The Sapling is handmade in Vermont from things sourced in maple-producing states!
Fall isn’t just the season for identifying our sugar maples, jumping in leaf piles and carving pumpkins anymore! Ever since our family started the Vermont Evaporator Company, fall has become . . . the season of inventory acquisition.
It lacks romance, so stated. Doesn’t it? But sourcing materials doesn’t have to be dry. And, in fact, we think you might take interest in where we find the components with which we hand make the Sapling Evaporator.
Wait! Did we say “hand make?” Oh yes we did. Every single Sapling goes from raw, 55-gallon drum to finished product by means of several pairs of real, live, legitimate, and otherwise actual, human hands.
(Now, to be sure, we keep it analog. But imagine, if you will, a real live person putting together other backyard products. Your . . . lawnmower. Your chainsaw. Your rototiller. It’s not happening!)
So it’s cool that we make stuff by hand. It’s unique. It’s fun. It’s hard, hungry, thirsty work. The benefits to our customers include quality construction, every time. The benefits to us: immediate gratification for a job well done. Beer without calorie guilt. And deep sleep (subject to the needs of our children).
But we don’t just craft the Sapling by hand. We craft the Sapling by hand using components sourced from around the United States, and, overwhelmingly, from other maple-producing states (maple vocab alert: a.k.a. “maple country,” or “sugar country”). Why do we do this? We have self-serving business reasons. We’re a relatively young, small company, freight is expensive, and we like to be able to look into people’s eyes when we ask them if they are going to get us our orders on time (insert mom-stare here). But we also – like you – care about our carbon footprint, we care about supporting businesses – like us – that pay a living wage, and we care about putting our money into the communities where people enjoy doing the things we enjoy doing. In other words, we (really do) care about you. And you have been very clear that the feeling is mutual (thanks!).
So let’s play a little game (it just might remind you of your last family road trip!) and see if your state is on the Sapling Evaporator supply-chain. If you hail from the northeast, chances are good. Let’s see. We buy plenty in Vermont, of course; less often in New Hampshire. Our barrels? New Jersey by way of Maine. New York is where our pipe comes from. Also, our safety equipment. Our beautiful pans, custom assemblies, specialty fasteners and accessories are manufactured in Massachusetts, from whence hails most of our heavy machinery and the things that make them go. Our paint comes from Oregon, where it is possible, if not traditional, to make maple syrup. Pipe fittings? Rhode Island.
And that’s a wrap! Time to hop on the forklift, readers. There are trucks to unload, and work to do. By hand!