I revel in the passion and ambition of the entrepreneur. A stay at a Harvest Host often yields the fruits of a dedicated soul proud of the work they do, and the Mapletree Farm in Concord, New Hampshire, does not disappoint.

We arrived in the early afternoon, greeted by a friendly face pointing us to our designated parking spot. Once set up, we were escorted inside the sugarhouse to tour where the magic happens (and I am not kidding, it is truly tasty magic). Dean Wilbur, the owner of and one-man show, shared how he makes real maple syrup and has been doing so since he was young.

It all begins with the maple trees planted about the property. The sap starts to flow each spring as the days begin to warm, but the nights are still cold. The red squirrels nibbling the tips of the trees are a good sign that it is almost past time to begin collecting the sap. The trees are tapped with the smallest hole, and lines are run from each tree down to the sugarhouse. Once the sap has arrived, water is removed through reverse osmosis. The pure water is saved to clean the equipment, and the concentrated sap is sent to barrels for storage until it can be boiled down into a thick syrup.

Dean does everything, from collecting sap to answering email and bottling syrup. I encourage you to order a big bottle. I know you can buy “authentic” maple syrup from the store, but I assure you (and Dean will attest) that the stuff from the store is not good high-quality syrup.