鈥淪ugar Bob鈥� Hausslein calls himself a 鈥渇ull-time sugarmaker.鈥� He spends most of the year making hot sauce, spiced nuts and other using his home-harvested maple syrup.
But sugaring season is still a special time for Hausslein.
鈥淲inters in Vermont are long,鈥� the Landgrove maple producer . 鈥淲e sort of huddle up towards the end, you know? It鈥檚 just that magical transition time, of rebirth 鈥� and coming out with sugar.鈥�
The roughly six-week sugaring season spans winter and spring. As he collects sap from antique buckets hung from trees near his family鈥檚 home, Hausslein sees shoots emerging from the ground and listens for the sounds of frogs.
鈥淲e start thigh-deep in snow, in our snowshoes, and finish in our sneakers,鈥� he says.
At the heart of the process is the boil 鈥� when 鈥淪ugar Bob鈥� invites friends and community members into the sugarhouse while the sap is turned to syrup.
鈥淭he best part is, it鈥檚 sugar that we鈥檙e making,鈥� Hausslein says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not harvesting potatoes or wine or grapes. It鈥檚 sugar. That鈥檚 what makes the magic happen.鈥�
is a short film by Reilly Rose.
