The rise of alternative milks • Hacker News Board

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#41

Post by blfr » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:32 PM UTC

timbit42 wrote: post #36

blfr wrote: post #25

Perhaps my ancestors were steppe barbarians or something but nothing beats raw cow milk, a taste I never get tired of. These alternatives are fine novelties but they don't come close.

They're probably not really trying to come that close. If you drink almond milk expecting it to taste like milk, you'll be disappointed but if you drink it for what it is, not expecting it to taste like milk, it's fine.

Considering someone went through the trouble of inventing, manufacturing, and marketing them when milk was already there, I expect them to taste better.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#42

Post by dang » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:32 PM UTC

vinay427 wrote: post #30

dang wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to pile on, but do please edit the nasty bits out of your comments here. This one would be just fine without the first sentence. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Thank you. I respect why this rule exists and understand how my comment would contribute to a less productive discussion. I have edited it out.

Appreciated! I've turned off flags on your comment.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#43

Post by snazz » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:33 PM UTC

jamesgagan wrote: post #35

code_duck wrote: post #28

I have lactose intolerance, I am allergic to tree nuts, have an intolerance to legumes, and have yet to find a certified gluten-free coconut milk. Let me know.

have you tried oat milk?

Oats are oftentimes processed alongside wheat, which means they might contain trace amounts of gluten. This was an issue with Cheerios for many years.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#44

Post by jamesgagan » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:35 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #32

vinay427 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves. Also, you can look at the ingredients list to verify that they are not colored. I don't recall the last time I saw or purchased one that was artificially colored. EDIT: Removed the first sentence as recommended.

> Please don't lie Please don't accuse people you don't know and second guess their motives in a conversation with them. > I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves Which is neither here nor there. I didn't say all are colored white: I used the term "usually". Second, even naturally white "alternative milks" have artificial coloring added for when they hit t…

Funny enough, nobody complains about "peanut butter"!

"In English, the word "milk" (at the time spelt "mylk") has been used to refer to "milk-like plant juices" since at least 1200 AD." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_milk https://www.etymonline.com/word/milk#etymonline_v_16158

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#45

Post by Pfhreak » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:36 PM UTC

blfr wrote: post #41

timbit42 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're probably not really trying to come that close. If you drink almond milk expecting it to taste like milk, you'll be disappointed but if you drink it for what it is, not expecting it to taste like milk, it's fine.

Considering someone went through the trouble of inventing, manufacturing, and marketing them when milk was already there, I expect them to taste better.

I'd argue we shouldn't always optimize for taste. I drink a mix of plant milks and grass fed milk (mostly I use it in baking or yogurt making.) I buy for sustainability, taste, cost, and ethical animal treatment reasons.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#46

Post by jamesgagan » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:37 PM UTC

vinay427 wrote: post #7

k__ wrote: post #6

I know a few vegans who introduced me to soy milk years ago. Now I think it has a fishy after taste and I can't stand it anymore. 2-3 years ago many grocery stores added other milk alternatives. While I think almond milk is the best, oat milk is the second place but much cheaper. Generally, milk is heavily subsidized in Germany and alternatives are 2-4 times more expensive, so I don't know if this a little hype or th…

As soon as you said "oat milk" is "much cheaper," I knew this had to be in Europe. It's far more expensive in the US than it is here, particularly compared to American soy and almond milk prices. I believe this will change over time due to the large increase in interest (Oatly from Sweden has a North American product and now Silk is starting their own) and the existence of a significant domestic oat industry.

here in canada (bc) the oat milk is usually a bit cheaper than soy milk.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#47

Post by manmal » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:38 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #2

Also known as "the rise of non-milks, usually colored artificially white to lure people to believe they're like the real thing".

My wife makes almond milk from store bought almond paste and water, and the resulting milk is almost pure white. I‘m also quite confident that rice milk from white rice will be white either. „Usually“ is a fuzzy term but I don’t think it’s warranted in the context of artificial colors in alt milks.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#48

Post by matthewmacleod » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:40 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #32

vinay427 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves. Also, you can look at the ingredients list to verify that they are not colored. I don't recall the last time I saw or purchased one that was artificially colored. EDIT: Removed the first sentence as recommended.

> Please don't lie Please don't accuse people you don't know and second guess their motives in a conversation with them. > I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves Which is neither here nor there. I didn't say all are colored white: I used the term "usually". Second, even naturally white "alternative milks" have artificial coloring added for when they hit t…

Second, both are not milks

Please don’t be this sort of pedant. It’s been common for a long time to refer to various substances with a similar appearance to milk as “milks” - see coconut, Magnesia etc.

More to the point, “mylke of almaundes” as a term was around in the 15th century, so at this point it’s hardly unreasonable that it’s entered common usage.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#49

Post by pstuart » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:41 PM UTC

raldi wrote: post #23

If you can't/won't drink animal milk, try Ripple. It's by a significant margin the best facsimile thus far, and they even make a heavy-cream version.

The vanilla version was tasty, but the plain version was not "yummy." I like what they're doing and want them to succeed so maybe have to give it another go.

Re: The rise of alternative milks

#50

Post by andrewl » Sat, Feb 02, 2019, 9:52 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #32

vinay427 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves. Also, you can look at the ingredients list to verify that they are not colored. I don't recall the last time I saw or purchased one that was artificially colored. EDIT: Removed the first sentence as recommended.

> Please don't lie Please don't accuse people you don't know and second guess their motives in a conversation with them. > I've made cashew milk and oat milk at home and they're naturally colored as they are on store shelves Which is neither here nor there. I didn't say all are colored white: I used the term "usually". Second, even naturally white "alternative milks" have artificial coloring added for when they hit t…

Second, both are not milks. Milks are what comes out of animals mammary glands (even legally in most jurisdictions). Advertisers and "health product" peddlers hijacked the term (that existed for millennia) to mean "random juices".

The word milk has a somewhat broader meaning than what comes out of mammary glands. I would say that the default meaning, with no other modifier, is definitely mammary gland output. But checking various dictionaries I see definitions that include:

The white juice of certain plants, such as coconut milk.

A food product produced from seeds or fruit that resembles and is used similarly to cow's milk, such as coconut or soy milk.

A liquid resembling milk in appearance such as the latex of a plant.

And there's milk of magnesia.

I don't know when these various terms came into use, but the Online Etymology Dictionary suggests milk of almond and similar constructions have been around since the late 14th century:

https://www.etymonline.com/word/milk%20of%20magnesia