Where to get your Maple syrup in Ontario and Quebec

Metronews.ca
March 25, 2014
By Steve Gow

Just as March is adored for the dawn of spring, it’s also the month that maple trees in Ontario’s sugar bush country begin to seep liquid gold. The sugar season may be belated but you should still rush out and uncover these sweet stops on a maple syrup tour.

Sugar Bush Maple Syrup Festival (Toronto-area)

Not far from Toronto, the Kortright (Woodbridge) and Bruce’s Mill (Stouffville) Conservation Areas both highlight the history of sweet sap on their Maple Syrup Trail.

Open weekends until April 6, the festival also features enough syrup samplings, petting zoos, magic shows and even a music workshop (Kortright) to keep fidgety toddlers entertained. Admission is $10 (adults) and $6.50 (children). Visit maplesyrupfest.com.

White Meadows Farms (St. Catharines)

A short drive from Niagara-on-the-Lake, White Meadows Farms features the Sugar Bush Adventure, a family-friendly exploration of tree-tapping through the ages led by guides in period costume.

It costs $9.50 for adults (children are $6), and if you factor in the sap-line maze, petting farm, taffy shack and an amazing pancake house (which is worth the trip in its own right), the whole family should walk away sweetly satisfied. Visit whitemeadowsfarms.com.

Elmira Maple Syrup Festival (Kitchener)

Located 20 minutes from Kitchener, the town of Elmira is marking 50 years of saluting syrupy goodness on April 6. Expect thousands to descend upon the world’s largest single-day maple syrup festival to taste old-fashioned maple toffee, take in pancake-flipping contests, enjoy live music and, of course, feast on flapjacks smothered with local syrup.

Explorers can hop on a bus to hike around a sugar bush or witness maple syrup being made in the Mobile Sugar Shack. Visit elmiramaplesyrup.com.

Kinsmen Fanshawe Sugar Bush (London)

Another crowd-pleasing playground for maple maniacs is the Kinsmen Club’s sugar bush near London.

Tapping trees since 1972, the Fanshawe Sugar Bush features maple syrup tours on weekends (until the end of March) as well as hayrides and, for the sweet-toothed, fresh hotcakes and sausages at their Pancake Pavilion.

Plus, at only $2 admission for children ($3 for adults), that’s pure sweetness for the pocketbook. Visit kinsmenfanshawesugarbush.com.

Quebec’s top sugar shacks

Ontario’s maple syrup industry may be thriving, but Quebec’s sugar shacks are equally plentiful. Here are three of the most popular:

Érablière Charbonneau Since 2004, this family-friendly sugar shack has featured a variety of tasty goodies, maple taffy demonstrations and live music ­— not to mention sleigh rides and snowshoeing in its maple forest. Visiterablierecharbonneau.qc.ca.

Érablière au Sous-Bois Don’t expect simple flapjacks at this daring sugar shack. The tempting buffet at Érablière au Sous-Bois offers such twists on traditional maple fare as beet salad and dumplings boiled in syrup. Visit cabaneasucre.ca.

Cabane à sucre Bouvrette After 65 years, this family-owned business still offers the authentic Quebecois maple experience. Stuff yourself on a wide variety of inspired maple-infused treats or explore the sugar bush by sleigh or train. Visit bouvrette.ca.