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Mapping the MustachePasteurized or ultra-pasteurized milk; homogenized organic versus raw? |
Americans have a touchy relationship with milk. Many people think they’re lactose intolerant. Others won’t drink it because they’re afraid it contains bovine growth hormone. Or that it’ll make them fat. In fact, U.S. consumption of milk has been steadily dropping since the mid 1980s—even taking into consideration the nearly corresponding increase in latte consumption during that same period. The dwindling number of people who are drinking milk are increasingly buying organic.
Similar fears surround beef. But there’s a difference: People discuss the taste differences between organic and grass-fed beef, conventional versus “sustainably raised.” How often have you heard arguments over the taste of pasteurized versus ultra-pasteurized milk, or homogenized organic versus raw?
CHOW conducted a double-blind taste test to see if we could identify major differences among milks and select our favorites. Our panel was made up of food editors and chefs from CHOW’s staff. Our guest taster was Nina Planck, founder of farmers’ markets around the country and author of the book Real Food: What to Eat and Why (Bloomsbury USA, 2006), which extols the alleged health benefits of raw milk. Our ten milk samples ranged from conventional (pasteurized, homogenized, non-organic) to niche (raw, organic, filtered through a cotton sock.) We shook up the non-homogenized milks before drinking. Except for one goat’s milk thrown in for kicks, all were cow’s milk and whole, because full-fat milk is the most flavorful. We evaluated the samples’ colors, aromas, flavors, textures, and degree of richness.
What did we find?
- Organic tastes better than non-organic.
- Non-homogenized milks were smoother, creamier, and overall more delicious than homogenized.
- Ultra-pasteurized should probably be avoided, because the milk can taste “cooked.” That’s fine if you’re making rice pudding, but otherwise, we prefer fresher-tasting milk.
- Raw milks are the most flavorful, but you have to be ready for them: If you prefer a neutral beverage that tastes almost like ice water, raw milk’s tangy, barnyardy, grassy notes may be off-putting.
1. Straus Family Creamery (pasteurized, non-homogenized, organic): Immediately recognizable as non-homogenized because of the flecks of yellowish cream suspended in watery white, this milk also had no distinct aroma, but its creamy texture, richness, and “summery,” “cake batter,” “sweet,” and “grassy” flavor got high marks with the tasters. Overall, it rated a 4.5 out of a possible 5 points.
2. Clover Organic (pasteurized, homogenized): Uniform ivory with no flecks, this milk had no real aroma to speak of, had an even texture, and struck the tasters as “straight-up,” “balanced,” “sweet,” and “familiar.” It received a 4.
3. Organic Pastures (raw, organic): Very creamy and yellow looking, this milk had a slightly sour aroma and the most distinct flavor. It was tangy and “rich,” “sort of like shrimp or shellfish,” and “barnyardy in a good way.” (Later we learned that the dairy does nothing to its milk other than filter it through a cotton sock prior to bottling.) One panelist was put off by the taste, because the startling flavorfulness reminded her of reconstituted dry milk. It had a beautifully creamy, smooth, and even texture. The panel gave it a 4.
4. Claravale Farm (raw, non-organic): Yellowish and sweet smelling, this milk had an earthy taste that some panelists agreed was “fresh” but one found “plastery.” The tasters united in their appreciation of this milk’s texture, which was “silky,” “velvety,” and “thinner, but pleasantly so.” It received at 3.5.
5. Lucerne Vitamin D enriched (pasteurized, homogenized, non-organic): Solid white, with no aroma to speak of and a “good and basic,” “subtle,” and “neutral” taste, this milk reminded many of the tasters of what they had grown up with. For those who preferred the stronger-tasting milks, this was a bad thing. Others liked it best. Ultimately it ranked a 3.
6. Trader Joe’s Organic Cream Top (ultra-pasteurized, non-homogenized): The milk was chunky with bits of cream and a vanilla hue. Although this milk, like the Stremicks, was ultra-pasteurized, none of the tasters picked up “cooked” notes. They agreed it was neutral tasting with a creamy consistency, and reminded everyone of the Straus milk. (Turns out Straus is rumored to be the dairy that supplies Trader Joe’s with this product. Reps from both companies refused to comment on the speculations.) The panel gave it a 3.
7. Stremicks Heritage Foods Organic (ultra pasteurized, homogenized): This very white milk was the only one that had bubbles in it, and smelled intensely “custardy,” “cooked,” and “sweet.” The taste was similar: cooked and custardy, with one panelist commenting that it also tasted “flat.” Although it had a rich consistency, the panel agreed its overall impression was that of “factory milk.” Stremicks received a 2.5.
8. Summerhill Dairy goat’s milk (pasteurized, non-homogenized, non-organic): The milk looked rheumy and white with a green tinge. Most of the tasters recognized it immediately from its barnyard smell and salty flavor as goat’s milk. One taster noticed a “cooked” flavor possibly due to pasteurization. It seemed unfair to compare it with the cow’s milk; it is, after all, from a whole different animal. Nevertheless, we gave it a 2.5.
9. Clover conventional (pasteurized, homogenized, non-organic): Pale and thick looking, this milk had no aroma and was ranked next to last by the tasters. Comments on flavor included “chemically flat,” “dull,” “refrigerated,” and “like a plastic cup.” Its consistency was “thin” and “watered-down.” It got a score of 1.5.
10. Nestlé Carnation Evaporated (pasteurized, homogenized, non-organic): The milk was nearly beige in color, with an aroma of popcorn; the panel found its texture thick and viscous, its taste “rancid” and “abrasive.” Few could drink any beyond a tiny sip. It received a no-score.
Do the different kinds of milk affect their use in baking and cooking? I was thinking about this sort of thing as I used some fertilized and unfertilized eggs to make pots de creme (the fertilized egg yolks didn't stay together nearly as well as the unfertilized, but I don't know if that was just a coincidence). I might try some of these milks in different half-and-half combinations for pots de creme or similar creamy desserts to see how they affect the overall consistency.
I had a similar eggy experience. At one point I stopped buying organic and free range eggs in the UK because each egg I opened was flecked with red, which I assumed to be blood or some other unsavory thing I didn't particular want to cook with. I didn't want to find out.
I'm curious if the ranking would hold for low fat milk as well. Being a Bay Area local, I buy Clover where I can, but Lucerne is what we have in the fridge most often, and it hovers at a steady 1% milkfat content.
There is a small dairy in Enfield, CT called Trinity Farm just off Rte. 5 on Oliver Road. They raise, and milk the cows, bottle and sell the milk themselves. Truly delicious. They have whole, 2%, skim, chocolate (whole), coffee (2%), eggnog from October to January, butter, and yogurt (plain, vanilla, maple, raspberry and blueberry.) The cows are pastured or fed hay only. No hormones used and although they are not certified organic, they are organically raised.
milk is sold in glass bottles with a $1 deposit for each.
I get fantastic fresh milk delivered to my door once a week in reusable glass half gallon jars from a great local dairy. Calder Dairy.
I don't want to be a wet blanket, and I haven't tasted "raw milk" since I was in high school, but being from Wisconsin I just had to comment.
Even though I am intrigued by the small, organic farms that produce excellent dairy products, I think it is a little hilarious that there is a big fuss over what we call "tank milk"( ie milk straight out of the tank). I told the fam back home about this article and they couldn't stop laughing. Really, drinking raw milk was left to the farmers and is considered a little backwards. Interesting what a name change can do!
That said, more power to the local, small farmer that is making a quality product that people enjoy. Tank milk drinkers, unite!
Is skim milk impacted by homogenization? I thought it was fat free?
our family drinks 5 of the 10 brands you tested. It might be worth testing the organic pastures milk several times over the course of a year: we have had very mixed results with the taste of their whole milk, given the change of the seasons. i want to buy raw milk, but with the price, each time is a rather expensive gamble (will the kids be able to drink it or will it be "too moo" as we say). claravale, clover, TJ's, and straus don't seem to have the same issue. i'm thinking it's because they can somehow blend their product for more quality control? i'm not liking that cotton sock "filter" you wrote about.. thinking they might need to wash that sock more often??
That's strange that your Trader Joe's milk was ultra-pasteurized. The organic cream-top I buy there is just pasteruized.
I'm sure it's Straus--it tastes exactly the same, and the sell-by and kosher certification stamps are identical to those on the Straus-brand milk in plastic half gallons. Plus the label says it's from "California's north coast," and so far as I know it's the only organic dairy in that area that doesn't homogenize its milk.
I'm a recent convert to raw milk - and I'm impressed CH is covering it without all the fear-mongering you see in most mainstream media.
In addition to the taste and nutrition benefit, when raw milk sours, you can still cook with it -- think pancakes, waffles and muffins. It gives mashed potatoes a tangy bite. My DH is squidgy about drinking it, but likes cooking with it fine.
i am surprised and delighted that someone at chowhound wrote this piece. it is an excellent FLAVOR comparisons eschewing all the political silliness surrounding this topic. i myself drink only raw milk, usually from goats, but im here on these boards for issues of flavor, cooking, etc. good work.
Great test, until you got to the evaporated milk. I was surprised that you treated is as if it were supposed to be drunk like fresh milk. It's thick and viscous because it's *evaporated* -- that is, it has some of the water taken out. In the US it's used almost exclusively for cooking (I guess some people still use it as "creamer").
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evaporat...
Oh, dear. Eggs with yolks that are flecked red are fertilized, not "unsavory." I don't buy them because I'm a vegetarian (they're considered "not"), but there's certainly nothing wrong with them if you have no such dietary restrictions. In fact, those who keep kosher homes and are preparing a dairy or pareve dish crack eggs into glass for this very reason--so that the dishes aren't contaminated (I believe removing the fleck with the eggshell renders them okay).
It's claimed that fertilized eggs are more nutrition-packed than those that aren't.