November 27, 2009              
For Immediate Release

Let the Maple Tapping Begin!

Cowichan – The sap is about to start flowing from Bigleaf Maple trees on the West Coast and syrup makers from all over our region are sharpening their drill bits in anticipation.  “Tapping season usually begins around this time as we are on the verge of just the right combination of weather conditions that produce strong sap flows,” says Gary Backlund, member of the Sapsuckers, a group of local maple syrup producers.  “We expect those tapping at higher elevations to be making syrup any day now.”

Maple tapping and syrup making has enjoyed a surge in popularity after the Bigleaf Maple Syrup Festival started in 2008 at the BC Forest Discovery Centre.  Many people have used the skills they learned at the Festivals to tap their own trees at home and make sweet-tasting maple syrup.  Several past event participants have even joined the Sapsuckers and are volunteering their time to help plan the next event, which is scheduled for Saturday, February 6, 2010.

The 2010 Bigleaf Maple Syrup Festival will feature many new activities plus popular favourites such as tapping demos, how-to workshops and socialising around a boiling sap evaporator.  Cooking with West Coast maple syrup will be a new focus for the event including opportunities for visitors to buy food flavoured with maple syrup and new mini-workshops on cooking with maple syrup.  “We are thrilled to see how much interest the festival has generated for the local maple syrup industry,” says Aimee Greenaway, Program and Collections Coordinator at the museum.  “We are expanding our programming this time so that the 2,000 visitors from the last event can participate again and explore a variety of ways to use maple syrup.”  Be sure to mark Saturday, February 6th on your 2010 calendar and plan to attend in the event.

For more information on maple tapping, the Bigleaf Maple Syrup Festival, or to check out tasty maple syrup recipes, visit www.discoveryforest.com or phone (250) 715-1113.

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Contacts:

Aimee Greenaway
Program and Collections Coordinator
(250) 715-1113 extension 25

Gary Backlund
(250) 245-4939