ingredient in birch beer. Composition Birch sap contains heterosides (betuloside and monotropitoside), 17 amino acids including glutamic acid, as well as minerals, enzymes, proteins, betulinic acid and betulin, antioxidants, sugar (fructose, glucose and small amounts of sucrose) and vitamins (C and B(group)). Contrary to popular belief, there is no xylitol in birch sap (xylitol is a sugar alcohol that is industrially produced using high temperature and sulfuric acid, or through fermentation). Nutritional and medicinal uses Folk uses Folk uses have been documented which include medicinal use, supplementary nutrition, and cosmetic applications for skin and hair. Commercial birch sap and derivative products Birch sap may be consumed both fresh and naturally fermented. Fresh birch sap is highly perishable; even if refrigerated, it is stable for only up 7 days. Shelf life can be prolonged by freezing or preservation techniques. Existing preservation techniques include: Nothing i.e. bottled fresh sap (shelf life: 2–5 days refrigerated) Filtered with a 0.22-μ net (shelf life: 3 weeks refrigerated) Collected under anaerobic conditions (shelf life: 1 year ambient) Added sugar (3 g per 100 ml) Heat pasteurized, pasteurization should be conducted under specific temperature levels and times (shelf life: 1 year ambient). Although level of Vitamin C is lower than in fresh sap, all other benefits are preserved. Frozen at −25 °C (shelf life: 2 years) Birch sap can also be used as an ingredient in food or drinks, such as birch beer or wintergreen-flavored candy. Concentrated birch sap is used to make birch syrup, a very expensive type of syrup mainly made from paper birch in Alaska and Canada, and from several species in Latvia, Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine. References External links Non-alcoholic drinks Alcoholic drinks Tree tapping Betula