In 2016 Vermont Sticky’s owner and founder, Krista Powers, brought her family’s sweet maple from the wild forest of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont to her small mountain town on Colorado’s Western Slope. After years of syrup requests from Colorado friends, she realized there was a need for sweet golden maple syrup in Colorado’s high country.

Krista moved to Colorado from her home state of Vermont in 1999 in search of skiing and powder. After one winter, the pull of the tight-knit community in Crested Butte was enough to convince her to commit to a life in the mountains out West. As a third-generation maple syrup producer, Krista is proud to connect her customers in Colorado with syrup delivered directly from her family’s farm in Vermont. Over generations, her family has used maple syrup for many things (more than just pancakes!). Syrup can sweeten coffee, top ice cream, replace simple syrup in cocktails, or substitute sugar in cooking and baking.

A FUEL FOR ATHLETES IN NATURE

Crested Butte is home to many accomplished endurance athletes. Winters are spent skiing, and summers are for mountain biking and running. Krista spent years competing in endurance ski and bike races, and she often found it hard to find food that properly fueled her adventures that also agreed with her stomach.

After some brainstorming, she tried her hand at creating her own adventure fuel: maple syrup mixed with sea salt. The naturally sweet maple energy goo grew in popularity among her friends, and now Krista is excited to share this unique take on maple syrup with outdoor adventurers. 

A Family Affair: a Note from Vermont Sticky’s Founder

My Grandpa Archie started making 100% pure maple syrup in the 1950’s. He somehow knew when he built his first sugaring shack that the world would be clamoring for a healthy, all-natural alternative to refined sugar in the near future. He was so ahead of his time!

Now, my father is the leader of the family-owned and operated maple production. Grandpa Archie taught my dad Bob all he knew about sugaring and he, in turn, taught me, my brother, and cousins. Growing up, come spring, I worked in the woods with my family tapping trees, gathering sap, and boiling the sap to make the sweet maple syrup. When I wasn’t sugaring, I was running around in the forest, climbing trees or driving tractors.  

Sugaring continues to be a family affair. Since 2016, I’ve loaded up my van to head back East when the temperatures are perfect for sugaring: freezing at night and thawing during the day.  We spend a few months getting our hands sticky while gathering the sap from the trees and boiling that into sweet, organic maple syrup.

In 2016, with my father’s blessing and help, I put my own spin on the family business and started Vermont Sticky out of my home in Crested Butte. The decision came after years of sharing my family’s wholesome organic maple syrup with friends and neighbors. From a natural sweetener to an endurance fuel, our maple syrup has graced the tables of local restaurants, sweetened rum cocktails, and added flare to hoppy beers. We hope you’ll enjoy the unique maple products brought from my family to yours!