The Art of Making Sorghum

November 20, 2010 by Bill Riley.

Despite the lack of sorghum in most diets today, you can still find it produced by a few dedicated farmers in the South and Midwest United States.  This sweet sticky syrup is often available from roadside stands or in small specialty shops.  Knowing a producer is also a great way to keep a stock if you’re that lucky.

This past Fall, I was given the opportunity to spend three days with one such producer.  I followed the process from harvest to packaging.  Here are a few of the pictures from that shoot.

Sorghum cane in the field looks much like corn without ears.

This single row picker was restored to its full potential after being found rusting in a barn lot.  It cuts each cane near the ground and bundles several stalks together before dropping them in the rear collection chute.  Each bundle is transferred by hand to a wagon for transportation to the press.

The 150 year old milling press is used to literally squeeze the cane juice from the harvested stalks.

The juice is collected and sent to the processing shed.

Wood fires keep the juice boiling in large copper pans.

Watching it cook is magical.  The raw cane juice eventually begins to turn a rich brown color.

As the liquid is constantly stirred, it becomes thicker and begins to take on a true art form.

This is the final product at the perfect constancy.  The master cook blesses this batch as “Just Right.”

While some consider the flavor of sorghum syrup an acquired taste, I think of it as an artful taste.  After becoming familiar with the sights, sounds, and smells of the production process, the taste reminds me of three wonderful Fall days while shooting pictures and observing the century old process of The Art of Making Sorghum.

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