2022 could mean changes to their products.

They say they started collecting sap earlier than usual, but that sap is less concentrated. That means it takes more of it to make maple syrup.

As a result, syrup made at the start of this year could look a little different and have a more subtle flavor.

"It's probably going to be a lighter color and a lighter maple taste," Evan Branon with Branon Family Maple Orchards in Vermont told WCAX.

Branon said this has happened before and is no cause for alarm. He expects that later in the season "we will get right back to that stronger flavor."