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Making Maple Syrup A ‘Sweet Disease’

April 03, 2011 - Hebron— Temperatures may have been bitter and the wind biting, but bright blue skies and a sweet, sugary smell in the spring air drew thousands out of their winter hibernation for the state's annual Maine Maple Sunday event.

"I've never done a Maine Maple Sunday, and I've lived here my entire life," said Amanda Malo, 28, of Hebron, who came out for the day with her husband, Brian, and their two children. "I'm wanting them to see how it all happens. It's just such an interesting process."

The Malo family were among the more than 100 people who stopped by Sunday morning to observe the process, sample the results and support local maple syrup operations at Swift Acres Farm. The couple said that their family become interested in the maple syrup-making process during a Girl Scout demonstration last fall and wanted to learn more about it.

Syrup-maker Randy Swift and his friend, Jason Strong, were more than happy to oblige eager minds in the hobby they jokingly called a "sweet disease." Swift and his family run a small, old-school, wood-fired sugar shack on Hebron Center Road in Hebron.

"Maple syruping is a disease," Swift chuckled. "Anyone in their right mind knows that anyone who would put the time and work into it that you need for the little money you get out of it is out of their mind."

Swift Acres Farm was one of about 100 maple syrup-making operations across the state to open their doors Sunday as part of the annual event.

Swift carries on the business/hobby started by his 78-year-old father, Robert, in the 1980s. The 350 trees tapped by Swift and Strong produce about 35 gallons of syrup each year. Both men agreed that that the sap is flowing well this maple season. The small sugar shack has already produced 30 gallons of syrup.

Swift and Strong enjoy drawing people into their sweet disease as much as they enjoy making maple syrup. The two men eagerly chatted with families crowded into the small sugar shack behind Swift's family's home and even encouraged youngsters to get involved in the process, which can take hours.

"It's like any type of hobby that you get into and enjoy," Strong said. "You just get hooked. You get more into it."

And while the folks at Randy Swift's farm smacked their lips on tasty ice cream topped with maple syrup or some of his wife's fresh-baked goodies, hundreds more were lined up down the road at the West Minot Grange for the annual breakfast hosted by the West Minot Sugarhouse on Route 119.

Usually held in a small enclosed area in back of the operation owned by Wayne Slattery and his family, the popular pancake and sausage breakfast moved across the road this year in hopes of accommodating bigger crowds. And yet the lines still extended out the door, and the wait was nearly 30 minutes.

"I didn't think there'd be this long of a line," said Joe Roy, 70, of Lewiston, who brought his grandkids to the West Minot Sugarhouse. "We promised them a horse-drawn ride and, of course, a pancake breakfast."

Like most in the line that extended out the door and down the road, Roy figured the breakfast would be well worth the wait.

"It's definitely worth standing in line," said Crystal Rudman, 31, of South Paris, as she waited with her family. "It's a nice family tradition and it's something to do to support local business. And, of course, the fresh maple syrup."

Andie Hannon, Sun Journal, March 2011


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