Oregon Creamery Distiller Working On Cowcohol

An Oregon creamery is working with a distiller to turn whey into vodka.  TMK Creamery, near Canby, is working with Jason Greenwood of Divine Distillers of Salem on the unique venture.  Greenwood said whey-based vodka is not common.  He told KOIN-TV in Portland, they’ve been working with USDA, Oregon State University to perfect the process.

“We take the why after the cheese is made, there’s about 3% sugars, which we ferment, and then once we fermented those 3% sugars, we distil those."

According to OSU, most milk that goes into a cheese-making facility comes out as whey, which can be expensive to dispose of in landfills.  The university says turning whey into protein powders or related products requires equipment that can be too expensive for small creameries.

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