Pure maple syrup is maple sap boiled down until it's thick, and by law all of its sugar has to come from that sap. Pancake syrup is a different product. It's usually flavored corn syrup, often with no maple in it at all, and the label is the quickest way to tell the two apart.
What the law calls maple syrup
Federal rules define maple syrup as the liquid made by concentrating and heating the sap of the maple tree. It has to be at least 66 percent solids by weight, and those solids have to come only from maple sap. In plain terms, that's the sugar left behind once the water boils off. Syrup made by dissolving maple sugar, which comes from maple sap, back into water counts too.
The rule allows a short list of optional extras: salt, chemical preservatives and defoaming agents. Salt or a preservative has to appear in an ingredient list. Pure maple syrup with nothing added is a single-ingredient food, so its label doesn't have to carry a list at all. If it has one, the list names only maple syrup. The Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association describes it as a sweetener made only from the sap of maple trees.
What the law calls pancake syrup
Pancake syrup falls under a separate federal standard, for table syrup. It can be made from one or more sweeteners, with flavors, colors and thickeners allowed, and it can't be sold as maple syrup. We go through everything the standard allows, and the names it permits, in what pancake syrup is made of.
Generally, as the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association puts it, pancake syrup is flavored corn syrup with no real maple in it. Our piece on maple syrup vs. corn syrup explains where corn syrup comes from.
Vermont goes further
Vermont has its own labeling rules. A product with artificial maple flavor can't be called "maple syrup," however the name is modified. It has to say "artificial flavor" on the front of the label, in letters at least as large as the other words describing the product. And a restaurant menu that lists it has to say it's artificially flavored.
It's an old problem. According to the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association, more "maple syrup" was made in Chicago in the 1900s than anywhere else in the US. It wasn't maple syrup. It was table syrup in disguise.
Vermont also requires its syrup to be a little denser than the federal minimum: at least 66.9 degrees Brix, a measure of sugar content, instead of 66 percent. The association says that makes Vermont syrup just a bit thicker.
How to tell them apart in the store
- Read the name. Look for "maple syrup" or "pure maple syrup." Table syrup, pancake syrup and waffle syrup are the other kind.
- Read the ingredients. If pure maple syrup has an ingredient list, it names only maple syrup. No list is fine too, since a single-ingredient food doesn't have to carry one. Pancake syrup usually lists corn syrup and flavoring.
Our guide to reading a maple syrup label goes through the rest, from the grade to who made it.
Which one should you buy?
The association points out that a lot of our food preferences start in childhood. If you grew up on pancake syrup, pure maple will taste different, so give it a fair try.
If you want maple flavor, buy maple syrup. Ours has one ingredient, and the front of the tin says it plainly: "100% pure maple syrup." It all comes from a single Vermont forest and is never blended.
It's boiled over a wood-burning fire, and it comes in two kinds. Amber is warm and smooth with caramel notes, the one that goes on everything. Dark is deep and robust, built for cooking and baking.
Not sure which to start with? Our guide to Amber vs. Dark maple syrup helps you pick.
Common questions
Is pancake syrup fake maple syrup?
Not in the legal sense. Pancake syrup is a table syrup, a product with its own federal standard, and it can't be sold as maple syrup. It's made from other sweeteners, usually corn syrup with added flavor, and its name and ingredient list tell you what it is. So it isn't pretending to be maple syrup. It's a different syrup, and the two are easy to mix up since people call both of them syrup. There's nothing wrong with liking it.
Is maple flavored syrup the same as maple syrup?
No. A table syrup that presents maple as its flavor has to contain at least 10 percent maple syrup by weight. The rest can be other sweeteners. We explain the label terms in what "maple flavored" means.
Why does real maple syrup cost more?
It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup, and the sap only runs for a few weeks a year. Here's the longer answer.
What changes if I switch?
It tastes different, and it goes in the fridge once it's open. It may also pour thinner than you're used to. Pancake syrup is allowed to contain thickeners, and maple syrup isn't. Our guide to switching to real maple syrup covers what to expect.
