Glacier’s End growing a new take on old favorites

November 30, 2020 at 1:26 am CST

First-time farmers Derek and Libby Ervin established their farm two years ago after relocating from Chicago. While Libby grew up in southern Indiana and Derek in Herrin, Illinois, she and Derek have remodeled Derek’s grandparents’ house and established an orchard and produce plots on 37 acres in Williamson County.

Making hickory syrup is not the same process as making maple syrup. Here, Derek Ervin of Glacier’s End Farm in Pittsburg does a long steep of hickory bark in one of the early steps of the process.

With the Carbondale Winter Market in full swing, the Ervins offer a highly unique product line that includes hickory syrup, “shagberry” granola and syrup that celebrates hickory and elderberry flavors, apple butter, elderberry syrup, jelly and preserves, pear butter and preserves, fresh eggs and their newest addition — elderberry granola.

The concept of hickory syrup is so novel and the Ervin’s elderberry flavors also unique that they started offering sample tastes in the form of gummy bears, stars and other shapes. The jellied flavors are so popular they are gaining their own following.

Shagbark hickory bark takes a long hot bath in simmering water in the hickory syrup making process.