Tapping birch sap

Name: Tapping birch sap
Total time: 7 d 15 min
Yield: 1–4 litres a day
Ingredients: a drill with an 8–10 mm wood bit; a clean spout or piece of food-grade tubing of the same width; a clean bottle or jerrycan; a wooden peg (e.g. whittled from a birch twig) or grafting wax

Updated on 9 October 2026

Makes: 1–4 litres a day
Time: 15 min + 1–2 weeks tapping
From: Downy birch

Ingredients

a drill with an 8–10 mm wood bit
a clean spout or piece of food-grade tubing of the same width
a clean bottle or jerrycan
a wooden peg (e.g. whittled from a birch twig) or grafting wax

Method

From early March, check whether a snipped twig drips: if so, the sap is rising.
At 50 cm to 1 m above the ground, drill a hole 2 to 3 cm deep, angled slightly upwards.
Push in the spout and lead it into a bottle hung on the trunk or standing beside it. Cover the opening against rain and insects.
Collect the bottle every day and chill the sap straight away.
Stop after 2 weeks at most, or as soon as the sap turns cloudy. Seal the hole firmly with a peg or grafting wax.

Storing: 2 to 3 days in the fridge, months in the freezer. Drink it neat and cold.