The First Taste of Spring
There's a moment in late March that doesn't announce itself with flowers or warmth. It happens quietly — on a cold, clear night when the temperature dips just below freezing, and then climbs again as the sun rises. Inside the maple trees on our farm, something extraordinary begins to move.
The sap runs. And maple season begins.
We are underway with our 2026 Maple Season here in the Hudson Valley — New York State's oldest agricultural tradition — and at Finding Home Farms, we've been looking forward to sharing it with you all winter. This year, we're opening our sugarhouse for NY Maple Weekends on March 21–22 and March 28–29, and we want you here for every part of it.
Maple season is not just the sweetest time of year — it's the sign that everything on the farm is about to wake up again.
The Magic Behind Maple: How Syrup is Made
Every bottle of pure maple syrup starts with something that looks exactly like water. The sap that flows from a tapped sugar maple tree is over 98% water — sweet, slightly clear, and completely unassuming. What transforms it into the amber gold you pour on your pancakes is time, heat, and patience.
It takes more than 40 gallons of maple sap to produce a single gallon of pure maple syrup. Sometimes, it can be as high as 60 gallons. The sap must be collected, transported to the sugarhouse, and boiled down in an evaporator for hours — until enough water has evaporated to leave behind that concentrated, complex sweetness.
New York State produces over 829,000 gallons of maple syrup each year — second only to Vermont in the nation — with more than 2,000 maple producers and more tappable sugar maples than anywhere else in the country.
The sap only flows when the conditions are just right: cold nights (below freezing) and warm days (above 40°F). That narrow window — often just 4–6 weeks in late winter and early spring — is maple season. When it's gone, it's gone until next year.
A small tap is drilled into each sugar maple, and a spout or tubing line is attached. One healthy tree can be tapped for 100 years or more without harm — the tree simply seals around the hole each season.
Sap flows into buckets or through a network of tubing lines that lead to a central collection tank. A good sap day can fill our collection tanks quickly — the farm comes alive with the quiet drip and flow of the harvest.
This is where the magic becomes visible — and fragrant. Sap is pumped into our evaporator and boiled for hours. Steam fills the sugarhouse. The sweet smell drifts across the farm. The color deepens from pale yellow to rich amber as the sugar concentrates.
Pure maple syrup is graded by color and flavor: Golden (delicate), Amber (rich), Dark (robust), and Very Dark (strong). Each has its own character and ideal use — from drizzling over pancakes to cooking and baking.
What's Happening at Finding Home Farms
Both weekends — March 21–22 and March 28–29, 9AM to 3PM — we're opening the whole farm and offering tours. Our cafe & market are open from 8AM to 6PM. Here's what to expect:
Hourly Sugarhouse Tours
Walk through our working sugarhouse with a guided tour every hour. See the evaporator in action, learn how we tap our trees, and understand the full journey from sap to syrup. The steam alone is worth it.
Syrup Tasting Station
Taste all four grades of pure maple syrup side by side — Golden, Amber, Dark, and Very Dark. Learn what makes each one different and find your favorite before you shop.
Café Open with Special Menu
Our café is fully open both weekends with a special maple-inspired menu. Think warm, cozy, and made with intention — the kind of food you want in your hands while you're out at the farm. The true farm-to-table experience in the Hudson Valley.
Market Open with Spring Arrivals
The market is stocked with maple products, gift sets, and the first spring arrivals for your home, kitchen, and kids' favorites. Perfect for gifting — or treating yourself.
Maple Treats for Sale
Fresh maple chocolate chip cookies, maple soft serve ice cream, maple cotton candy, and more sweet treats will be available in the market and sugarhouse. Our bakery case will be filled with our favorites - including our very popular cinnamon rolls with maple icing.
Maple Weekend Gift Sets
Our signature bundle: pure organic maple syrup made right here in the Hudson Valley + our pancake and waffle mix. The only thing you need to bring home for the best Sunday morning waiting to happen.
A Peek at the Café's Maple Menu
Our kitchen is putting something special together for Maple Weekend. Here's a taste of what we're planning for our Hudson Valley Farm-to-table menu:
The full menu is available HERE — and it's worth planning breakfast, brunch, or lunch around. Grab a table, order something warm, and stay a while.
The sugarhouse smells like the best Sunday morning you've ever had. The first time you smell it — actually smell it, not just imagine it — you'll understand why people drive hours for maple season.
Maple Season & Spring: Two Seasons at Once
One of the things we love most about Maple Weekend is how perfectly it bridges the seasons. The sugarhouse is still fired up against the cold, but outside — if you look closely — you can see spring beginning to stir.
As you head towards us, you might start to see a few buds starting to swell on the maple branches, feel the ground softening underfoot, and notice the light staying a little longer each evening. The maple trees themselves are the proof — sap only rises when the seasons are in between, when winter hasn't fully let go, and spring is just beginning to pull.
At Finding Home Farms, we're leaning into that beautiful in-between. Our market this weekend carries both — the warmth and richness of maple harvest alongside the first spring arrivals: new goods for the home, and products that celebrate what's coming next on the farm.
It's maple season, yes. But it's also the beginning of everything.
Tips for Your Visit
Join Us for NY Maple Weekend
Everything you need to plan your visit for our favorite Agritourism event in the Hudson Valley.
March 21–22, 2026
Weekend Two
March 28–29, 2026
Sugarhouse tours run every hour
Syrup tasting station
Café open with special menu
Market open with spring arrivals
140 Eatontown Road
See you on the farm!
See You at the Sugarhouse
This is our favorite weekend of the year. We can't wait to share it with you — the steam, the syrup, the smell, and all the warmth of a farm at the start of something new.
Finding Home Farms · Middletown, NY · #FindingHomeFarms
