About Us
Homestead Maple started in the early 1990's with three trees and some milk jugs. We cooked that first year in the kitchen (most people only do that once) before we realized we had caught the "sugar bug,' (a common condition in these parts) and bought a log cabin in a sugarbush. We are located in Chazy, NY - in what we call extreme upstate NY - 30 miles from Swanton, Vermont and 15 miles from Quebec, Canada - in what is currently the top maple producing county in New York state.
Back then, David boiled in the woodshed, first on a 2x3 barrel evaporator, then on a wood fired Leader 2x6 before building our current sugarhouse in 1994. We started with 100 taps on our own property, then expanded to 600 using the neighbor's property (a common method of expansion for people afflicted with the "sugar bug") and then, a few years ago, picked up a 400 tap sugarbush nearby to make up the current 1,000 taps. We currently boil on a 2.5 x 8 Dominion and Grimm oil-fired Champion model raised flue evaporator, which we showed off in the NYS Maple Tour in 2009.
David makes the maple syrup and Angela makes cream and granulated sugar and experiments with black walnut sugaring. We attend several equipment and food shows throughout the year and participate in local historical and educational projects. David is a retired Army National Guard Veteran where he served with his armoured Morrisville, VT, unit in Ramadi, Iraq in 2005-2006. Angela is the current president of the northeastern region of the New York State Maple Producers and also acts as NY State Maple Weekend Coordinator, helping organize this growing event of 160 sugar houses. We have two grown children, Nathan and Elizabeth. See video links below for great local news features about our most recent projects.
We appreciate your business. Thanks for visiting.
Sincerely,
David and Angela Swan
Owners, Homestead Maple
Homestead Maple is proud to offer educational outreach and support for the following programs:
NYS Maple Weekend Open House: Annually the last two full weekends in March.
Speaker and Vendor: NYS Maple Conference, Verona, NY, every first full weekend in January. Seminar: "How to Make the Most of Your Maple Weekend."
Homestead Maple was a host site for the New York State Maple Tour in 2000, 2009 and 2016.
Pioneer Maple Program, 1812 Homestead, Willsboro, NY.
Maple Educational Programming and Teacher Training, Pok-O-MacCready Outdoor Education Center, Willsboro, NY.
Featured Vendor at the Adirondack Coast Barn, Clinton County Fair, Plattsburgh, NY in July, hosted by the Adirondack Coast Visitor's Bureau. 2012-2014
Retail Partners: Amazing Grace Vineyard and Winery, Pure Maple Wine, 9839 U.S. Route 9, Chazy, NY.
History Out of the Box: Black Walnut Sugarbush Research, Champlain, NY.
New for 2016:
Adirondack Cuisine Trail, planning committee.