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  • Sorghum Press in the works.

    I know, I know. I've been busy. Trust me.
    I finally got around to starting on my sorghum press.
    I have a little sorghum planted, but didn't go full bore this year. I have a couple acres of cedar trees to remove before I can plant the way and amount that I want. And I still have to get the evaporator process underway.
    I'll post pics when it gets a bit taller. Right now, it just looks like new grass. It is a fast growing grass, so in a few weeks it should be between 4 and 5 feet tall. And by harvest time, it should be 12 feet tall.

    Anyway, here is a couple of pics of what my press should look like.


    Here is a website that has different presses and how the whole process is done.

    Here is my press.




    And here it is in pieces.




    Top plate.


    Bottom plate.


    Gears.


    Drums and shafts.




    It's in pretty bad shape. It was sitting in the dirt in KY, quite possibly for 100 years or more. It dates back to the late 1800's.
    All the parts will get sand blasted this week and then the drums and shafts will get the pits welded and trued on a lathe. Everything that can be powder coated, will.
    It has brass bearing inserts and I haven't figured out yet what I'm going to replace them with. They may have to be fabricated.
    Our plan is to do it the traditional way with the press being mule powered and the evaporator pan being copper and wood and the evaporation process done over an open oak fire.
    So that's where I'm at on the press. I will update as I have time.


    Tom

  • #2
    OK, dumb question from a fella from up north, but aside from seeing sorghum used for silage, what do you get from pressing it? Is it sweet like sugarcane?
    Once you go Weber....you never call customer service....

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    • #3
      Originally posted by IrishChef View Post
      OK, dumb question from a fella from up north, but aside from seeing sorghum used for silage, what do you get from pressing it? Is it sweet like sugarcane?
      Yes, it's sweet. It has the consistency of light molasses. In fact, some folks call it sorghum molasses. But it's better. It can be used as a sugar substitute, although it has pretty much the same amount of carbs as sugar, so it's not a healthy alternative other than to say, it does have necessary nutrients not found in cane or beat sugar.
      It's absolutely awesome used as a sweetener in BBQ sauce.


      Tom

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      • #4
        It's pretty danged awesome drizzled over a hot buttered biscuit too!
        A few of my favorite things:
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        • #5
          Man...That is on speed...Louie hitz a fair that has that & it tastes so good! That restoration will be cool!
          Sunset Eagle Aviation
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          • #6
            Nice project, Gunny! Definitely good in BBQ sauce and baked beans and on a hot biscuit! Looking forward to the restoration of your press!
            Becky
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            • #7
              Tom that thing is rough! Good on ya for restoring it, be watchin fed it.
              Mark
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              • #8
                12 feet tall !
                that's some serious grass.

                (reads up on sorghum)
                That is some fascinating and useful grass:

                Culinary use

                In arid, less developed regions of the world, sorghum is an important food crop, especially for subsistence farmers. It is used to make such foods as couscous, sorghum flour, porridge and molasses.

                Bhakri (jolada rotti in northern Karnataka), a variety of unleavened bread usually made from sorghum, is the staple diet in many parts of India, such as Maharashtra state and northern Karnataka state. In eastern Karnataka and the Rayalaseema area of Andhra Pradesh, roti (jonna rotte) made with sorghum is the staple food.

                In South Africa, sorghum meal is often eaten as a stiff porridge much like pap. It is called mabele in Northern Sotho and "brown porridge" in English. The porridge can be served with maswi - soured milk - or merogo - a mixture of boiled greens (much like collard greens or spinach).

                In the cuisine of the Southern United States, sorghum syrup is used as a sweet condiment, usually for biscuits, corn bread, pancakes, hot cereals or baked beans. It was used as the unavailable maple syrup is used in the North, although it is uncommon today.

                In Arab cuisine, the unmilled grain is often cooked to make couscous, porridges, soups, and cakes. Many poor use it, along with other flours or starches, to make bread. The seeds and stalks are fed to cattle and poultry. Some varieties have been used for thatch, fencing, baskets, brushes and brooms, and stalks have been used as fuel. Medieval Islamic texts list medical uses for the plant.[4]
                Popcorn (for size comparison) left, and popped sorghum seeds, right

                Sorghum seeds can be popped in the same manner as popcorn (i.e., with oil or hot air, etc.), although the popped kernels are smaller than popcorn (see photo on the right).

                Sorghum sometimes is used for making tortillas (e.g., in Central America).[5] In El Salvador, they sometimes use sorghum (maicillo) to make tortillas when there is not enough corn.[6]

                Since 2000, sorghum has come into increasing use in homemade and commercial breads and cereals made specifically for the gluten-free diet.
                Alcoholic beverages

                In China, sorghum is the most important ingredient for the production of distilled beverages, such as maotai and kaoliang, as seen in the 1987 film Red Sorghum.

                In southern Africa, sorghum is used to produce beer, including the local version of Guinness. In recent years, sorghum has been used as a substitute for other grain in gluten-free beer. Although the African versions are not "gluten-free", as malt extract is also used, truly gluten-free beer using such substitutes as sorghum or buckwheat are now available. Sorghum is used in the same way as barley to produce a "malt" that can form the basis of a mash that will brew a beer without gliadin or hordein (together "gluten") and therefore can be suitable for coeliacs or others sensitive to certain glycoproteins.[7]

                In November 2006, Lakefront Brewery of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, launched its "New Grist" gluten-free beer, brewed with sorghum and rice. It is one of its most successful lines. It is aimed at those with celiac disease, although its low-carb content also makes it popular with health-minded drinkers.[8]

                On December 20, 2006, Anheuser-Busch of St. Louis, Missouri, announced the release of their new "Redbridge" beer product. This beer will be gluten-free and produced with sorghum as the main ingredient. Redbridge is the first sorghum-based beer to be nationally distributed in the United States.

                African sorghum beer is a brownish-pink beverage with a fruity, sour taste. Its alcohol content can vary between 1% and 8%. African sorghum beer is high in protein, which contributes to foam stability, giving it a milk-like head. Because this beer is not filtered, its appearance is cloudy and yeasty, and may also contain bits of grain. This beer is said to be very thirst-quenching, even if it is traditionally consumed at room temperature.

                African sorghum beer is a popular drink primarily amongst the black community for historical reasons. African sorghum beer is said to be a traditional drink of the Zulu people of Southern Africa. It also became popular amongst the black community in South Africa, in part because the only exception to the prohibition, which was lifted in 1962 and only applied to black people, was sorghum beer.

                Sorghum beer is also associated with the development of the segregationist "Durban System" in South Africa in the early 20th Century. The turn of the 20th Century saw growing segregationist tendencies amongst the white populations of South African towns. Fearful of the alleged diseases of black residents, the white populations of these towns sought to prevent black Africans from gaining permanent residence in urban areas, and separate them from the white communities. Within this context, two municipalities, Durban and Pietermaritzburg, devised a system by which black Africans in their locality would be housed in 'native locations' outside the main towns, with their segregated accommodation paid for from revenues from the municipal monopoly over sorghum beer. This solved the problem of white rate-payers having to foot the cost of segregation, and ensured the whole scheme paid for itself. After the passage of the 1923 Natives (Urban Areas) Act, all municipalities in South Africa were given the powers to enforce racial segregation, and the Durban System was extended throughout the union, ensuring that segregation was paid for from African rents and beerhall monopolies. [9]
                Last edited by curious aardvark; 06-19-2012, 01:43 PM.
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                • #9
                  Love it when things are brought back from the dead!

                  I have bought bushings from ASB when rebuilding equipment.

                  http://www.asbbearings.com/products_..._bearings.html
                  "Because without beer, things do not seem to go as well"

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Hippy View Post
                    Love it when things are brought back from the dead!


                    I could not agree more!!! And to add a piece of American Heritage..
                    Ken


                    I Should Have Been Rich Instead Of Being So Good Looking

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                    • #11
                      Awesome Post, Gunny!!

                      Just found this, but thanks for keeping us up on this!!!

                      I remember when you found it & brought it home.

                      Very interesting!!!


                      Bear
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                      • #12
                        CA I looked this up and thought you would appreciate it..

                        .
                        [yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH3w47l2M-Q&feature=channel&list=UL[/yt]
                        Ken


                        I Should Have Been Rich Instead Of Being So Good Looking

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                        • #13
                          Re:

                          We make Sorghum around these parts each year. A Mule turning the press
                          is a familiar site in the fall of the year. I grew up on sorghum and keep a jar of it for my cooking handy. Made baked beans a few days back and used some of it. Some people call it "sorghum molasses" but technically
                          they say it isn't a true molasses. It is robust in flavor though.

                          I used to eat it on grand dad's white cornmeal cornbread.

                          Last time I was at the Kentucky State Fair there was a Sorghum booth and
                          they had Sorghum suckers. Hadn't seen those since I was little. (something like a Sugar Daddy)

                          Good luck with your restoration project. I helped a friend restore an old Cider Press. We've made some fine cider with it over the years when we find people who have an apple tree that they don't care about where we can get the apples. We give them a container of cider as a thank you gift.
                          We've had a few people allow us to come and prune their trees and take care of them for them just for the apples, as neither of us had apple trees.
                          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc1URQgQWNo

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                          • #14
                            Got some sand blasting done and found out that the drums are pressed onto the shafts, so that's an easy fix. No welding and turning. Glad of it too. My lathe isn't big enough to turn the biggest drum, so I'd have to find a machine shop to do the work. Around here, most machine shops will only do production work. Not a great place to live if you need any prototype or one off work.

                            Sorghum is growing fantastic in this Midwestern drought and hot spell. Can't wait to get this whole process up and running. Gotta buy a mule though.


                            Tom

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                            • #15
                              My sorghum growing like.......well........grass!

                              Here is my sorghum. You can't tell it, but the tallest is right at 5 feet, and it's only been planted for about 5 weeks.



                              Tom

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