Some folks bring food gifts to parties, others bring the people who make the food. That’s how I met Tim Burton of Burton’s Maplewood Farm in Indiana. Pastry Chef Sherry Yard dragged him to my birthday party where he handed me a couple bottles of his elixir. One bottle was Grade “B” meaning more color and more complex flavor and the other was Rye Bourbon Barrel Aged. The first bottle was gone before I even realized it. I think I was actually drinking the syrup from the bottle. The Barrel Aged actually made it into a shot glass where I realized after tasting that it would be the recipes pies. Bourbon Maple Apple Pie?Check. Bourbon Maple Yam Pie? Check. Then I started thinking about cocktails and eggnog and my brain froze from the possibilities.
Tim and Angie Burton aren’t the only folks making barrel aged maple syrup but it was the first I tasted. It’s definitely a wow. My pal Louisa Chu attended the Burton founded National Maple Syrup Festival and wrote about it for WBEZ Chicago’s Moveable Feast.