I grew up in, of all places, New Mexico & Colorado. But my New England born and raised mom never let us have anything but real maple syrup. And even out West, right after a snow storm, she would whip us up some Maple Snow.
Now, she would boil it up and pour it over snow to make a real maple snow cone - but my kid likes a more natural approach. She gets right to the point and eats it straight from jug to fresh snow.