I saw this butter in a local chain supermarket, one not known for artisanal or “gourmet” products. I’m intrigued by this so I’m coming to HO for your input… It’s a 2 lb pkg priced at $9.99. What can you tell me about this? 
The Amish butter in my area is a different (and I think larger) producer, but it’s good butter for the table. (Salted butter is a condiment chez moi, as I bake and cook with unsalted.)
The big rolls are unwieldy, though, as you can’t put them in a butter dish…and two pounds is a LOT of butter!
It’s allegedly hand rolled. That’s the only difference as far as I can tell.
http://rollbutter.com/
It doesn’t say anything about how the cows are raised, whether antibiotics and growth hormone are used, etc. I regularly buy 2 pounds rolls from a nearby dairy that raises it’s cows on pasture. I find it easy to use and get pretty close eyeballing measurements. You can also easily cut it into eighths for use on a butter dish.
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Do not confuse Amish with organic, artisanal, or humane animal husbandry. Besides,
this COULD be just “Amish Country” used as a brand name, without meaning that Amish dairies produce it.
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methinks the “label” is basically misleading to false. and indeed, “Amish Roll Butter” is just a marketing gimmick. unless you’re on a first name basis with an Amish dairy farmer, you’re likely buying a myth.
first note, it’s WI Grade A - not USDA Grade AA - the good news…WI uses the USDA definitions, so it’s not Dogpatch Grade A
second note, 14 gram serving contains 11 grams of fat - or 11/14=78.5%
this is not USDA AA standard.
third note: you know all those bakers that rave about Kerry Gold / plugra butter / etc?
why? because those “upper tier” butter grades have more butterfat than “standard USDA AA grade”
the phrase “Where’s the Beef?” comes to mind…
the ‘high end’ butters I’ve tried have been serious disappointments in terms of taste. they don’t sell well, the product is generally old / stale / gone off / whatever. this is not a cultured butter difference; this is a tastes yuk difference…
otoh, at our local market with multiple real Amish vendors, one does not buy butter in a roll. the butter is in a tub - how much you want?
I buy dry cured bacon there - salted, hickory smoked. that’s it, nothing else - no other chemicals. the downside is the bacon does not “keep” well. after a week in the fridge, it does not smell like you want to eat it. I have solved this problem by first freezing 2-3 bacon strip “batches” individually on a cookie sheet, then wrapping them in foil for freezer storage. thaw, cook, eat yummy…
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Here’s the manufacturer/ product home page.
http://dairywisconsin.com/
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and that’s exactly what it looks like it is…
The one I buy is produced by Troyer, which was founded by a guy who was born into an Amish family.
and the photo shows that it’s AA… http://www.troyercheese.com/products/butter.html
Their off-the-bone sliced deli ham is the hands-down favorite at our house.
Thanks to all of you, I knew I could count on HO for the straight scoop on this!
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I enjoy a DIY home butter now and then - a pint of heavy whipping cream, a KA with whisk and 15 minutes will get you a nice chunk of homemade butter and . . .
a cup+/- of “the real thing” buttermilk aka whey - which is fantastic for making pancakes/waffles.
here’s a couple things I’ve learned along the way, or the whey, iffin you’re into puns:
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washed butter: when you make butter, the cream ‘clumps’ into butter globs and whey quite abruptly. as a result, when you scoop out the “butter” there is a lot of water / whey still “entrained” in the butter. the organics in the whey “go bad” much faster that the fats - so “washing” butter refers to rinsing (with “fresh water”) the whey liquid out of the butter globules. I never bother ‘washing’ my butter because it stands zipcommazero chance of lasting long enough to go bad.
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the marketing claims ‘it taste better’ because it is made from cream versus left over cheese whey: boy, these folks need a serious math&reality lesson. there is indeed some butterfat left floating about in the whey - that would have to be collected and ‘squeezed’ into a butter roll. you can’t make butter from the watery portion of whey - no, it’s just not possible.
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apparently the marketeers have overlooked the fact that cultured butter sells at a premium price. the acidified whey they disdain is root of the “nutty European etc etc etc” butters costing 2x - 6x “fresh cream” butters. go figger. you can make cultured butter at home - just leave the cream out at room temp for 24-36 hours to go slightly sour (sour = acidity…) then whip it into butter.
commercially produced butter is no longer “churned” - it is pumped at very high pressure through plates with very very tiny holes - the “turbulence” of being forced through these little tiny holes causes the clumping/churn effect. if one wants to insist one way or the other makes for “better tasting butter” - be my guest. I make the DIY stuff at home because it tastes “fresher” (I’m a no salt type…)
and…because it’s the only way to get ‘authentic’ butter milk. butter milk sold in the stores is not really what the original term refers to.
marketing people will invent facts or stretch existing facts to suite the needs - does not mean any of it is of any importance. it may be true, but it may be true-and-of-no-significance.
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Yeah, I live about 1 1/2 hrs from the Pennsylvania Amish country. They are probably best known for HORRIFIC treatment of dogs in their puppy mills.
Many people have also checked the dumpsters behind their shops and found empty packhouse product cases.
Agree, when looking for organic or antibiotic/hormone free products keep it local or go with a major that is regularly inspected.
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The word “Amish” depends on what brand you buy.
But. For Alcam Creamery in Wisconsin that makes the image on the top. This is what they mean:
The milk from cows that were fed nothing but grass, by amish farmers, was delivered to them by horse and carriage. Then alcam creamery, pasteurizes, and turns it into butter. Then it just comes out of a tube, and gets chopped into the 2 pound rolls you see.
It is the most delightful taste you’ll ever grace a toasted english muffin with.
They no longer use horses due to the sanitation problems related to horse feces at the processing facility.
They used to sell the butter online. Then Alcam Creamery was bought out by Wisconsin Cheese. And Now the only place to get it is from Albertsons.
And the crap on the bottom is just normal american factories using bails of grass hay.
I hope this helps.
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It’s done all the time. It requires centrifuge equipment though, and you only get 5 or so pounds of butter for every ton of whey.
Thanks! I saw it at Lucky’s market at No Cal today! Almost bought it but it was in 2 pound portions they also had Pulgra 1/2 pounds on sale; 2 for $5.00, so…
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