A Pretty Good Brand Of Sorghum That Is New To Me

I have written several times on this blog about various brands of sorghum which is one of my favorite foods.  I use it in a variety of ways including eating it in hot cereal, no pancakes and hoecakes, and for cooking at times.  I had run out of my favorite local, Morgan County Kentucky sorghum from Holbrook Brothers recently and actually done without for a couple of weeks since I have seriously worked to minimize my contacts in the world of the Cornona Virus and an uncaring White House.  But we ran out of several things we use regularly about two weeks ago and I took a trip to Save-A-Lot in Sandy Hook, Kentucky, about 25 miles away because they have a newer, larger, more airy store than our local store which is small, tightly packed with narrow, congested aisles and, in today's world, that is not someplace I want to be even with a mask and gloves.  The Sandy Hook store also has a large, well stocked produce department and produce was one of things we needed most.  

I had not even added sorghum to my list before I went to the store and was surprised to see a relatively local brand on a display near the produce section.  The maker is Lloyd Roe Farms in Pomeroyton, Kentucky, in adjoining Menifee County.  Since I had been without sorghum for a couple of weeks, I grabbed a jar and added it to my cart.  I neglected to check it closely but noticed later that it had some granulation visible through the clear glass jar.  When I got it home and tried it, I discovered that it was granulated close to 60%.  I blame this oversight on the fact that at about the same time I grabbed the sorghum I was also beginning to suffer symptoms of some virus or other which dissipated in about three hours and which I am sure was not Coronoa.  I have also seen my local doctor since then and he agrees.  But, when I realized that the sorghum was severely granulated, I knew that I had  bit of mild work to do to reliquify the sorghum.  I did sample the sorghum with a spoon before I tried to reliquify it and found it to be sweet, not bitter, not scorched, and a pretty good variety of sorghum if you discounted the granulation.  My favorite method of reconstituting granulated sorghum or honey is to heat it in a pan of hot water on the stove.  I will place the open jar in enough water to rise about half way up the jar, bring it to a boil and immediately turn the heat off and allow the honey or sorghum to sit in the hot water until it cools to about room temperature.  I check it then to see if it has fully returned to its liquid form.  If not, I repeat the process until it fully back to its liquid state.  The second time sufficed well for this particular jar of sorghum.  Let me say at this point that I also do not hold Lloyd Roe Farms responsible for the fact that the sorghum was granulated even though I know that overcooking sorghum can result in granulation.  But overcooking also usually results in scorching and that is unmistakable by taste or smell.  This sorghum was not scorched and I do not think it was overcooked even the least bit.  I just think the store probably had it in stock too long resulting in the granulation.  I will also say that, at some time in the future, I will locate a freshly cooked jar of Lloyd Roe Sorghum and give it one more honest test.  

After being heated to its liquid state, the sorghum was tasty, sweet, not bitter, not granulated, not scorched and a perfectly acceptable brand of sorghum with only one or two minor points to be discussed.  It was thin and I like thick sorghum which has not been overcooked or scorched.  But the thinness could also be due to having been heated twice in a hot water bath.  The other point I have to bring up is that the jar is a clear glass jar which is about the same height of a regular quart Mason jar in which we find most brands of good local sorghum anywhere in the country.  But, the jar does not have that signature pot belly or bulge in the middle which regular Mason jars have.  As a result this jar, hold what the label says is 35 ounces or .992233 kilograms or 2.1875 pounds which is considerably less than that typical pot bellied Mason jar holds.  Most brands of sorghum I buy in those pot bellied Mason jars are labeled to hold 44 ounces or 1250 grams.  That is a difference of about 9 ounces of product at about the same price as the larger jars of other brands.  For me, and for most other buyers, that is an issue most of us will not ignore.  I leave that to the judgment of the reader.  It is a brand of sorghum which is good enough that I will try it again when I find it ungranulated.  But I would be more willing to try it again if I received that other nine ounces and I bet you would too. 

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!   

Sorghum, Eating It, Comparing And Evaluating It

For a little more than a year now, I have been eating sorghum nearly every day in oatmeal at breakfast.  While that is the most consistently I have ever eaten sorghum, it has never been unusual for me to buy, eat, and keep sorghum in my house.  I grew up with sorghum in Knott County Kentucky and one of my fondest memories is of my father taking me with him once when I was about ten years old to buy sorghum where someone was grinding cane with a mule and cooking sorghum at the edge of the field.  For the past twenty-seven years, I have lived in Morgan County Kentucky, the home of the annual Morgan County Sorghum Festival which takes place the last full weekend in September each year. Morgan County is the heart of Kentucky sorghum country although some people in Liberty, Kentucky, the county seat of Casey County in West Central Kentucky, try to make a claim to the title. I must admit that I have never grown cane or actually made sorghum, but I will insist that I am an expert on the subject.  I have eaten three quarts in the last year.  Over the LAST sixty plus years, I have eaten sorghum made in several states, and in several different counties in my native Kentucky.  Deliberately, over the last year, I have chosen to buy different sorghum each time I have bought it and I am now ready to critique and compare these three varieties at least.  

Holbrook Brothers Pure Sorghum--Photo by Holbrook Brothers

For several years, I have been convinced that some of the best sorghum I have ever eaten has been grown and cooked by Holbrook Brothers Pure Sorghum in West Liberty where I live.  Originally, this variety of sorghum was grown and cooked by Dr. William Holbrook, DVM, and his brother Linville Holbrook.  They grew several acres of cane every year and were major influences on the creation and perpetuation of the Morgan County Sorghum Festival.  Sadly, both of the brothers are now dead.  But a second generation son is carrying on the tradition of growing and cooking the best sorghum in the area.  When I buy sorghum, I look for a rich, brown color; a sweet but not overpowering taste; and a level of thickness which shows me that the people running the cooker were both skillful and unafraid to boil the syrup down far enough to achieve that rich color and taste without scorching the product.  I have always said that there are three qualities that should always be avoided when buying and eating sorghum.  Those qualities to avoid are 1) sorghum that is too thin to the point that it runs rapidly off a spoon or a fork at room temperature; 2) sorghum that is mixed with any other form of sugar, syrup, or other additives.  Never, ever buy sorghum which says on the label that it contains any amount of corn syrup, dextrose, sucrose or any other additive or stretcher.  3) scorched sorghum should be never be used for human consumption.  If it has been scorched, it is good only as an additive to animal feed such as sweet feeds for cattle and horses.  There are two early signs that sorghum has been scorched.  The first is the odor when you open the jar.  If it has been scorched, the smell will tell you in an instant if you are an experienced sorghum eater.  The second sign of scorched sorghum is that it will usually be too thick from having been overcooked. But it is also possible to put a fast scorch on it simply by cooking too rapidly with too high heat. While I love thick sorghum, I also hate scorched sorghum.  The operator of the cooker must walk a fine line between achieving that wonderful color, flavor, and thickness and overheating and scorching the product.  If a sorghum producer, at the point of production on the farm, will not provide you a small spoonful to taste test, walk away and look for sorghum elsewhere.  It is also a great idea to look for sorghum which is being made by an active member of the National Sweet Sorghum Producers & Processors Association.  Their members are generally dedicated sorghum producers and fully committed to the art of making high quality sorghum.  Sometimes, such sorghum might be a little more expensive but it will almost always be worth the difference.  They describe their commitment in the following terms: 

• Recapturing and fostering the study of the art and science of sorghum production.
• Developing and disseminating information concerning these subjects to interested parties.
• Encouraging and promoting the combining of the best methods of the old fashioned sorghum maker with the best of today’s technology to make the best possible products from sorghum cane juice. (National Sweet Sorghum Producers & Processors Association)

The second variety of sorghum I have eaten in the past year was made by Oberholtzer's  Kentucky Sorghum.  It can be bought in a variety of stores and even from Amazon.  I have never been to Oberholtzer's production facilities but I can tell you that, based on the large variety of places I have seen it for sale, it is mass produced.  While it has an acceptable taste and color, it is too thin which is common with mass produced product. I have heard the claim made that Oberholtzer's Kentucky Sorghum is made by an Amish family and I have no cause to doubt that because of the German last name.  It is labeled as "Real" and "Not A Blend" and I have no reason to doubt the validity of those statements.  But it is just not the kind of sorghum you can find if you are willing to make a few phone calls, search the Internet diligently, and ask questions of dedicated sorghum eaters in your area.  Take a drive in the country and find a farm family who are raising less than 20 or 30 acres of cane, cooking the syrup themselves according to methods one of them learned from her parents or grandparents, and, if you are really lucky, you will find them sweating over a pan of syrup, stirring it with brand new hoes, and taking a break with a piece of squeezed cane for a snack.  But, if you don't have the time to find your sorghum that way, come to West Liberty, Kentucky, during the last full weekend of September and find a producer who lives locally, speaks with an Eastern Kentucky Appalachian accent, and offers you a free taste whether they think you are a buyer or not.

Oberholtzer's Sorghum Label--Photo by Roger D. Hicks

The third variety of sorghum I have eaten lately is actually made in Monterey, Tennessee by the Mazelin Family.  It is labeled "Pure" and "No Additives".  But I found it at my local Save-A-Lot grocery store which is a sure sign it is mass produced since Save-A-Lot is a fairly large chain with more than a thousand stores. This sorghum has a fairly good taste and color but is too thin which is also a signal that it is mass produced. The Save-A-Lot chain is headquartered in the Saint Louis area more than four hundred miles from Monterey, Tennessee, which is another indicator that the sorghum is most likely mass produced.  I do not have any particular aversion to this variety of sorghum other than the taste and thinness but I doubt that I will ever buy it again unless I run out and can't find one of my favorite varieties.  I do not consider this variety worth recommending although you, as an individual might come to like it.

Mazelin Family Sorghum Label--Photo by Roger D. Hicks

I understand that some veteran sorghum eaters and producers who read this post might disagree with me and I respect that.  If you have a favorite brand of sorghum, please let me know and if I can locate a jar I will definitely try it.  If you are a sorghum producer and have the desire to have me try and write about your product, get in touch with me either through this blog or at my e-mail ( rchicks@mrtc.com )  and we can arrange to have you send me a jar.  I am also always interested in seeing new recipes using sorghum in any form of food but especially in entrees since there are fewer and fewer people cooking with sorghum other than in baked goods.  Now go out in the area near you and find some local sorghum and try it, especially if you have never eaten sorghum.  When you do that, please send me a message or a comment on this blog so all of us can see what you found and your reaction to it.