Author: Riley Farabaugh

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM RUNAMOK! A Note from our Founders: How to sum up 2021? Hopeful. Frustrating. Just when it seemed we were heading for better times, covid would throw another curve ball and upend our plans. We had a very nice month or two without masks at the plant this summer before Delta hadRead More

The holiday season is upon us, and this year is certainly looking different than the last. In that time we’ve learned some valuable lessons that we won’t be quick to forget: how to find unique ways to stay connected with loved ones near and far, the importance of shopping small and supporting the local businessRead More

The Winter family have been producing honey and providing pollination services for over 50 years. Run by Bonnie, Wayne, their son Dan, and other family members, they manage 2,000 to 2,500 hives that they move throughout the year. The summer months are spent at their home in Wolcott, New York and the winter season isRead More

Todd Hardie has been instrumental in educating us about bees and honey. Considered the bee guru of the north country, we are very lucky to have him as a guide in this field, that we are learning is complex and fascinating. He has taught us what to look for in the different flavors you mightRead More

  If the sugaring season is winter and spring, what goes on in the sugarbush during the rest of the year? It depends on the size of your operation but for a larger outfit like ours, the summer and fall are for maintenance. We have over 700 miles of tubing snaking throughout the woods andRead More

Our Coffee Infused Maple Syrup is the perfect pairing of two bold flavors. Combining the caramel sweetness of maple with coffee’s nuanced chocolate and almond, we’ve created a flavor entirely different from all others. Use it on your morning waffles, make the ultimate coffee-milk (ask someone from Rhode Island) or drizzle it over vanilla iceRead More

Oh, lovely, lovely Makrut Lime-Leaf Infused. If we were to point to one product that cemented what we are all about, it would be this syrup. Back in our earliest days, we were trying herbs and spices to infuse in maple and were reaching for very traditional combinations like cinnamon and vanilla. We got excellentRead More

Balance is the most important factor in creating an excellent aromatic cocktail. Balance in cocktails started very basically with the Old Fashioned and has evolved through time to become quite complicated indeed. The Old Fashioned was originally just called “the cocktail” as it was the first time in recorded bar recipes where three ingredients wereRead More

Sour Cocktails: It’s All About Balance What sets a really wonderful cocktail apart from a really average cocktail is balance. A cocktail must be boozy, but not overpowering, sweet, but not too sickly, and savory, but not too tart. The easiest way to create a balanced cocktail at home is to follow and variate offRead More

Nature’s Golden Ratio Cocktails are maple trees… hear me out… The perfect cocktail is sculpted with the perfect golden ratio, and perfect golden ratios are found in the branches of maple trees. Nature’s golden ratio is a proportion (approximately 1:1.61) that occurs frequently on earth and is used all over human endeavors such as art,Read More

Not to jinx the trend, but things are looking up here in these United States. We are all busting out of our pandemic cocoons and letting ourselves believe in a world of hugging someone outside our household. And at this point, just shaking a hand feels good. With cautious optimism, we are planning social gatheringsRead More

Everyone knows maple syrup is for breakfast: pancakes, waffles, french toast and bacon. But here in Vermont, we put it on everything. Think Frank’s Red Hot, but sweeter. At Runamok, we have elevated the possibilities of maple syrup and we love to share its various applications through our products and recipes. Some of the bestRead More

Whaaaaa? Maple and honey together? Oh yes we did and it turned out great. Unabashedly sweet, this combination leans slightly heavily on the honey side but the maple also asserts itself in there. You use it anywhere you would pure maple syrup; pancakes, waffles, oatmeal. You will get the flavors of nature’s two best naturalRead More

Hibiscus Flower Infused Maple is perhaps the most misunderstood of all our syrups. The hibiscus imparts a strong, tangy raspberry flavor to the maple syrup that transforms it into something entirely different. A person who tastes it expecting a maple base with mild hibiscus, will instead get a ruby, rock-em’, sock-em’ syrup that is mostRead More

Maple syrup has been beloved and shared by Vermonters for generations, but not everyone has caught on. Discovered by Native Americans and passed down through generations, maple syrup is quickly becoming one of the most common natural sweeteners in the world. Everyone knows how good maple syrup is on pancakes, but few know how manyRead More

Ginger Infused Maple Syrup is one of our original syrups and is a customer favorite for good reason. It has many uses in both sweet and savory dishes, and is also one of the best maple syrups for cocktails. We use fresh, organic ginger from Peru. To make the infusion, we pulverize it, often hundredsRead More

Once the sap is in the sugar house it is time to boil it to syrup.  The first step is to concentrate it. The sap is run through a reverse osmosis machine which removes 90% of the water. A reverse osmosis machine (RO) works by using pressure to push the sap through a semi permeableRead More

Part II: The Sap Run Once the sugarbush is fully tapped, we wait for the sap to run. For the tree to produce sap, temperatures need to cycle between above and below freezing.  Traditionally, March was the month that most reliably saw those conditions and that is why it is known as the peak ofRead More

Here in maple country, we take for granted that everyone knows how maple syrup is made. Most Vermont kids will visit a sugarhouse at least once in their elementary school years and given the small state, most people know someone connected to the industry. This is why we might stand there with blank stares ifRead More

Here at Runamok, we have been creating cocktails using our infused and smoked syrups since we started production. A bit of maple with a little of this and a little of that made for an easy base in which to add a shot of our favorite spirit and create the best cocktails we’ve ever tried.Read More

We start with our best organic maple syrup and age it in recently emptied Bourbon barrels. The syrup draws in the essence of the Bourbon without the alcohol. Like premium whiskeys, the process takes time, and careful tending. But the result is a sophisticated duo that will become a new classic. Here are our 10Read More

If we were to choose the infused syrup that showed the most versatility, it would have to be the Cardamom Infused Maple. Desserts, pancakes, stir frys, roasted vegetables, cocktails – this syrup is good for all. Though hard to describe the flavor, when mixed with maple syrup, cardamom tastes of rich oak, with notes ofRead More

Why argue with a good thing? There is a reason why maple, vanilla and cinnamon are so often used together: they are delicious. We tested both the vanilla and cinnamon from numerous regions around the globe until we found the perfect balance of flavors. Our Cinnamon and Vanilla Infused Maple Syrup is great on justRead More

We are so excited to introduce our new line of maple-based bitters. Bitters have been around for centuries as medicinal digestifs and have gradually come to be more commonly used as an ingredient for cocktails. Most often made with an alcohol base* to coax flavors out of herbs, roots, and spices, we’ve added a touchRead More

The holidays are nearly upon us and boy could we use some fa-la-la-la-las.  There is already plenty of stress in the world, so don’t let your holiday gift list add to it. Some people are easy to buy for, but others are annual head-scratchers. Below is a helpful list of ideas for affordable and tastyRead More

Everyone knows that maple syrup is great on pancakes but it is also an excellent sweetener in all sorts of desserts and pastries. Here are some of our favorites from the Runamok recipe collection that really show its range. From decadent, gooey Pudding Chomeur to classic Apple Crisp, these dessert recipes show how easy itRead More

Sparkle Syrup is made with pure maple syrup and pearlescent mica.  The sparkles are flavorless so the syrup can be used anywhere you would put regular maple syrup like pancakes or waffles.  But to play up the fun of the sparkles, we have a few suggestions to create a little magic.   Make a sparklyRead More

The Covid crisis has been in action for long enough that we now have some perspective on how it has changed us and our business. It is important to take a minute and reflect on a most extraordinary six months and ask the question; what the hell just happened?  So here is a short summaryRead More

When we think of grilling and barbeque, we think of glazes that are robust, tangy and slightly sweet.  Maple syrup is the perfect ingredient for the sugary component – rich, complex, and already in syrup form to add to sauces and marinades. And, of course, using Runamok’s infused and smoked maple syrups make it thatRead More

At Runamok, we are often asked what our favorite infused maple syrup is, but how can one answer? It would be like picking a favorite child – impossible. Our customers have their favorites, however, which we can see on our sales charts. By far our best selling infused syrup is Cinnamon+Vanilla and it would beRead More