SYRACUSE, N.Y.—A normal winter.

That’s how most sugarmakers are describing January of 2025 so far, with bitter cold temperatures and lots of snow all across the Maple Belt.

Meanwhile, the enthusiasm for January tapping seems to have diminished for some.

Last year at this time, many sugarmakers were making syrup already. 

In fact, sugarmakers in traditionally cold areas like Wisconsin and Minnesota, even ones on gravity, we’re making January syrup last season.

This year not so much.

But that doesn’t mean producers should abandon plans to tap early in freezing cold temperatures. In fact, for many, it’s preferred.

‘If it’s above 32 degrees, we don’t tap,” said sugarmaker Glenn Goodrich of Cabot, Vt. “It’s much better to drill into frozen wood.”

Goodrich was a featured speaker at the New York Maple Show this past weekend in Syracuse, where there was much talk about the return-to-normal January weather.

“Tapping when the wood is frozen means it drills easier, and cleaner—the bits go in better into frozen wood,” he said.

And better tapholes mean better vacuum efficiency and less leaks.

The consensus among many of the big sugarmakers—the ones that have to tap early out of pure necessity because they have so many to drill—is that tapping early is better, even if there is no sap days in sight.

Cody Armstrong, who makes syrup near Randolph, Vt. and boiled on January 4, agrees that cold tapping is better.

“We always tap when it’s frozen,” he told The Maple News.

Concerns about spouts popping out is a common question, but the experts say it should not dissuade from tapping early.

“Polycarbonate spouts tend to stay in the tree, while sometimes the nylon ones pop out,” Goodrich said.

Still, the benefits far outweigh any negatives.

If sugarmakers do tap in January, they should be absolutely prepared if the temps suddenly rise.

“If it gets anywhere near freezing you gotta be ready for sap,” Goodrich cautioned.