SC - fermented Maple sap?

[Stefan li Rous]

Huette gave a description of making Pulque from a dessert
plant. Part of that said:
> The sap, containing approximately 10 percent sugar, is
> fermented in vats for several days, often with the
> addition of previously fermented pulque (madre pulque)
> to hasten the process.

Perhaps it is just because I'm currently reading a book on the
making of maple syrup, sugar and candy from maple sap, but I'm
wondering if there is any reason you couldn't make an alcoholic
beverage from maple sap? Is there any evidence of it ever being
done? The book I'm reading doesn't make any mention of it. But
I'm sure that if the maple sap doesn't start out at 10 percent
sugar it would certainly reach that point during the boiling to
make syrup where it is boiled down about 40 to 1.

An interesting point from the book is that neither the native
Americans nor the settlers made maple syrup. They tended to boil
it down to maple candy for various reasons. Ease of transport
being a big one. For quite a while maple sugar was much more widely
used in the American colonies than sugar. Maple syrup production
really did not start until after the Civil War. 

Unfortunately, while the book gives some history of maple sugar
production, it does not give any comments on how far south it was
produced. Most of the book is centered on the couple's area and
their personal production of maple syrup in Michigan.

- -- 
Lord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
Mark S. Harris             Austin, Texas           stefan at texas.net
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****
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