Straus Family Creamery

I’ve heard of Straus milk, yogurt, and butter for a while. Much like hearing about CSAs in San Diego, it’s one of those nuggets I tuck away for later, either when I have time to think about it or if I come across it while shopping. Straus sells products here in San Diego at only a few stores, Whole Foods being one of them. Henry’s, I believe, carries their yogurt, but not the milk. I had hoped that when Whole Foods bought Wild Oats and Henry’s that perhaps they would start stocking Straus milk at the Henry’s stores. Henry’s now carries Whole Foods brand milk, but still no Straus in the cute glass bottles.

There are two Whole Foods locations (that I know of) in San Diego – Hillcrest and La Jolla/UTC. I frequent neither of these locations because they are not convenient to get to. I hardly venture to Hillcrest, aside from the rare dinners out in that part of town. I used to go to UTC every Monday to watch T play ice hockey at the UTC food court Icetown arena. But, who wants to go grocery shopping and then have the groceries sit in the car from 8:30 to 10:00 pm? After the game, Whole Foods is closed. I don’t really want to go out of my way to either of these areas on weekends when I have 3 grocery stores (including Henry’s) within a 2-mile radius of home. So when do I shop at Whole Foods?

When I’m in Vegas! Doesn’t that sound ridiculous? I shop at the Whole Foods 300 miles away because it’s more convenient. It’s just a couple of miles from my parents’ house, there is always plenty of parking right in front of the store, and it’s never crowded in there. So, when I visit my parents I also visit Whole Foods to see what’s new and if there’s anything I want to bring back in a cooler.

This time around I bought two beautiful heirloom tomatoes. I’m going to see if I can save the seeds and plant them later. I also bought two mini Scharffen Berger Nibby bars and some freeze dried apricots. Also, a quart of Straus 2% milk and a bottle of whipping cream.

Is it weird that I think it’s so cool to open a bottle of 2% milk and find a small layer of cream on top? And then to dip a spoon into it for a taste? Because that’s what I did. I also baked my mom baked fresh chocolate chip cookies to enjoy with a cold glass of this milk. Is it good milk? Yes. Can I taste a difference between this and the Whole Foods organic milk? Not really. Would I buy it again? If I came across it at my store and it was still the same price, yes, I would. I like the bottles it comes in (what do people do with the bottles?) and I like that it’s nice and creamy, even when it’s 2% milk. It makes me want to try the non-fat milk. I also like the layer of cream on top, even though it’s just a bit and you’re supposed to shake it up so it’s dispersed into the milk.