CNY maple syrup farm closes, saying bittersweet goodbye after 45 years

Cedarvale Maple Syrup Co. has officially shut off its taps after 45 years in the business.

The 260-acre maple farm on Pleasant Valley Road in the town of Onondaga has been boiling up syrup in Syracuse since 1977, and will continue to sell its remaining inventory until it runs out in a month or so.

“Once that’s done, we’ll lock the door behind us,” said Michael Spicer, who has operated the business since 2019.

“After three incredible years, there are no words to describe how thankful I am to each and every person who has supported Cedarvale,“ he wrote in an email. “It has been such a sweet journey!”

The business was originally founded by Karl Wiles, who was in the process of dissolving the company three years ago when Spicer, then a student at Hamilton College, swooped in to try to keep operations going.

Spicer wanted to buy the land to keep Cedarvale up and running. But he couldn’t come up with the roughly $700,000 he would need. Getting that money would’ve meant getting neck-deep in debt on top of his student loans, he said. He said sales have climbed 250% over the past three years, but he has been pouring those profits right back into the business.

Without an income or work-provided health care, it was too much of a risk to take on Cedarvale, said Spicer. He graduated in May of last year and is now working in wealth management in Boston.

Spicer first learned how to boil maple syrup on a school field trip when he was 11, and was hooked. He quickly formed his own company and was tapping all the trees around his parents’ property by the time he was 18.

His relationship with Wiles predates Spicer’s takeover of Cedarvale’s operations: He won the New York State Maple Producers Association’s young maple sugarer award in 2012. Wiles nominated him.

Wiles had put his entire property on the market in 2017, but ended up putting most of the land into a land trust. He lives in his house on the remaining 40 acres, and said he isn’t trying to sell right now.

“It would be nice if it went on,” said Wiles, “but I can appreciate all of the problems that youngsters face today.”

Land and equipment are pricey, for one thing, and without income from a second wage-earner – often a spouse – expenses add up. Farms are often passed down through family generations, but Wiles’ kids pursued other careers.

The business is now selling off the last of its merchandise, with Spicer steering the helm online from Boston.

He said he was disappointed to not be able to take over Cedarvale, but won’t quit his small business pursuits.

“I have a big entrepreneurial spirit,” he said. “That’s definitely not fading.”

Though Cedarvale won’t be staying open, it’s not for lack of trying, said Wiles.

“Mike really was very good at this.”

Jules Struck writes about life and culture in and around Syracuse. Contact her anytime at jstruck@syracuse.com or on Instagram at julesstruck.journo.

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