goaty milk...

[Shayanna]

were cooking with some milk and needed to empty the jar and dh chugs the last 1/2 cup, and it was very goaty. what am i doing wrong? i use udder wash before and after. clean seamless bucket. i strain through two layers of floursack towels (milk is too thick for coffee filters) and i put it in the fridge immediately. the milk didnt taste like this 3 weeks ago. udder isn't hot or hard, and teats are well clear of fur. should i try pasteurizing? how do u do this? do u put the milk directly in the pan or water bath it? i also don't want it to taste super cooked either. thanks in advance.

[Cheryl in SD]

Do you put a lid on it right away or let it cool first?
Have you changed feed?
How old was that particular jar of milk?

I don't know that pasturizing will help with goaty taste. Usually it was either a closed jar, different feed or old milk.

[Backfourty,MI.]

I wash the udder before & after. Also spray the teats with Iodine after washing & milking too. I get it right in the house, strain it a couple times & I put mine in the freezer in a jar with a lid for a couple hours then transfer to the fridge. The trick is also to get it chilled as quickly as possible. maybe your fridge isn't cooling it fast enough. Try doing the freezer for at least an hour first. Use canning jars instead of plastic & see if that doesn't make a difference. Our milk keeps a good couple weeks.

[Shayanna]

i put the lid on before chilling. jar was maybe 2 days old? glass qt size jar. no changes in feed. sweet all purpose mix and hay. i will try the freezer thing.

[morningstar]

The trick to non-goaty tasting milk is cooling it down quickly and drinking it quickly. Goat milk I've found really needs to be either ice bathed immediately or into the deep freeze immediately (don't forget it....been there too many times!).

Also the longer it sits in your fridge the higher the chance it will be goaty when you get to it. If this was a quart jar and just had a little bit at the bottom, it will turn faster, I suppose I don't know why, I'm thinking because there isn't enough in the jar to keep it all cold enough.

Some people don't notice the goaty taste, I do. I love goat milk but I won't drink it warm or old. A couple of days in the fridge is about all I can do, within 24 hours is preferred, there is fresh everyday and any leftover the next morning can be made into a quick spread cheese.

Lastly, milk filters are pretty cheap, I'm not sure how much that matters though, I've always used them and nothing else.

[mygoat]

I don't know what floursack towels are but it may not be sanitary.

If your goat is one to produce high lipase enzyme naturally, pasteurizing will help if you do it immediately. Waterbath, heat to 161* and hold for 15 seconds, then icewater bath until it's cool enough to pour into clean jars and put into fridge. Pasteurizing will also help with shelf life of milk. We pasteurize our milk for both of those reasons.

Lipase enzyme is produced naturally, some goats produce more of it - breeds such as old line french alpines, some american alpines, toggenburgs are especially known for the 'goaty' milk. Unlike most enzymes which usually operate at body temperature, it actually is inactive at body temp but becomes active when milk is cooled. Goats were likely selected FOR thier stronger tasting milk (due to lipase enzyme) for cheesemaking - makes good tasting cheese. Lipase is a cheesemaking enzyme you can also add separately.

Lipase essentially works by splitting the triglycerides normally found in milk into Free Fatty Acids (FFA's). These FFA's are the problem - goats are unique in producing fatty acids such as caprylic and capric - both named because they 'smell' (and taste) goaty.

But, if you pasteurize, lipase is denatured and it is stopped in it's tracks before it does any damage.

Our milk tastes GREAT for up to 2 weeks. We pasteurize as needed.

[Alice In TX/MO]

I think it's the flour sack towel straining. Ick. Sorry.

[lordoftheweeds]

Does putting the lid on a jar change the taste because it cools down slower?

[CaliannG]

Possibility of sub-clinical mastitis. That is what I would suspect if her milk was fine a few weeks ago, but not fine now. Also could be mineral deficiency, which is known to cause milk to "change over" faster.

My trick to fast cooling is to freeze some milk in a gallon jar, then put it in the fridge after adding the next milking's milk to it. This not only does a quick cooling of the first milking, but puts the seconds milking into a "milk icecube", which both fast cools the second milking, and helps to thaw the first milking for use.

My milk lasts for abut 3 weeks in the fridge before it starts to turn goaty, then sour.

[harvestmoonfarm]

Originally Posted by Alice In TX/MO

I think it's the flour sack towel straining. Ick. Sorry.

That's how I strain all of my milk, and have never had a problem with it tasting "goaty."

[Zilli]

I use white men's handkerchiefs for straining. They are only used for straining and I put them through a pretty rigorous washing - a bleach "pre-wash," hot water wash, cold rinse, and then an additional rinsing with white vinegar. They are then dried in the dryer and folded up and put in a zip lock bag. Just before using, I boil them in a hard boil for five or ten minutes.

I have to admit that I take a little more casual approach than some do here as far as chilling. I have zero room in my freezers, so the milk goes directly into the refrigerator. If I had room in my freezers, I would probably go ahead and put the milk in the freezer for an hour or two, but I can't; I don't notice any adverse taste because of it.

I only use and/or drink the freshest; with fresh milk coming into the house every day, I don't have to drink milk that's days old.

I use a dry erase marker and write the date on my plastic lids when it goes into the refrigerator. When I'm milking twice a day, I also mark down whether it's "AM" or "PM" milking.

I try to rotate my milk in the refrigerator but occasionally a jar will get buried in the back. Out of curiosity, I will often take a sip of older milk (8 or 9 days old) and it has always tasted fine - then I give it to the dogs because I have fresher stuff for me.

I am inclined to think that Caliann may be right about the mastitis. Years ago, with my very first goats, I ran into something similar - milk was fine one day but got "goaty" just kind of out of the blue. At first, I blamed it on the fact that the buck was in with the doe, but when she ended up with mastitis shortly afterwards, I decided it was more likely the reason for the flavor of the milk. Something to consider anyway.

[Frosted Mini's]

I would try the commercial milk filters and try quicker chilling, as suggested. I've only really had a problem with "goaty" milk due to not chilling quickly enough. We use a salt-water brine to chill our milk super quick. Subclinical mastitis (meaning you don't see signs, but the bacteria are still present), can also be a problem. If you have a CMT test kit, that hasn't frozen (found that out the hard way, they don't work if they are stored in freezing temps!), then you could test both sides and if one side gels, send in a culture for mastitis on that side. Or you could test both sides, just in case. I have a lab near me that does each test for $7 only. There is also a lab in, I think Louisiana, that does the testing for free, but you have to overnight ship ($$) to them on ice or some such.

[andabigmac]

Try the freezer and if that doesn't work test for mastitis. If you keep the milk in the door of the fridge it doesn't stay as cool so that could cause problems too. You can buy a fridge thermometer and put it in a glass of water. Try moving it to different parts of your fridge and find the coldest part. Store your milk there. Don't drink out of the bottle either.

[Shayanna]

thr flour sack towels are a real fine fabric, and pure white so i can see any funky bits that might get strained out. her milk has been a little on the thin side, and she is a nubian/toggenburg so i might just have to use her for cheese if taste doesnt improve. i have tonight's milking in the freezer now and will move it in a bit. i will double check fridge temps tomorrow. thanks all.

[Sparkie]

Toggs are known for having stronger tasting milk. They were bred on purpose for that for cheese making. I could never stomach the taste of any togg milk I tasted.

[mygoat]

That 'strong' tasting milk from Toggs is the lipase in the milk doing it's job.

I'd personally try pasteurizing a batch, and see if that makes a difference.

[Zilli]

Originally Posted by Sparkie

Toggs are known for having stronger tasting milk. They were bred on purpose for that for cheese making. I could never stomach the taste of any togg milk I tasted.

My very first goats were Toggs and I remember drinking their milk all the time and not noticing anything strong about it. The only time I ever noticed an issue with it was when it had been in the refrigerator for awhile and when the doe was starting to get mastitis (like I mentioned in my previous post).

But that was over thirty years ago. It was also the first goat milk I ever drank.

[nehimama]

I stand behind IMMEDIATE CHILLING. I use an ice water bath after the new milk is strained into CLEAN jars. After 30 min in the ice water, it goes into the fridge.

[harvestmoonfarm]

I strain mine into jars and then put it in the fridge with a loose top until it's cold. It always goes on the bottom shelf in the very back where it's the coldest.

[Laverne]

I've only had one side at a time get some mastitis. I would taste each side separately, and milk each side separately in it's own jar, then measure if that one side is down on production compared to the other and if it looks significant, like over a cup. I had one doe suddenly get off and did this, only one side was off, salty, then I infused Tomorrow on that side only, 4 days in a row twice a day, that's 8 tubes total and cleared it up. That was months ago and she is still good. Ideally a mastitis test should be done if that is suspected.

[Sherry in Iowa]

I'm with nehimama..it's all in the chilling. Someone .. maybe nehimama..told me to make sure and chill the milk down fast. I also did some research on the Internet..chilling goat milk fast was the number one remedy for goaty tasting milk.

I milk..bring it in and strain it into sterilized jars. Those jars are sitting in a large pan and I put 4 ice cube trays and a little cold water in there. That milk is ice cold and not a hint of goatiness. Hope this helps..it sure did for me.

[Ford Zoo]

I sometimes use flour sac towels too and have not had a problem with them changing the flavor of the milk. I rinse them right away with cold water after use so the (enzymes or lipase?) don't stick prior to washing.

I also use the icewater bath to cool before putting in the fridge. Just a thought-could it be that with the holidays your fridge was simply not down to temp from frequent use? My own fridge is older and gets taxed a bit when we have family get togethers.

[Cyngbaeld]

In my experience, goaty tasting milk has always been from subclinical mastitis and correcting the minerals has cleared it up. It usually means I've slacked off on the dolomite and if I get with the program the milk tastes better again.

[rileyjo]

I strain thru boiled, clean linen tea towels. They did a good job and were easy to wash.

I was drinking Togg milk last year and did not care for it. As their lactation progressed, the taste just got worse.

[Shayanna]

and the verdict is... i wasnt chilling it quickly enough. had a glass tonight. it was from a jar i chilled in the freezer first, and it was delicious. i even dunked a couple oreos. no different than store bought vitamin d milk.

[Backfourty,MI.]

That's what I figured was the problem. Freezer works great. Don't shake the milk either to keep the cream mixed in either. That will break down the enzymes quicker in the milk & it will go bad quicker too.