17 ~ Auction!
From the beginning, it has been my intention to shield this blog, and you, dear readers, from surveillance capitalism (for more on this topic, see: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/24/opinion/sunday/surveillance-capitalism.html?searchResultPosition=6). This means I will never share the email addresses of my subscribers, nor link the blog to Google AdSense, or accept any other form of advertising. Should the audience for this modest blog continue to grow, advertising could generate some income for me, but it would expose you, the reader, to being targeted for additional ads and marketing. I’m not going there. We’ll keep this conversation and exchange amongst ourselves. No advertisers or social media trackers are invited to this table.
Instead, I’d like to get creative with ways I could occasionally generate some support for writing the blog, from within this community itself, and in ways that would be fun for all of us. Here’s my first idea: a syrup auction.
There’s been a fair bit of response about and interest in the birch syrup I made. It really is wonderful – here’s a description I just read on Wikipedia, which I’m pleased to see matches my own tasting notes shared in the last post: “The flavor of birch syrup has a distinctive and mineral-rich caramel-like taste that is not unlike molasses or balsamic condiment or some types of soy, with a hint of spiciness.”
Wiki goes onto to say: “Because of the higher sap-to-syrup ratio and difficulties in production, birch syrup is more expensive than maple syrup, up to five times the price.” As noted in my last post, my birch sap to syrup ratio this spring was 121 : 1. Birch syrup is produced mainly in Alaska, Canada, Russia and Scandinavia, and, for example, the entire annual commercial production in Alaska is only 1,000 gallons.
Here’s my proposal and offer: From my very limited production of birch syrup this spring, I’m offering two 8 oz jars (237 ml) for sale through silent auction. To each of the two highest bidders, I’ll send one of the jars postage-paid (US addresses only; if a winning bid is overseas, I promise to hand-deliver your jar at first opportunity!). I found an online source of Alaskan birch syrup, and their price for an 8 oz jar with shipping is $37.50. So let’s start our bidding, the minimum bid for this auction, at $30.
Not only is this a chance to get some organic birch syrup, but the very first product of “Bird in the Bush Harvests”. Part of history!
Please email bids to me at hawkcall@yahoo.com by Wednesday, May 27. If you’re a winner, we can arrange settlement by PayPal (or whatever’s easiest), and I’ll get the syrup to you.
Meet your producer: It was interesting this spring to note different personalities among the dozen or so birch trees I tapped (after first asking their permission, and repaying them with continual flows of gratitude; in fact, one birch replied ‘no, not this year please’, and so I left it untapped). This included differences in flow volume, and in the nature of their sap (such as how long I could leave a collection bag or bucket on the tree without risk of the sap starting to turn). Some of the variations in personality could be due to environment, or inherent differences in the tree. In other words, not much different than what forges personalities in people.
I’d like to introduce you to one of this year’s stars. This morning I revisited and took this photo of a birch named “Owl Man” (for reasons you can probably guess). He was a bit temperamental, but when approached properly, my God did he produce. Only one other tree, his neighbor (“Power Man”), outpaced him. Sometimes the two together would yield nearly as much sap as the rest of the birches combined – a gallon or more each on some days. Both are now enjoying well-deserved sabbaticals for the remainder of the year.
Owl Man (what looks like his navel is the healed tap hole).
Get your bids in, enjoy a taste of “Owl Man”, and do him the honor.
In the news: This week my hometown newspaper featured an article on my no-grocery endeavor, here.