Back in the day there were a few broads I wished I could soak down in a cooler of ice a few days.
Probably wouldn't have made them taste any better either or was it the smell. lol :oops
The only musky flavored meat I ever ate was from a young buck that a friend shot.He had it hanging at the cabin for 3 days before we all met for the December season hunts.This deer had the worst flavor I have ever eaten from any game animal I have ever eaten!!
Later I found out the deer had run hard for about 125 yards and the shot had been a little back taking the liver and a lung.And he had left the tarsals on the deer for almost 2 days with a small cut through one of the glands.Again he adds that he cut the deer in half with a hack saw and did not clean off the marrow which he left on the meat too.Many mistakes made for a bad deer flavors are!
Main causes for taste of meat is not really the age but: Diet,shot placement,time deer took to expire,field dressing problems,connective tissues,blood,fat,marrow,glands,improper temps and several more.A very big problem is the lactic acid build up and then once the deer dies the lack of fluid movement can cause a very bad tasting meat.Deer can build up lactic acid by being chased or chasing or from a injury and running and so on....!You never know if the animal you just shot has any lactic acid build up unless you have sat and watched it for the last hour before you shot it.
The only musky flavored meat I ever ate was from a young buck that a friend shot.He had it hanging at the cabin for 3 days before we all met for the December season hunts.This deer had the worst flavor I have ever eaten from any game animal I have ever eaten!!
Later I found out the deer had run hard for about 125 yards and the shot had been a little back taking the liver and a lung.And he had left the tarsals on the deer for almost 2 days with a small cut through one of the glands.Again he adds that he cut the deer in half with a hack saw and did not clean off the marrow which he left on the meat too.Many mistakes made for a bad deer flavors are!
Main causes for taste of meat is not really the age but: Diet,shot placement,time deer took to expire,field dressing problems,connective tissues,blood,fat,marrow,glands,improper temps and several more.A very big problem is the lactic acid build up and then once the deer dies the lack of fluid movement can cause a very bad tasting meat.Deer can build up lactic acid by being chased or chasing or from a injury and running and so on....!You never know if the animal you just shot has any lactic acid build up unless you have sat and watched it for the last hour before you shot it.
I didn't say the meat tasted like fish " Musky flavored" I said gamey. Unless you are talking about the broads.
I've shot dozens of deer over the years, both buck and doe, and have never had a problem (in PA, NY, FL, GA, and AL). Based on past experience, gamey taste can usually be traced back to 4 major areas: poor shot placement, lack of complete field dressing, improper processing, and storage (freezing too soon). Poor shots that end up with you trailing your deer for long distances are the first contributor to gamey meat. Next in line would have to be field dressing. I know a lot of folks down south here don't field dress deer like they do in the northern states. Part of that process is removing the tarsels and entrails (including the "boys" from bucks). Next, you have to cool the meat quickly leaving it on the bone if possible. And as stated several times earlier in the thread, you gotta keep the water off, unless of course you like your venison at the same consistency as a tire. The faster you get the heat out of the meat, the less gamey tasting it is. Leaving it on the bone until after it's gone through rigor will make the meat more tender. Remove all fat from the meat you are keeping also helps. You can also add beef fat to hamburg to keep it from drying out. And finally, and most importantly, DO NOT let the meat freeze before it has cooled completely all the way thru. Once the outside freezes on the outside, it traps the "gaminess" into the meat. These 4 points work for most North American game.
cool beans! I was referring to the gamey taste though is sometimes considered a "musky" flavor.
