Have you ever bought goat milk from the store? It’s goaty. Some people like that, and some of us start getting nauseous at the thought.
My daughter used to drink goat milk from the store because she never could latch on right and I pumped for 14 months and then was just done. The smell of that milk, even though it was from a local farm (not raw due to NY law), was almost unbearable. She even had goaty breath afterwards…eww.
And then goat cheese…I know a lot of people do like it, in fact the farmers market booths that sell it around here have won international awards and yet it is so goaty I cannot swallow it. To each their own I suppose.
But for me I wanted milk that is NOT goaty. I basically wanted cow milk from a goat. Let’s face it, cows are scary. Also they poop too much.
We got the goat milk we desired.
It’s funny, many people say that the goaty taste comes from bucks being kept with does; yet if you mention this in a serious goat milking group you will be stomped upon (in a virtual sense, of course). Those goat people are quick to say this is an old wives tale and that bucks and does can cohabitate without the milk being affected.
I’ve noticed that the milk I have tried from goat dairies where they think this is a myth tend to have milk that tastes goaty. I wonder if eventually you don’t notice the taste anymore or something. It may be a fluke though, who knows.
Why did that old wives tale come to be if it’s NOT true (and I’m not saying it isn’t, but let’s think on it)? Well, bucks smell the way store bought goat cheese tastes. That is a very “bucky” taste. Does do not have a smell to them. Also, who says that strong smell can’t tamper with what’s inside of the thin skinned bag (udder) of a dairy goat? Makes sense to me that those strong smelling hormones could travel. Just a thought.
The people who do not believe bucks cause goaty taste have so many theories as to why goat milk CAN be goaty.
Here are some:
1. A poor diet
2. Not putting the milk straight into the freezer for 30 minutes + after you milk (supposedly this “removes” the goat flavor)
3. The doe is “in season”
4. Some breeds of goats produce stronger tasting milk
5. It’s the breeding lines specifically. Some lines are just goaty tasting.
6. Pasteurizing the milk (or heating it past a raw temperature)
7. Milking when it’s hot outside
8. Poor sanitation practices around milking
9. Looking at the goat wrong (okay, I’m kidding but not kidding)
Seriously? How can it be that no one seems CERTAIN?
Well, I’m the kind of person who wants answers.
We have had goaty milk on two occasions in our 5 months or so of goat ownership. One time I’m clueless about, but it could have been a diet change with chaffhaye or it could have been that she was in season. It was back when we had only one milking goat and I didn’t check her vulva on a regular basis like I do now (it’s breeding season!). The other time was when I made yogurt which was heated high and it was such a goaty flavor we just threw it out.
So heating seems like it could be a real issue. All the cheeses I’ve made are raw and we drink the kefir and milk raw as well. Only the one mystery time made my cheese gross and goaty. Normally it’s just like a soft cow cheese.
A few days ago we noticed that Bridget, one of our new goats, was in season. We checked all the other girls but no one else showed any signs. So we took her and stuck her with our Mini Mancha buck whose mom gives a half gallon as a first freshener (meaning she’s only had one birth before…often it takes three before they give their best amount of milk). Knowing he’s been the “slow” boy to come into rut as they call it, we decided to also put out a Nigerian Dwarf buck who is probably 50-75 pounds lighter than Bridget but who seems “excited” by the girls and could perhaps get the Mini Mancha buck excited as well.
We had to pull up chairs the whole thing was so entertaining. I’m a city girl and my pets have either come to me spayed/neutered or they’ve never had the opportunity to mate. I’ve NEVER seen animals giving birth in person! And somehow this first step pre-birthing also seemed fun and entertaining, probably mostly because the goats are so different in size and the boys are just figuring things out.
The boys were excited immediately, though it seemed like the Mini Mancha (Trinket) had to glance over at the Nigie (Burrito) a few times to see if there was something he should be doing. He was taking notes, you could say. Bridget was decent to them unlike when we tried to stick Kissy in with them a second time when she was NOT apparently in season and she kept scaring them with glares and running after them. The boys kept trying to sniff her vulva and they would make this really silly face where they stretched their necks out long and then stuck their teeth out. Now goats only have teeth on the bottom so this is indeed a funny sight! No pictures were taken, sadly, but I’m sure there are pictures on the internet if you’re curious. They also got erections though only Burrito ever mounted her (to our knowledge, though we actually left the house for several hours while only Bridget and Trinket were together, so who knows for sure). It was a weak attempt and the height difference made it impossible anyway. The enclosures do not have hills and we did not want to interfere too much this time around, like setting him on a step and then holding her next to it. He isn’t really my preferred choice for her anyway, I really am hoping Trinket will come around, because the cuteness of Mini NuManchas is just unbearable. Their ears! And the bag (that’s udder or breast to the non-goat people) is genetically passed through the male lines so he would be a good one for her to pair with. Also he’s my favorite boy and she is my easiest milker.
ANYWAY there was a point to all this besides giving you images of goat sex.
Bridget did NOT have goaty tasting milk at all that evening or the day after or ever. I separated her milk out just in case. So the boys did not affect her, at least not in the amount of time she spent with them, and also neither did her own hormones change the milk. Still creamy and cow-like as ever.
Today I decided to test the milk in the freezer theory. I’ve been too grossed out to drink warm milk from the pail but I stuck one of the milks directly into the fridge today instead of the freezer (we do each milk in the freezer an hour and a quarter each time). The milk tastes normal. It’s not goaty.
As for whether it’s a breed thing, we have three different breeds here and none of them are goaty. And though we have several lines, none FABULOUS milkers and none registered dairy goats, we still don’t have a goaty taste.
I’m unwilling to put my goats on a bad diet to see if that would affect them and I don’t think I had a few days of poor sanitation practice out of the blue…
So I’m leaning towards thinking it’s a heating issue, at least on our farm with our goats. Oh, I just remembered I also tried to make cajeta, a carmel type goat milk dessert, but heating that also gave things a goaty taste in the milk that had not previously been goaty. So yes, it must be about heating the milk. Whether there are more valid reasons I am just not sure.