Mountain Molasses Stiroff - How to make molasses

The video captures a molasses stir-off in detail, and explores the history and economic impact of sorghum and sugar cane.

[@jenniferfahnestock450]

Beautiful voice, narrator! A pleasure to watch.

[@curtiscornett]

We]re glad you liked the video and thank you so much for such a nice compliment on my voice. As you may have noticed on KZbin, we like documenting these old customs that are fading with time. We've done them on chair caning, on a charming old-time banjo player. and on the American chestnut, among others. We're thinking about doing one on a long-time but now retired square dance caller from this area. We are learning that some callers have a unique style and are very good at interposing their own rhymes for the standard moves. We think that needs to be documented. Nina Cornett

[@janicerice1683]

As a teenager in Letcher, County, I attended "stir-offs" of molasses ! Many people there & enjoyable.

[@curtiscornett]

It is enjoyable - a throwback to earlier, calmer times when people saw these joint efforts a.s ways to enjoy family and neighbors

[@PrimalWoods]

Excellent video. Thank you for sharing.

[@prestondavidson2658]

Excellent video, great job !

[@curtiscornett]

Thanks very much, Preston. It's nice to know people have found and liked what we post.

[@Quick_and_Dirty]

Well, this is just fantastic. As a (literal) student of history, I really appreciate your thorough research and well presented video. It's a nice touch that you put the effort into compressing the audio (making sure we weren't blasted with loud noises). I've liked, subscribed, and shared. Please consider me your newest, greatest fan!

[@curtiscornett]

We appreciate your gracious comments. We enjoy making these, and your response is very rewarding. A lot of people here in Eastern Kentucky still know and practice old ways, and we are glad to have an opportunity to watch and document these. You might want to look at the two shorter blacksmithing videos, and the documentary about the American Chestnut, which has wonderful history. Both the molasses-making and American Chestnut documentaries were picked up by Public Television, run several times a year on Kentucky Educational Television, and have run on other PBS stations.

[@Quick_and_Dirty]

Congratulations! It really seemed like a polished, professional presentation. Ergo, I’m not at all surprised you’ve been picked up by local broadcasters. Indeed, it would seem a shame if you weren’t. As the generations pass, it becomes evermore urgent that we take note of how things were done, not only to learn from our ancestor’s mistakes, but to also celebrate their finer moments. What you’ve created here is a tightly focused lens on a niche subject, while deftly incorporating the broader global perspective (taking into account the Atlantic slave trade and sorghum’s role in it) all the while maintaining equanimity-a thing all good historians strive for. This should be required viewing for anyone who’s serious about history. It was a joy to watch, and I look forward to seeing your other videos. Thank you for all your efforts! P.S. If you’re ever in NW Arkansas, have a look-see at Cane Hill historiccanehill.wixsite.com/canehill

[@Quick_and_Dirty]

Also, the clock ticking intermissions were a nice touch. Very well done. :)

[@curtiscornett]

Thanks very much. Every video maker appreciates comments from perceptive, knowledgeable viewers like you. It makes all the work worthwhile. Cane Hill sounds like a very forward-looking effort, and the photos on the website are gorgeous.

[@curtiscornett]

Thanks, M. K. Audio, I often think, is the hardest part of putting a documentary together.

[@ChileExpatFamily]

I have good friends who do this in Bethune SC. They have a large covey of kids (like we do) and it is a real family event. They Usually cook up a picnic or two on the smoker to help feed the crew while the juice is boiling. They use cane they raise as well. I have not seen cane here in Chile but they do have a lot of other sugar producing products here like Sugar beets and potatoes. This was a very well researched and produced video. Thanks

[@curtiscornett]

+ChileExpatFamily Thanks for the interesting information and your kind words. This video is viewed in 60 to 90 countries every month, and we get some great comments. One of the most interesting was that they go through this process in Iran except with grapes. That caused us to check grape molasses and Iran and include it in the video. We are trying to preserve a lot of the old Appalachian customs before they disappear. We are currently working on a video of caning chair seats, starting with the growing hickory tree. We have some video in the can but are still researching. We hope to get it up before summer.

[@ChileExpatFamily]

+Dean Cornett You mean CANE? You had me going with the canning:) You would be able to find a lot of this type stuff here in Chile as they are very independent and make a lot of stuff by hand still here the old fashion way. We do a lot of canning here. Peas, Raspberries, blue berries, strawberries, cherries, apple sauce and peaches as well. We produce almost all of our own food here as well as meat. I was raised the same way in South Carolina but I spent my very young life in Lexington KY on what is now the KY state park. It was just another race horse / cattle/ sheep farm back then but now it is a state park. Hey if you get the chance go up to Cincinnati and get some GRATER's ice cream. The Chocolate Mint chip is to die for! Again thanks for the videos.

[@curtiscornett]

+ChileExpatFamily Not sure where I said "canning" but do mean "caning" chair seats. That is, in this case, interlacing strips of hickory inner bark across the chair seat. Sometimes called "rush" seats, although the material is neither cane nor rushes.

[@ChileExpatFamily]

+Dean Cornett im with you I was just making a funny.

[@curtiscornett]

?We follow your adventures in Chile and enjoy them. Have you tried making sugar from any of the raw material there

[@wjgoh653]

In missouri my uncles both set aside 5 acres to produce sorghum to use when mixing together a finishing mash for our beef cattle. I remember my aunt marrabel doing the cook down in the barn. I thin it produced somewhere in the neighborhood of 15-20 55gal. drums to be utilized for both table molases and for the cattle and other livestock. Pigs love the stuff mixed in their mash and frankly the sheep and oats were quite happy as well for the treat. Along with the pulverized stalks that wer put in a ag grain mixer. All the chickens, ducks and geese wee happy with the stalk feed as well. A great all around feed plant that hasnt outlived it's usefulness. Great vid, and I appreciate seeing the old school way of doing the molasses on a small scale.

[@curtiscornett]

That's very interesting information.It seems amazing that five acres could produce so many 55 gallon drums. How long did it take you to squeeze the juice and then to boil it down? And what did you use for heat? I can't imagine keeping a fire going long enough to boil that much sap down.

[@wjgoh653]

@@curtiscornett sorry dean I dont always check to see if my keys worked. I have letter miss once in a while as the content shows. It was 15 acres and the heat source was a converted cb1500 boiler they converted to run on propane. last run from my grandfathers farm (eventually my uncles) was in 1998

[@curtiscornett]

@@wjgoh653 It's a shame that is gone too.

[@wjgoh653]

@@curtiscornett paper company sold back in 84, assorted farms all sold by 2006. the Mann family had nearly 3k acres split between the boys and one daughter. All the children managed to become doctors, lawyers, engineers(me and my cousin Donny) and professional marketing managers. out of 8 of us, I was the only one that continued to ranch and farm and now am retiring myself. Moving on to the last farm plot and going to try sorgam corn and hay silage for my stock. Thanks again for the vid, so nice to remember.

[@beebop9808]

My 5th grade math teacher made some of the best light syrup way back when up in Asheville. The good ole days..........

[@curtiscornett]

They were, weren't they? It's nice to know they still go on here and there.

[@pastorjerrydenisekenoyerke2246]

God bless Our old timers who never complained.

[@curtiscornett]

You're right Jenie. They were a tough and talented bunch here in Appalachia.

[@curtiscornett]

They were amazing, weren't they?

[@j.b.4340]

10:19, different sorghum. That’s called milo. Great video.

[@DanQcyndaquils]

Really cool, helped a lot on my project

[@curtiscornett]

+Dan Q Great, Dan. Glad it helped. We will sometime in the next six months be uploading a documentary on chair caning, so if you have a project in that area, look for it.

[@DanQcyndaquils]

OK thanks!

[@curtiscornett]

Glad it was useful, Dan.

[@jordanson66]

real people, real live, real Americans

[@curtiscornett]

That's a real compliment, jirdanson66, and we appreciate it very much. Thanks for being so perceptive.

[@pl747]

Why does the mill have three rollers? Couldn't you squeeze it with just two? What gear are you running the transmission in?

[@curtiscornett]

It actually doesn't have three rollers, just two. Something about the angle of the shot makes it look that way. I don't know what gear the transmission is running in. We should have included that, though

[@stevenbrowningsr1144]

Wondering how many of the elders that put this on are still at it. Didn't see very many young people in the video.

[@joshuastephenkingsly]

Can someone explain how to make Molasses similar to the one obtained as a byproduct of sugar industry. Need it for my project.

[@curtiscornett]

We've never einto that facet, Joshua, but perhaps someone who reads your request will know.

[@beatamafulu2405]

Where can I buy that pressing machine please?

[@curtiscornett]

Beata, It would be hard to find a cane press like the one we filmed, because it's over 100 years old and was designed originally for mule power. You can find smaller, more modern presses, though. Just search Amazon, Ebay, Overstock, etc for "cane press" or "sugar cane press." They seem to cost upward of $225,and mostly seem meant to be used indoors. Some are powered by electricity but most are manually cranked. Their usefulness, I suspect, would depend on how much cane you want to press.

[@beatamafulu2405]

@@curtiscornett, I am so after the old one, we want to start a sorghum plantation to help villagers in Congo start making a living out of it, we will get a training on how the whole process is done so we will know how to set it up once we are there.

[@curtiscornett]

@@beatamafulu2405 Beata, Your proposal to obtain a cane press and start a village industry in the Congo sounds as if it has possibilities. One of the benefits is that many villages could share one press, as they did in earlier days in the US. Your propinquity to the equator also means that you could grow sugar cane as well as sorghum cane, which might give you options. Unfortunately, while there are still old horse- and mule-driven cane presses here and there in this area and here and there elsewhere in the southern US, we don't know of any for sale. However, we will mention on Facebook that you are seeking one, and perhaps someone will see our notice who knows of one. If so, we will get back to you with that information

[@beatamafulu2405]

@@curtiscornett wow! We will so much appreciate that. Thank you so much. Hope we get a positive reply. In That area they do not need money to improve their life, they need knowledge, this is what we want to do in that part of the world showing them how they can transform things with what many will call in the west traditional way. Thank you so much will keep you posted of the progress. Here is my email address: [e-mail].

[@curtiscornett]

​@@beatamafulu2405 Beata, Thanks so much for the email address. Please do keep us apprised of progress. We will put your email address in the Facebook post so that people can contact you directly if they do have a lead to a press., but we would be pleased to know how things go.