Two More Kinds Of Sorghum/Molasses You Shouldn't Bother To Buy!

Spring Valley Farms Sorghum--Photo by Roger D. Hicks

On March 10, 2019, I wrote my first blog post about sorghum, or molasses, whichever  you prefer and it quickly became a favorite post of some of my readers both because some of them love sorghum and because some of them knew little or nothing about sorghum and were willing to try to take on a new culinary experience, especially one that was historical in Appalachia.  I eat sorghum nearly every morning in my oatmeal which I have eaten nearly every day for more than a year following a drastic change in my diet by which I nearly totally eliminated pork, beef, eggs, and milk.  I have benefited greatly from the change in terms of weight loss, lowered blood pressure, lowered cholesterol, and other improvements in nearly every metric used to assess health care.  I should also add that I have adhered strictly to a daily exercise program for more than sixteen months.  In that first post,  I compared three brands of sorghum, one made in my home county in Eastern Kentucky, another concocted in Western Kentucky, and a third from Tennessee.  While all three of those were acceptable, I made it clear that my own personal choice was Holbrook Brothers Sorghum from my hometown of West Liberty, Kentucky. They have consistently made the best sorghum I know for more than twenty years and in a bow to modern technology even have a Facebook page.    

But I suppose I am repeating myself about my favorite sorghum which I admit I am likely to do again until someone can show me a better brand.  If you happen to believe you make the best sorghum in the world, send me a jar and I will try it, write about it no matter what my opinion is, and gladly tell the world if yours is actually as good as you believe.  But now let's get to the two most recent brands I have tried and I will tell you why I believe I am doing you, dear reader, a favor by telling you to never buy or try either of them.  I have to admit that I had to toss a coin to decide which photo to post first and which sorghum to discuss first.  I do not look forward to talking about either or them.  But I spent my money for a jar of each, ate the contents despite my misgivings and my immediate desire to go out and find a better brand.  I also must admit that I regretted the fact that I do not own hogs so I could have poured the contents of both jars in a slop bucket and further remind the porkers of their low state in a short existence.  

The first brand we will discuss is Spring Valley Farms 100% Pure Sorghum which I bought in a 22 ounce jar.  At least they sell theirs in a jar which can be reused, with a new lid, to can something better to eat.  Spring Valley Farms sorghum is made in Caneyville, KY, which is located in Grayson County Kentucky which is located in West Central Kentucky.  Grayson County Kentucky is about 200 miles to the west of my area and, as we say around here, it is in the flat land.  First and foremost, I have to admit that I did not expect great results when I bought the sorghum in my local Save A Lot store which is one of a chain of about 1300 stores in 36 states.    No chain that large usually buys any product from a small, family owned local producer.  Those kinds of producers just cannot handle the volume a chain grocer would demand.  And the best sorghum almost always comes from a small, local, family owned operation where the owner is seen stirring syrup over a hot fire in early fall.  But I bought it.  I ate it.  Now I have to say what I found and that was a typical mass produced sorghum which was not cooked down long enough to be thick, dark, rich, and sweet.  Mass producers do not ever want to see their employees burn an overly large batch of syrup.  But Spring Valley Farms insist on their pre-printed label that it is "A Habegger Family Tradition".  I am willing to concede that this is an honest statement and the operation is owned by one family.  But I am also willing to bet that the operation is large enough that nobody named Habegger is cutting cane, stirring syrup, or capping jars.  Spring Valley Farms is selling more than two dozen different products in mass produced jars and you can bet your bippie that work of that magnitude is not being done by members of a family.  Don't bother buying their products unless you are firmly convinced that mass production is a great thing. 

Grandma's Molasses--Photo by Roger D. Hicks

The other brand of sorghum, excuse me--molasses, I bought was Grandma's Molasses Unsulphured Original in a 12 ounce glass jar.  It is a darker color than most mass produced sorghum or molasses and is actually produced or sold by B & G Foods in Parsippany, New Jersey.  Oh My God, Did I Say New Jersey???  Sadly, I did.  More than 25 years ago, I used to do pre-release home visits all over New Jersey with juveniles in institutional placements.  I have driven thousands of miles across New Jersey and I remember how surprised I was one day somewhere in Northern New Jersey when I actually saw a cow.  I can assure you that New Jersey is no longer "The Garden State".  That perpetually questionable source of all information for people in a hurry, Wikipedia, says that:

"B&G Foods is a holding company for branded foods. It was founded in 1889 to sell pickles, relish and condiments. The B&G name is from the Bloch and Guggenheimer families, sellers of pickles in Manhattan. It is based in Parsippany, New Jersey and has about 2,500 employees."  (Wikipedia, accessed on June 8, 2019, at 3: 37pm.)

What B & G Foods says about themselves on their website is:

"Today, our family of brands includes more than 50 well-known and loved brands that we offer throughout the United States, Canada and internationally and our commitment to food safety and quality remains our number one priority." (B & G Foods, https://www.bgfoods.com/about  Accessed on June 8, 2019, at 3:39pm)

Based on that glorious, self-aggrandizing description, you can clearly understand that B & G Foods does not manufacture foods.  They buy products by the tractor trailer or rail car load and, at most, run bottling and canning factories where those mass produced products are blended, bottled, canned, shipped, and sold to the world.  The taste of their "Grandma's Molasses Unsulphured Original" is heavy, crude, dark, undesirable, and should never cross my lips again.  I suspect if you have a constipated baby you could put a spoon full of this concoction in the little whipper snapper's bottle and expect results before the night is out.  But whatever you do, don't inflict this stuff on yourself.  Go to a county fair, farmer's market, or road side stand and buy a nice mellow, dark, sweet, wonderful jar of homemade sorghum from somebody whose name has been scrawled on a glue backed label and pasted to a jar, carried down the lane from the sorghum mill, and placed on a table beside an old state highway with a three or four digit number.  Dip your finger in that jar, listen to the bluebirds sing, and lick it slowly off your fingers before you drive home knowing those big fluffy cat head biscuits you will be baking will be a wonderful dessert at the end of a big country breakfast tomorrow!