Howdy, rebels! Today I set out to answer a question nobody asked.
In 2017, I noticed sudden mentions of maple syrup as a fall flavor. This confused the crap outta me. "But maple syrup is for early spring! Why is it a fall thing all of a sudden?" I asked.
Now that this blog exists, I set out to find the answer, which turned out to be a lot of answers. Mostly guesses. We'll get to that.
Prior to any research, I assumed it was something to do with location and availability. Since maple syrup is high in sugar, it keeps well and is available year-round. Perhaps leaf peepers come up here and buy maple syrup in fall, then associate the flavor with the season.
I'm not satisfied with that answer, though. This seems to be a nationwide phenomenon.
Dunkin', Oreo and Starbucks came out with maple-flavored products in 2017. That's how I heard of this nonsense. But why would these companies come up with maple flavor out of thin air?
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Obviously I don't think they came up with the same idea at the same time out of sheer luck- companies know about their competitors' upcoming products- but just why maple? Usually when companies do this I attribute it to them finding a trend on social media and going, "Oh hey! People like this thing, we should sell it to them!" I mean, come on. That's how we got pre-made Slime.
Apparently this maple thing goes farther back than I thought. This recipe for Maple Pecan Mini Cheesecakes dates back to 2014. "To me, maple recipes always scream fall favorite," author Lyuba Brooke writes.
And here, this (barely an) article from Cityline, dated back to 2015- "Fall Flavours: Maple." Course, that's a Canadian website... but still!
So my conclusion is that I've been living under a rock and should have known about this when I was literally eleven years old.
Nobody seems to explain why they like maple in fall, either. Maybe they don't have to.
You like baking in the winter, right? The warm oven, the comforting aromas, the comfort food? Something more intrinsic to humans might come into play here.
Humans tend to like sugar, baking, comfort food, et cetera when it gets cold. Especially when Seasonal Affective Disorder makes us crave the Standard American Diet because we're SAD. Since maple is sugary and versatile, it allows us to indulge in that more.
Not only that, but the season of fall demands "warm" flavors.
Spices, pecans, caramel, even acorns. Maple syrup works with the
"palette" of fall flavors. It's also similar to caramel, being a caramelized sugar.
Even the symbolism of the maple leaf could be part of it.
How many times have you seen a maple leaf on a bottle of syrup? Every, right? The red maple leaf is a symbol of Canada, maple syrup, and the fall season. That symbolism might cause us to associate maple with fall.
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| An example of the red leaf symbol. Photo credit: vermontmaplesyrup.com |
Maple syrup isn't the only flavor commonly used out of season, either.
You ever heard of lemonade? That all-American, ice-cold beverage served in summer? The main ingredient is obviously lemon juice, but you may be shocked to know that lemons...
Are harvested in winter.
There are lots of reasons why maple is a fall flavor, and I might as well not fight it any longer. To recap:
- Leaf-peepers probably associate maple with fall
- Companies made it popular
- Maple in fall is an old-ish concept
- Cold months demand comfort food; maple can fill this demand
- Maple is a "warm" flavor
- The maple leaf is a symbol of fall
- Lemonade is "out of season" too
Just know I don't have all that much evidence for these things. This post is meant to pique your curiosity more than anything.
There you have it. I had no reason to be upset, confused, or utterly flabbergasted. Maple syrup, I welcome you to the Fall Flavor Squad.
Before giving you the recommended song, here's the hint about the next post:
It's named after the lion's tooth, but I'm not sure why to tell you the truth. Though it's got flowers, it doesn't make fruit, and the part I'll use now is the carrotlike root. I've made up a mixture of many a spice to make a tea with it that tastes pretty nice.
I'll leave you off with a song by the great Cab Calloway: Minnie the Moocher! With Betty Boop and everything!
The video is an edit by the YouTube channel Old Films And Stuff. They put the animation with the "proper" recording of the song, without the cartoon sounds. It's also got the best video quality I could (bother to) find. Go give this channel some kudos!
Boop-oop-a-doop, stay sexy (and spoop)!
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