Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring.
Maple syrup is made by tapping and collecting the sap from sugar maple trees. The sap is taken to a "suger shack" to be processed where it is boiled to produce a thick syrup. The shack shown above has a lot of holes in the roof, that is to vent the steam coming off the boiling process.
