Secrets of a syrup maker: At 95, Roland Jorns still running Door County maple syrup shop

 

EGG HARBOR, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Some of the products we commonly associate with Wisconsin are cranberries, beer and, of course, cheese. However, Wisconsin is consistently among the top four U.S. states in maple syrup production. One longtime syrup producer in Door County truly has a one-of-a-kind story.

For many Wisconsin and Midwestern families, a stop at Jorns Sugar Bush is a staple of their summer trips to Door County. For Ronald Jorns, who's run this shop outside of Egg Harbor for more than eight decades, this truly is all he's ever known.

Jorns' grandfather began the business in the late 1800s. His father then took over, but around 1940, the future of the family's syrup making was in jeopardy after a horse accident left Jorns' father severely injured.

"He's hanging by his foot in the strap that controls the bundles, and the horses take off, they get scared," Jorns said. "And they go over stone piles and everything with him dragged behind. For several years, he was crippled. He couldn't do nothing."

Jorns' said neighbors helped run the business for a couple years, but they grew weary of the intensive work every spring. 

"When I got to be about 12 years old, my dad said, 'We either gotta quit or you will have to run it,'" Jorns recalled.

Jorns decided to take over the operation as a pre-adolescent. While the work has been challenging, Jorns said out of everything he learned over the eight decades that followed, one lesson stands out above all.

"I found out, really, that making maple syrup is what I was created for," he said. "So here I am."

Even if the skill came naturally, the process of making maple syrup takes lots of effort and flexibility. Syrup makers must capitalize on the freeze-thaw cycles of early spring.

When there's an overnight freeze, the sap retreats into the roots of the tree. Then, during the daytime warmth, the sap runs back up the tree; that's the time so strike. So, syrup makers like Jorns and his grandson, Michael Newell, trudge through snow and slush to collect the sap.

"Cold and wet," Newell said of the annual trek into the woods.

Once the trees have been tapped, there's still lots of work to do. There's a science to condensing the sap that burns off water while leaving just the right amount of sugar remaining. Jorns adheres to the rough water-to-sugar ratio he's followed for so long.

"You have to concentrate it somewhere around 41 or 42 to one," Jorns said.

From there, it's a matter of filling barrel upon barrel of syrup. Jorns said the business will fill between 40 and 50 50-gallon barrels each year. That amounts to a range of 2,000 to 2,500 gallons of syrup each year.

The family then spends summers bottling all that syrup into several different sized glass and plastic containers.

"Long hours. Lots of labeling, lots of bottling." Newell said.

Jorns interjected that at that to say, "That makes you tough."

Former Gov. Tommy Thompson is among the dignitaries who've paid a visit to Jorns Sugar Bush.

The product has attracted more than just regular customers. Former governor Tommy Thompson kicked off the 1989 with a visit to deliver an official proclamation at one of Jorns' trees. Jorns described visits from Chinese and Russian military leaders, and he was especially fond of the visit from a group of women visiting from Hamburg, Germany, where he traces his family roots.

While he's happy to tell stories from the business' past, Jorns also notes his willingness to adapt. He chuckled as he compared a small plastic spout now used to tap trees compared to a larger metal one he'd long used.

"When I bought these, I was a little bit nervous that I would be losing a lot of sap per day," he said, holding the two spouts. "But this little guy right here will keep up with this one."

Even at the age of 95, Jorns said he has no plans on retiring. He's convinced labor is the key to his longevity.

"I feel if you're gonna sit down in a chair and turn on the TV and live it up that way, you aren't gonna live very long," he said.

Beyond that, Jorns said he still loves what he's doing every day, even if the store's hours are a bit scattered as it takes Jorns time to recover from late bottling nights. Jorns said, ultimately, it's the kind words he hears from those regular customers that keep him going.

"I get, 'We gotta have Jorns' syrup, and that's it!' That's the way they come in here, yeah," he said. "And that's good enough for me."