Why Costco's Kirkland Signature Maple Syrup Seriously Irks Shoppers

Of the many things that can vex you on any given day, breakfast should not be at the top of that list. And yet, Costco customers have taken to Reddit and other platforms to decry one of its Kirkland Signature brand products for just that reason. The item in question: the chain's maple syrup, which users claim has a design flaw that results in syrup pooling under the spout and when hardened, creates a crusty, crystallized mess that has allegedly torpedoed the most important meal of the day. How much do some people claim to dislike this maple syrup cap issue? The title of one Reddit thread is "Great syrup — worst cap design in history." 

Much like the uproar over Costco's Kirkland Signature milk jug and its temperamental tab seal, Redditors bemoan how a seemingly minor design issue has dashed their syrup desires in passionate and quite creative terms. "I'm with you. Constantly crusty, always getting it down the side of the bottle, never wants to stay closed. The shape of it is just jacked up," wrote one frazzled user. Another cited a second, but apparently no less aggravating issue with the maple syrup containers. "The other issue not mentioned is that the little piece of plastic holding the top of the cap tends to get brittle and break off after multiple uses," they noted.

Not all Costco Kirkland Signature maple syrup buyers have thrown up their hands and accepted that future breakfasts are fated to be messy affairs. Many claim the alleged cap flaw is easily bested. "I just scrape the crystallized syrup off with a butter knife every now and then when I can't close the lid all the way," wrote one user, whose comment stood in marked contrast to some users' palpable disbelief in the hoopla over the cap ("In the time it took you to type this, you could have washed off the top" — ouch).

Others adhered to the old saw about necessity and invention and expressed a variety of ways to get around the alleged cap concern. Some took a direct route by puncturing the cap with a knife, while others advocated for a more, erm, tactile approach ("Come on, just lick it off like the rest of us"). For many, the best solution was to use the Kirkland maple syrup jug as a refill for other syrup brands with more user-friendly designs, such as a wider mouth or a straight-neck spout, both of which eliminate the crust issue and accidental overpouring.

We all face our own version of the Kirkland maple syrup cap problem. If this debate teaches us anything, there are any number of ways to combat it: by making the best of things, by stabbing it, or by licking it clean. The choice is ours.