Inspiring the next generation of female construction workers
August 4, 2025
ATHENS – During the summer months, the woods by Justin and Shannon Kuck’s (pronounced Cook) place near Athens are quiet – but the couple said it’s quite a different story in the earlier months of the year.
The sweet result, Shannon said, is nearly 2,000 gallons of maple syrup.
Once again, the husband-and-wife duo said they are sharing the fruits of their labor during that “really busy time” with folks at their local farmers’ market.
The couple said it’s not just a labor of love at Kuck’s Tapping & Sapping, but a labor that honors a family legacy dating back to when syrup collection was done via Belgian horse-pulling sleighs.
A peek back in time
Shannon said Justin’s grandfather started what would become an annual family tradition of tapping maple trees, collecting the syrup by bucket and cooking the syrup back in the “cook shack.”
She said his dad and uncle continued the tradition.
“One of Justin’s fun memories from when he was a kid was getting to cook hot dogs on the fire while the syrup was boiling,” she said.
Even when Shannon and Justin first started dating, the couple said they helped his parents collect the syrup pails that hung on the trees.
At that time, Shannon said the sap was cooked in a small shack on an open pan over a wood fire.
In 2007, Shannon said it was her and Justin’s turn to take over the syrup production – purchasing the equipment from his uncle.
Over the years, he said, the family tradition has evolved into a business, with the couple increasing production from roughly 200 taps to 5,000, with several syrup varieties and related products available.
“We initially grew it to about 500 taps and then gradually increased a little bit every year,” Shannon said. “As we made money, we put more money back into it. As more syrup became available, word of mouth grew and grew.”
Shannon said they start tapping trees as early as January due to the large number needed.
In addition to the 5,000 taps they are responsible for, the Kucks said they also process sap from other family members, with the total hitting nearly 14,000 trees.
It’s a labor-intensive process, Shannon said, as each tap has to be carefully drilled by hand.
“You have to make sure a [new] tap is so many inches away from the old one,” she said. “You have to know the trees and where your tap was last year, because, obviously, you want to make sure they’re staying good and healthy every year. We pull them out after each season, so they can heal up.”
The sap usually starts running between February and March each year, Shannon said, and continues to do so for four to six weeks on average.
The Kucks said it’s an intensely busy time.
“We may get two months if we’re lucky, but it’s a solid month of collecting and boiling,” Shannon said. “Lots of sleepless nights. We put on a lot of miles that time of year.”
Significant growth, advancements
Today, Shannon said, the syrup runs from the taps to the collection tanks through plastic tubing – with the woods resembling a complex maze of tubing running from one tree to another to the collection tanks.
Technological advances, the couple said, have also helped with the expansion of Kuck’s over the years.
“We have monitoring systems that stay in the tank to tell us when they’re full, versus having to go out and check every so often, which is super helpful,” she said.
The couple said they also use a reverse osmosis machine now that removes a lot of the water from the sap, which significantly speeds up the production process, as a great amount of water must be removed to achieve optimal sugar content in the syrup.
“One of the most important steps is when we send the syrup over to our evaporator, where we want it to sit, cook and caramelize a little bit,” Shannon said. “That’s where you get good flavor. It’s finding that sweet spot. We’ve done it for so long now, we just kind of know. If it’s too thick, it’s probably overcooked, and you might be able to taste that. If it’s too runny, it’s probably undercooked. We’re constantly testing with hydrometers to know the sugar content. So, there’s a lot of science involved.”
Once the syrup is ready, the Kucks said they do all the bottling and labeling, even making the labels themselves.
Their children – Mason, Nora and Korbin – the couple said, are learning early to help keep the family legacy alive.
Shannon said they’re responsible for tapping and collecting syrup from more than 20 trees in their yard.
Soon, she said, Mason may start helping his dad with the taps in the woods.
If one theme runs through Kuck’s Tapping and Sapping, Shannon said it’s family, and how maple syrup-making brings them together for a busy but joyful season.
“Family comes, steps up and helps, and that’s part of the fun – just getting everybody together that time of year,” she said. “Everybody looks forward to it when we’re in the ‘shack’ for boiling and bottling.”
Syrup and…
All those sleepless nights, Shannon said, are paying off as word has spread and demand for Kuck’s Tapping & Sapping syrup is steady.
In addition to the original maple syrup, the couple sells five other flavors: Rye Whiskey Aged, Bourbon Aged, Vanilla Bean Infused, Cinnamon Infused and Coffee Infused.
Furthermore, Shannon said they recently rolled out a Maple Old Fashioned Mix using their syrup, which has proven quite popular.
She said they have also developed Kuck’s House Blend seasoning mix featuring their maple sugar.
“It’s sweet and savory, so it’s good on burgers or vegetables, pork, chicken, salmon,” she said.
According to the Mid-West Farm Report, Wisconsin ranks fourth for maple syrup production in the U.S., with Vermont ranking first,
But Shannon said quantity does not necessarily mean they have bragging rights when it comes to quality – as she thinks Wisconsin has that title.
“People ask a lot about what affects flavor, and it’s several factors: how much sunlight, how much rain the soil gets, the kind of soil, [as well as] whether it’s below freezing at night and above freezing during the day,” she said. “We’re in Marathon County here, and we’ve heard from others who have been cooking for generations that even producers out east buy syrup from our area to blend in with theirs, because they love the flavor that we get in Marathon County.”
Beyond word of mouth, the Kucks said they have found success with farmers’ markets, local stores and outreach on Facebook.
Shannon said she also makes and sells Christmas gift boxes that include Kuck’s syrup and cheese from a local producer.
“It’s a fun way to add a little Wisconsin touch on something for people seeking gift ideas,” she said. “Plus, it’s the gift that keeps on giving, as it helps us gain new customers who then pass it on to others as well.”
Continuing a legacy
With the family tied so strongly to maple syrup production, Shannon said the last year was especially challenging, as Justin’s mom passed away last August.
“She would always tell us how proud she was,” she said. “She was always talking up the business, everywhere she went. She would come to the markets with us, which was just so fun.”
Being a part of the family’s maple syrup legacy since the horse-collecting days, through when she passed, Shannon said her mother-in-law “got to see what we’ve become.”
“It’s coming full circle,” she said. “We want to continue to make her proud and to have our kids learn that after all that hard work, you get a really tasty, sweet product that you get to share.”
For more information about Kuck’s Tapping & Sapping, visit tapandsap.com
