Spring signals maple syrup making time across the U.S. When this luscious treat was first discovered in trees in the northeast, it was used as an all-purpose seasoning much the way we use salt today. Here's how the folks in Maine "tap" the sap so you can pour it on.

Tapping begins by drilling a small hole in the trunk of a mature (40 years old or more) maple tree and putting in a spout. Sugar in the maple's sap is stored as starch throughout the year. During the spring, the temperature changes convert the starches to sugars, and the flow through the spout begins.

Though some of the larger producers use more modern technology, most sap is still gathered the old-fashioned way, in buckets hung from trees and boiled down to syrup over wood fires. The sap needs to be processed within a few hours or it will spoil.

According to www.mainemapleproducers.com, pure Maine maple syrup has three times the sweetening power of cane sugar and 40 calories per tablespoon. The syrup is classified by flavor and color characteristics. As a rule of thumb, the lighter the color the more delicate the flavor and the darker the color the stronger the flavor. One is not better than the other - it's a matter of personal taste.

Pure Maine maple syrup has no preservatives. After the seal has been broken, it should be refrigerated, kept in a cool dry place, or put in the freezer, since properly prepared maple syrup will not solidify.