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It has happened three times lately: A funny taste in the organic milk we bought. Twice, this has happened with Horizon, and once with Organic Valley. Yesterday, the milk tasted as though chicken broth were mixed in with it. Very strange, and not a sour/spoiled taste. I googled a bit and found that a number of people have had this problem with all types of milk, but particularly with organic brands. Theories getting some play were: 1) that new processes are being used in pasteurization or cleaning tankers that may affect the taste; 2) that organic milk just "tastes different;" 3) that there is some leaching of the plastic containers into the milk, affecting the taste. Regarding this last theory, It seems to me that food grade plastic should not leach. However, my husband went out for a gallon of Oberweiss in glass, and there was not a problem.

It seems to me that if lamb from the salt marshes in France has a salt-marshy taste (and it does,) then milk should taste of whatever the cows are eating. In Chicago, there's that problem with an algae bloom in the lake making all the tap water smell offensive at certain times of the year. Couldn't some vegetal variation be at the root (sorry) of this?

Has anyone else noticed this problem?

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

Bingo! Back when I used to drink milk, I could detect the taste of plastic every time we bought milk in those plastic bottles. Once I banned plastic containers from our fridge, the off taste went away for good. No one else seemed to taste the difference and I was nearly convinced I was imagining it, except for the fact that I could identify plastic jugged milk 100% of the time in a bind taste test.

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Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Steve, we are going to have to give you a new LTH Superhero name!

And, yes, it could be the plastic, but why would the aseptic container (juice box) milk from Organic Valley also taste strange? And why would it smell like chicken broth?
Do you happen to remember the "bouquet" of the plastic-containered milk?

Let me also raise the issue of month-long expiration periods. I don't drink much milk (except in coffee) and yet, it's only recently that I've noticed such broad windows for milk viability. Is this a new thing?

Aha--look what I found: this explanation from the blog Food Renegade. Ultra-high temperature processing is supposed to affect the fragile proteins in the milk, altering the flavor so much that different strategies, including the addition of flavonoid compounds have been added to the UHT milk to improve the flavor. A "burned" taste is mentioned. (Could that be my "chicken broth taste"?) Food Renegade's post is worth reading, as the blogger seems to be careful about sources and citations. The post also raises special concerns about UHT processing for those with leaky gut.

This morning, I am drinking a latte made with Oberweiss. I see from their website that they do not use the UHT process. Problem solved!

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

Yes, it was a plasticy burned taste. I felt it was more like a butterscotch-gone-bad flavor. It very well could be the processing is to blame, because the cure for me was to switch to Oberweis glass bottles. I always thought it was the glass that made the difference, but maybe it was simply the way the milk was pasteurized.

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Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

Yes, it could be described as butterscotch. Butter and chicken fat have a similar quality. Oberweiss to the rescue!

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

Josephine, you might also try Kalona or Kilgus. Kalona is organic. Kilgus is not. Both come in plastic bottles, but I've never noticed any off flavors.

I've never noticed this taste before, but this seems like it is either from the pasteurization process or from UV rays causing oxidization in the milk. See http://www.foodsci.uoguelph.ca/dairyedu/grading.html

Most organic milk (especially Big Organic milk, such as Horizon and Organic Valley) is ultra-pasteurized. I find it to have a funny, cooked taste (not chicken broth, but I could see how the two tastes may intertwine). Try pasteurized milk instead.

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Local Beet

Organic Valley milk is not ultra pasteurized.

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...defended from strong temptations to social ambition by a still stronger taste for tripe and onions." Screwtape in The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

Fuckerberg on Food

The Organic Valley milk in aseptic containers (juice boxes) must be ultra-pasteurized, since it's shelf-stable. That's what we had trouble with. The strange thing is that when in France this year, we bought aseptic-container milk and had no trouble. Odd.

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

gotcha - didn't even know they made those. Regular OV milk in the cooler case is not UP. Horizon is.

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...defended from strong temptations to social ambition by a still stronger taste for tripe and onions." Screwtape in The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

Fuckerberg on Food

I recently identified a new-to-me brand of milk that has all the right stuff: Kalona Supernatural. Organic, Vat-Pasteurized at 145 degrees F, Grass-Fed Non-Homogenized, Grade A and Midwestern. The dairy is Kalona Organics of Kalona, IA. Good stuff, very good stuff. Available at Fox & Obel and, I assume, elsewhere in Chicago. Also available at Dierberg's in St. Louis.

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

I mentioned this above. I'm glad you like it. It's also available at Whole Foods.

Hi- Kalona is available at Whole Foods as well. It is good milk, but I still like Oberweis better. Hope this helps, Nancy

Traders point Creamery is my favorite milk. I'm like Josephine, I don't really drink milk, but this one tastes sweet and maybe a bit grassy, the way old poems & the Bible refer to milk.

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Ava-"If you get down and out, just get in the kitchen and bake a cake."- Jean Strickland

Horto In Urbs- Falling in love with Urban Vegetable Gardening

pairs4life- You have a way with words! (And I am still groovin' on those boiled peanuts and fresh Muscadine grapes from the LTH picnic 2 years ago) Thanks ever so much!

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

This year I canned the boiled peanuts. I'm in heaven because with this there can be boiled peanuts year round. "Big-Ups" to Cathy2 for being my pusher on canning.

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Ava-"If you get down and out, just get in the kitchen and bake a cake."- Jean Strickland

Horto In Urbs- Falling in love with Urban Vegetable Gardening

I like all of Trader's Points products. But they are expensive!

Yes. But assuming you don't drink milk, then it's okay. Now if I was feeding a bunch of milk-sucking soccer playing kids that drank it like it was water, that would be different. I really want to make my yogurt with that milk but like you said, it's expensive.

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Ava-"If you get down and out, just get in the kitchen and bake a cake."- Jean Strickland

Horto In Urbs- Falling in love with Urban Vegetable Gardening

I make yoghurt with Kalona 2 % and a little non-fat powdered milk and find that is still cheaper than buying commercial (good) stuff.

My yoghurt maker makes 6 6oz containers at a time for 36 oz total. That equals 9 4oz containers of a commercial brand. The commercial ones sell for anywhere between 75c and about 98c each. That comes to between $6.75 and $8.82 total.

I use 4 1/2 cups of milk to make 36oz of yoghurt. Even if a 1/2 gallon of milk cost $5, I'm way ahead of the game since I'm using less than 3 bucks worth of milk.

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"The only thing I have to eat is Yoo-hoo and Cocoa puffs so if you want anything else, you have to bring it with you."

Hi- On rare occasion you can get Stonyfield or another good brand on sale at Whole Foods for 50 cents a piece, and yogurt is always under 40 cents at Aldi's all the time. I sed to make my own yogurt, but I quit doing it, because I got lazy, and I buy plain yogurt by the quart usually at Whole Foods, and I rarely spend more than $2.50 a quart, and if I have a coupon, I can get Mountain High or Brown Cow for $2 a quart or less sometimes.

A few days ago, I bought a half gallon of milk at Jewel. The milk was called Nature's Farm, and it was on sale for $3.00 a half gallon, and they had dollar coupons there, which brought the price down to $2. Oberweis is my all time favorite milk, but right now my budget will not allow me to buy it. The Nature's Farm milk tasted actually much better than conventional store brand milk. The milk is hormone free, and all the milk comes from small family farms. The only thing I don't like about it is that the milk is ultra pasteurized. It is located in the same area as the organic milk at Jewel, but this milk is not organic. It is not located with the store brand milk. Hope this helps, Nancy