I was on another forum and there was a question of whether you should age your game or not. I once didn't age a deer I shot and there was no taste to the meat. Every time I got a deer after I always kept the meat at refrigeration temperatures for about ten days to two weeks. It always tasted good and sometimes superb. I would like to know what others ideas on aging deer or whatever might be.

Everyone has their prejudices. Sometimes it seems to me that aging of meat was making a liability into an asset. IOW, in the "old" days they couldn't properly freeze their meat so it would end up hanging for some period of time before eating, canning, or actually freezing. Of course there was going to be somebody that liked the result. That meant they would try to duplicate the conditions. Hence all the various "recipes" for hanging at a certain length of time at a certain temperature...

There is no doubt that letting the meat break down naturally will tenderize really tough muscle tissue. However, for some, health and aesthetic issues also come into play.

I kill, thoroughly clean and as soon as possible, freeze all meat I take UNLESS it is due to be consumed in the next 2 days.

In general, many people are better off not knowing how their food was handled.

I've heard that aging meat made it more tender and aged beef is supposed to be the best.

Here in the deep south it's impossible to age game unless you have cold storage. Hanging meat would rot in a day here.

For me and most of my buddies, iceing the game is the way to go. Just cut the critter into big chunks so it'll fit into an ice chest with plenty of ice. Seems like that ice water gets rid of a lot of blood and wild flavor, anyway, it doesn't hurt the flavor.

An 80 quart box will hold two small whitetails.

Aging beef works because of the enzymatic breakdown of the muscle tissue. In order for this to work, you have to have inter-muscular fat.

Game, as a rule, doesn't have intermuscular fat. It therefore doesn't tenderize like beef.

I can't imagine what benefit, flavor-wise, aging game has, but I DO know that if you hang game outside a meat locker and it freezes and thaws and freezes again, it will be the toughest animal you ever tried to eat.

Mine gets killed, boned, cooled, cut and wrapped as soon as possible. Preferably in the freezer in 24 hrs. I much, much prefer a commercial freezer. Putting 250 lb of elk meat in a home freezer takes a LOOOONNNNG time to freeze. Unless you rotate the packages, a couple of weeks for the stuff in the middle. FWIW, Dutch.

I've tried it both ways and I prefer mine aged. Seems to me the aging does make it more tender for whatever reason. I've shot deer in the morning and roasted or barbequed a ham that evening and it seems like they were a bit "chewier" than if the ham came from a carcass that had been aged. Doesn't mean it wasn't good tho.
I think a lot of the condition of the meat comes from the speed of dispatch and the conditions under which the game was harvested. A deer that is wondering along, relaxed thinking of food and sex that is hammered down with one telling blow is going to taste better and be more tender than one that is excited, pumping adrenalin from being shot at, chased or wounded.

[ 08-26-2003, 19:34: Message edited by: beemanbeme ]

The processor I use here in Dallas has long been known, 40-50 years? - for its retail side of the business as a Deli and catering service. When I first started using them about 25 years ago I was surprised to learn that they age all of their game, depending the specie, for varying lengths of time. If you ever have a chance to use Kuby's either for game processing, prime gourmet domestic meats or anything else I would strongly recommend them. In a good year they will handle several thousand animals and they handle everything from wild hog, which takes a special license in Texas since they also handle domestic hogs commercially, elk & buffalo and all the exotic antelope we have in Texas and from all over the world either quartered or whole, skinned or unskinned...however I think he draws the line at Alligator but I wouldn't bet on it!

I never age meat. I always have it cut up and in the freezer within 2 days.
I have noticed that the meat is more tender after it is frozen and thawed rather than keeping a couple cuts and cooking them prior to being frozen.

Animals vary widely as far as taste within a species.
Seems to depend on the age, what they have been eating, conditions of the kill, and how well the meat was taken care of and how clean it was kept.

I'm with Dutch and rukidme, mine gets boned, wrapped, and frozen as quickly as possible. I do like it completely cooled out before cutting and wrapping. If weather allows (or I have a cooler), I'll hang the animal or quarters over night, but it's generally in the freezer the next day. In hot weather with no cooler, I'll section the animal and get it cooled on ice ASAP, then start wrapping and freezing as soon as practical. A pig killed on the first night of a three-day hunt is my usual exception. If the facilities aren't there for butchering, I take special care to cool the meat over ice and keep it there, but never let it sit in the water. I like to keep it well drained. I hate waterlogged meat.

I too am of the opinion that only "marbeled" meat will age. However a food scientist buddy of mine said that the cell walls will soften with enzime action at the right temperature...but mother nature seldom furnishes that right temperature!!

Actually the aging of venison is very interesting.....Never in my life did I ever see anyone hang a venison out back where it's just barely visible....it's always done in the front yard where the neighbors can see it as they drive by.....and the aging story is merely the excuse!!

There I hunt we usually hang the mooses in 40 daydegree Celsius. If it's 20 degree Celsius we let em hang 2 days. If it's 5 degree Celsius we let the mooses hang 8 days. And if the temp is below zero it's of course no meaning to let it hang.

I try to get it cut, wrapped, and frozen right away. Deer doesn't age so badly, but pronghorn antelope seems to be another story. The strongest antelope we've had rode around in a trailer a day or two too long.

My own rule is if it is less than 40 during the day, it hangs for several days. if more than 40, it gets cut up in less than 2, unless it is more than 50, then it gets it as soon as possible. if it freezes before I get to it, then it might be middle of january before I bring it on the porch and thaw it.
It was so cold a couple of years ago, I had to thaw it in the dining room. we had an exchange student from Germany at the time. she thought we were crazy, having a frozen deer laying on the floor inside the house!

I hang my game in my shop. The nights here are cool even in the summer. It's insulated and holds the cool all day. I open the door at night for an hour to let the cold in.

I took a deer last Sept. and hanged it for 10 days. It got a little warm near the end and I started to get a little powdery mold on the outside. We just wiped it off at the butchers and that deer tasted wonderful.

Still my best tasting deer are when the thermometer reads around +3 or 4c or 40ish f. I believe that it makes more tender and more flavourful.

Contrary to what's been stated earlier, all meat, lean as well as marbled meat will age similarly. Tissues break down the same. Well marbled meat is natually more tender and juicy, as lean is more dry and chewy.
I usually hang Deer, Elk, Moose, and Antelope for 5 to 7 days on average in a walk-in cooler 40 to 48 degrees. Unless a client specifies longer.
If you don't have access to a walk-in cooler and you're in a warm climate then it makes perfect sense to cut, wrap, and freeze as soon as posible.
Many local processors will hang your game for a small fee. You then can pick it up and process it yourself.

We age all of our game (moose - deer) at least 4-6 days. Tender & Tasty. Our outside temp. is a around 55-30 degrees during hunting season.

[ 08-27-2003, 05:42: Message edited by: CK ]

Connective tissue in game animals form as the muscles are exercised.The two forms of connective tissue are elastin and collagen.Elastin is the yellow rubbery connective tissue that you see along the backstraps.Aging elastin has no effect and the only way to make it tender is to cut it away.

Collagen on the other hand is laid down as a wrap around each muscle bundle.There are three highly reliable methods to soften collagen.Moist heat cooking such as stewing will soften and dissolve the collagen by turning it into gelatine.

Marinating with some form of acid eg.lemon juice
will help to breakdown the collagen.The downside is that the acid will also break down muscle fiber.By the time that the marinade has softened the collagen,There is a better than good chance that the meat texture will be mushy.

The third method is aging at controlled temperatures just above freezing.Meat contains natural enzymes.It is this process that allows the enzymes to break down the collagen and soften the tissue.There is also acid in the form of lactic acid in meat and when aging this also helps break down connective tissue.this release of acid is what effects the flavour change in aged meat.

Older animals have more connective tissue as a result of their age and the greater amount of work that their muscles have done compared to a younger
animal.I assess each animal that I kill when field dressing and then decide whether aging is appropriate based on how much connective tissue is present.Hope this helps. Turnerhunter

On moose I start butchering on it right away, first I do the ribs and neck then I get into the quarters. It takes about 5 days to do the whole thing myself (usually after work). So I end up aging it 0-5 days. It all tastes the same to me. mmmgood.

Forgot to add my two cents about intramuscular fat.Well marbled meat has fat deposited between the muscle fibers.This achieves three main functions.
The first is tenderness because the fat is interupting the muscle bundle and effectively shortening it.
The second benefit is that fats will melt when heated.This makes the meat extremely juicy and moist because this fat is inside the bundles when it melts.
Thirdly, fats carry flavour.Not just their own flavour but that which is attached to them,as in a marinade.Fat has no connective tissue and thus is not a requirement for aging meat.Fat does not benefit from aging and merely starts oxidizing from extended contact with the air which could lead to rancidity.

turnerhunter ,
Excellent technical explaination of the aging process.
Your use of the words "Elastin & Collagen" along with the rest of your wording sounds a though it came straight from a "Chef's" manual, very thorough.
I must take exception with one concept. The only way you can in effect shorten muscle tissue or fiber is by cutting it. Marbling does as you stated, take up space between the muscle fibers but in no way shortens them.

Good Posts Turnerhunter & Marsh Mule!,

I believe the commerical beef industry has a much more systematic/scientific approach to the ageing of meat. I seem to recall that they use electric shocks to start process off and when that is not available, they advise that the intial cooling should not be too quick ie the freshly killed carcass should not be put straight in the freezer but allowed to gradually decrease its body temperature down to 3C or 4C over 24 to 36 hours for the best results. If the carcass can be stored at just over freezing in a proper chiller, it can actually be stored quite some time, usually far long than your average hunter would ever consider...

Unfortunately, most hunters don't have access to a chiller, the deer they shoot are in some what variable condition (post rut, very old or young, not been killed out right ect, ect)and in weather conditions that are sometimes far from ideal. Add to this poor carcass handling, and questionable transport techniques ( driving around for 3 days with the beast strapped to the roof or or hood of their car)and it is no wonder that the taste of venison is very variable. How many none hunters have you heard saying that they dislike venison because of some tough bit of old venison that has been foisted on them at some restaurant or BBQ?

Regards,

Pete

[ 08-27-2003, 11:51: Message edited by: Pete E ]

I have cut meat (retail) for over 20yrs, both game and beef.

One thing that has been missed in this debate is the fact that meat is easier to cut after hanging for a few days. Fresh killed meat is not very firm and hard to cut with a knife. Aged meat is alot firmer, easier to slice. Therefore you get less trimmings (hamburger/stewmeat).

Another trick to cutting game is to do the entire without using a saw. I bone the whole thing by hand and slice or roast with a knife only to avoid getting bone dust on the mussle. Without the bonedust, the eating is alot better. Removing ALL the fat from deer when cutting, and replace with pork fat if necessary is a BIG plus as well.

BTW........I hang for 5-6 days in a cool, dry (low himidity)

SC..........out

Just found this article below which sums up quite a bit of what has been said already:

quote:

---

Tender Beef
what causes toughness?
Geoff Strom, Queensland Beef Industry Institute

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Three major factors can cause toughness - advancing age of the animal, unfavourable meat acidity (pH) and ‘cold shortening’ (muscle fibre contractions that occur during chilling).

Older animals yield tougher meat than do younger ones due to increased connective tissue.
Limited pH fall caused by stimulus such as stress, cold, disease, extreme heat or strenuous muscle contractions prior to slaughter, can cause animals to produce dark cutting and potentially tough meat. This is due to increased energy being used by the muscle decreasing the amount available for lactic acid production after death, preventing the fall of the pH to an acceptable level.
Tough meat may also result from rapid chilling prior to the carcass ‘setting’. Light weight and/or lean carcases are generally more susceptible to ‘cold shortening’ as there is limited fat to insulate the muscle.
How can we influence tender beef?
Age
Process animals at a younger age. The transition from tender meat to tough meat, due to age, is gradual and even in older animals the choice cuts of fillet, rump and striploin will still be acceptably tender because of low levels of connective tissue. Generally beef from two tooth animals can be expected to be more tender than from full mouth animals.

Electrical stimulation
The process of electrical stimulation involves the application of an electrical current to the carcase shortly after slaughter. The purpose of electrical stimulation is to speed up the onset of rigor mortis so that the muscles are ‘set’ prior to chilling through the muscles rapidly using up available energy and producing lactic acid, allowing the carcase's final pH to be reached at a faster rate. This prevents ‘cold shortening’ and consequent toughness.

Tenderstretch
This assists in preventing cold shortening during the rigor process by changing the shape of the carcase. Commercially important primal cuts such as rump, topside and silverside are considerably improved. As the muscles are held in an extended state preventing contraction and resulting tough meat.

Ageing
Holding meat in a chilled state is a widely accepted method of tenderising as enzymes in the muscle begin to break down the muscle fibres. Meat from older animals, due to the amount of connective tissue, does not respond well to ageing. Optimum tenderness and flavour is reached by about 3.5 weeks from slaughter if held at 0� C, and by about 2.5 weeks if held at 4� C. The industry believes that optimum flavour is achieved using time/temperature specifications.

Mechanical tenderisation
Thin blades are pushed completely through the meat, thus disrupting the fibres and severing connective tissue. Generally two passes through the machine produces meat of acceptable tenderness.

Use of enzymes
Those most commonly used are papain, ficin and bromelin. They work by acting on muscle fibre proteins. Marinading is popular and certainly adds to the presentation of beef dishes.

Cooking
Time and temperature determine the ultimate tenderness of cooked beef. If beef is heated for a prolonged period (several hours) at 75� C, the connective tissue can be softened and lead to large increases in tenderness. Additional tenderising occurs at 100� C. However this type of tenderising does not have much significance since only small portions of beef are likely to reach 100� C during cooking, unless cooked under pressure.

Conclusion
Reliably tender beef, of good colour, that has not been mechanically or enzymatically treated, can be obtained from young animals that are either electrically stimulated, tenderstretched and/or aged. This is irrespective of the weight of the carcase and the amount of fat on the carcase (the method of feeding or breed). Modern processing methods ensure that lean beef can be reliably tender, providing it comes from young animals.

---

I prefer moose,deer,hare,everything well aged.

One thing probably not said yet: If the game has been chased for a longer time by dogs etc. it really needs to be well aged. The stress and lactacids make a big difference in meat quality.

Pete E & SuperCub & Petlander.
You all brought up good points.

FYI:
I also am a (Retail) MeatCutter, with 40 years in the Meat Industry. With "Family" involved in everything from wholesale packinghouse Butchers, to cattle buyers for IBP, to USDA Inspectors.

Electro-shock-tenderizing was introduced about 25 years ago.
While hanging, hey hit a carcass three times with very high voltage making the carcass tense, contract or flex, if you will.
After each jolt the muscles relax, stretch, straighten, and align, due to the weight of the carcass, thus relieving any involuntary muscle contraction.
Not unlike stress-relieving a rifle barrel.
[It Does Not start or hasten muscle tissue breakdown]

Enzymes as you mentioned, have been used for as long as I can remember.
When I first started out it was common to have "Tenderizer" in solution, so that, at a customers request you could "Dip" their meat for them before they took it home.

Another method that was tried but is no longer done, was actual tenderizer injection into a live animal just before slaughter, thus delivering tenderizer to every muscle via the blood stream.
[It was marketed as "Pro-Ten" beef]

Tender-stretching is mearly another name for allowing the carcass to "Hang" until chilled throughly and set-up for two or three days before quatering the whole carcass. [Only the hindquarter reaped any benefit from this]

BACK TO WILD GAME:
For best FLAVOR and tenderness on Wild Game it is best to remove ALL FAT & dried outer covering along with as much heavy connective tissue as fesible. Adding pork shoulder or beef fat to your ground meats will help tremendously.

SuperCub; For a real taste-treat regarding the ground meats try accumilating and freezing enough of the "Mouse" of fat located in the heart of the large end of the rib-eye, use that exclusively in a batch of ground venison sometime.

Good Post Marsh Mule
I stand corrected.You are absolutely right about muscle shortening.
I was not very clear on that point.Marbling does not in fact physically shorten muscle fiber.What it does is interupts it, leaving the impression of tenderness.Good read on the chefs training.I contract as a chef instructor at a technical college in Calgary.
I also cut game and run a small sausage shop south and west of Calgary in the foothills.Hunting opens in this area on September 3rd.I will try to hunt early in the season before I get too busy cutting everyone elses game.

turnerhunter,
Hey do you need a good cutter and sausage-maker apprentice?
Sounds like a good place to relocate!

Sure come on up Marsh Mule.
Great hunting here.Thats why I left Calgary.Five hundred yards from the shop puts me on my stand for antlerless elk and muley with the bow.Fifteen minutes west to Kananaskis Country (public lands)for muley,whitetail,elk,moose and bear all on draw.Downside in this business is that you are at your busiest when you should be out hunting.Give your butcher a hug,(or a bottle of whiskey).It can get to you seeing so many critters that you did not get to shoot yourself.

I follow the 40 day/degree rule. 10 days at 4, 4 at ten, 2 at twenthy. Under 10 is the best. If it has been frozen only boiling will make it tender Good for soupes and minced meat.

But this is not a cospel to be follow every time. If the animal is old it might need a bit longer if it˝s young it might need less. I press a my tumb hard on the back leg of the animal. If the musle bounses back it˝s not done. The impriint should stay there. I also smell the meat, if it has hung too long you�ll know it.

If you have the luksus to work in 5 to 8 degrees, a day or two more is better that one or two less.

Johan

This has been a very interesting thread to me because most hunters do not know how to handle game in the field, much less a walk-in cooler, butcher shop, or kitchen. "Once the critter is down, the work begins." Or something like that. I have always compared it to most vegetarians, in that they are often long on philosophy, and short on technique. Despite the best of intentions, many hunters do not handle, or cook, their harvest as best as possible.

To address your first concern, consuming meat that is a day old, or even before rigor mortis, is flacid, or spongy in texture, weak in flavor, and generally not plalatable.

I am a professional chef. I am also a hunter. I should add that I came to hunting late in life. I came to it as an extension of my work as a chef. After contracting for specialty, and heirloom, varieties of produce for so many years, I thought I should begin controlling what meats I ordered as well. That quickly became a desire to harvest wild animals in their natural environments. In my opinion, harvesting a wild animal for food in it's natural environment is the ultimate quest for organic food.

Turnerhunter, Pete E, and Marsh Mule have provided the most accurate information. I would like to add a small amount to their excellent contributions:

In cooking, intramuscular fat provides lubrication. That is what creates what we call good mouth feel in fatty cuts. Think of a 21 day, dry aged porterhouse steak from Smith and Wollensky. Lean cuts of meat require the addition of fat in the cooking process to be palatable. Think of good stews you have had.

Tenderizing can be achieved in several ways: mastication, which is chewing by the diner; mechanical means, such as chopping, mincing, or grinding as for hamburger; slow cooking, which tenderizes small cuts of meat by slow heat application and penetration of a liquid medium; and aging, which, as pointed out above, shortens the muscle fiber bundles due to enzymatic action. The process of aging meat has an additional advantage: weight loss due to evaporation also results in flavor intensification.

Marinading with acids, such as vinegar or wine, is bogus, or at least of dubious merit. As pointed out by Turnerhunter, it makes the flesh it is in contact with mushy, as it can only act on what it touches and does not penetrate sufficiently to do what is intended. Other chemical means of tenderizing, such as using papein from papaya, enzymes from yogurt, or substances from mushrooms, result in similar effects.

Finally, freezing is an extreme form of meat preservation. Water expands as it freezes. The natural moisture content of the animal flesh that is being frozen will expand and burst the muscle cells it is contained in. When that flesh is defrosted, no matter how slowly, flavor is lost along with the resultant melted liquids.

Ideal handling in the field is simple, though another subject altogether.

[ 08-28-2003, 09:15: Message edited by: wayne nish ]

Wayne,

I am surprised how many hunters are quite happy to have the carcass soak in ice water while in their coolers or hoze the carcass out when they get home. We have been advised that any gross contamination should be removed by a combination of trimming and dabbing with a damp paper towel as sloshing water around merely spreads the bacterial contamination although it may leave the carcass looking clean...and as you say, soaking the carcass in any way really does nothing for the quality of the meat or taste..

Pete

Good posts Pete E and Wayne.
Wayne I find your comments about pre-rigor meats to be very accurate.But,you got me to thinking about the whole aspect of rigor mortis and its effect on meat.I did a little research on this topic when I started sausage making and here is some of the things that I found.

Like us, animals primarily burn glycogen (sugar) as their primary energy souce.When that animal ceases to have a circulation system (bullet thru vitals)it dies.Oddly enough not all life functions will stop immediately.The animal will continue to burn glycogen.Without circulation to remove the waste produced from this process,the animals PH will change.When the PH reaches a certain level the animal goes into rigor and releases calcium.

This is the time when the body will stiffen and feel rigid.After a period of time the muscles relax again and the meat becomes more suitable for whole muscle consumption.Before rigor sets in the meat is known as green meat.

As a sausage maker this is the time period after the death of the animal that is quite remarkable.
For whatever reson the pre-rigor or green meat has the ability to absorb a much greater percentage of added water than post rigor meats.That is why most commercial sausage makers will hot bone an animal,speed chill it and immediately make sausage with it.
When I make sausage with aged meat I will add water at a ratio of 1-4 %.This means 1-4 lbs of water to each 100 lbs of sausage meat.A quart of water would weigh about 2 lbs.
In pre rigor (green meats) that number is closer to 10 % or 10 lbs of water to each 100 lbs of sausage meat.This lure to increase profit by selling the customer sausage with increased water content is not in my opinion any way negative.The fact is that the finished product has more moisture,better mouth feel and less tendency to shrink or release water when cooked.I can also guarantee that the customer receives more meat weight back then what he brought in.
Bottom line is that if I know that I am turning an older buck into sausage then I will hot bone it and make sausage pre rigor as soon as I get it chilled.
The prime cuts such as loin and tenderloin
do not have to go into the sausage.I remove these and they will age beautifully in a vacuum pac or cryovac bag.The other advantages to aging in cryovac are no moisture loss and increased ease of storage. Turnerhunter

In reading the wealth of knowledge posted here, it makes me wish that all of us could someday go hunting with such an expert in the preparation and storage of meat. Most of us learn hunting and shooting from experienced veterans, who teach us how to find animals, shoot and go hunting. But few of us learn from veterans in the art of cutting and preparing the meat.

Imagine the benefit to a young hunter to learn for even five minutes the things you gentleman have been describing. I'll bet there would be many happy diners out there. Perhaps even a few spouses who normally turn up their noses as their husband's game meat might even be EXCITED when he fills the freezer after a successful hunt...

Hey P-17
I know everything I know about everything I know and just about nothing about everything else.Great forum to share knowledge.When I was a chef apprentice I studied under an abusive but skilled German master chef.His favorite thing to say was "Here let me teach you just one thing so that you dont die stupid".I joke about what an idiot he was to people but,he made me determined not to die stupid.Man if only I had some of the incredible reloading and hunting knowledge of the people in this forum,then I would be happy.

Not to forget that this is a thread about game aging.Aging meat can be great but be forewarned that everyday that your venison sits in that meat cooler it is losing weight.Especially high moisture meats like Moose can weigh dramatically less after long aging.Even more so if the animal is quartered .That 100 lb deer could easily lose 20-30 lbs if left to age too long.Aging should be done in a temperature and humidity controlled environment to minimize this loss.

P 17,

As far as training goes, have you enquired at your local collages about any night classes? I have heard of a few people here doing such things as a kinda of follow on to Hunter Education…Also there are a few videos and books which will give you an insight, especially into the actual butchering side of things….

Unfortunately, due to circumstances, carcass handling and storage is often a compromise for most stalkers/hunters. As an example, many folks like to open a beast from the chin to the anus while doing the gut it in the field. The reasoning behind this is to allow the carcass to cool asap. However, what happens if you need to drag that beast back to your vehicle? Opening like that allows all sorts of crap to get into the carcass. In such circumstances, unless I can get a vehicle to the carcass, I will bleed the carcass in the normal way, but make as small a hole in the abdomen as possible and do a “short gut” ie remove the stomach and intestines but leave the diaphragm along with the heart and lungs intact until I can somewhere a bit more hygienic…this works for me as I rarely stalk in the high temps found in some places in the States…Other solutions that some people over here use are a “drag bags” deer carts, Roe sacks or sleds…anything really that keeps the carcass out of the crap as it is being recovered.

The other thing to remember is to protect it from fly blow and this includes during your journey back to camp/home and while it is hanging waiting to be dealt with. Not too many stalkers have access to a walk- in chiller, but a simple mesh larder is easy to make and if situated in the breezy place out of the sun will help keep the carcass good unless the weather is just too warm, however that is usually not a problem over here in the UK!

Turnerhunter mentions carcasses drying out. Our Roe seem particularly prone to that probably due to their small size. If they are hung out of its jacket, the outer surface of the carcass turns dark and leathery. It does no real harm as such and can be trimmed off, but most people over here simply hang them in their skins until they are ready to be butchered. Our Fallow, which are about the size of your Whitetail, don’t suffer nearly as much and they can be skinned asap and left to hang with no real problems. The guy I stalk with really turns out a first class, clean, well presented carcass, and they look first rate hanging in his chiller….I believe that should be the aim of every stalker/hunter….

Regards,

Pete

Pete E, you clearly know what you're talking about. It's a pleasure to read the things posted by you, Turnerhunter, and Marsh Mule. So many of these websites are filled with personal opinions, and not much else. Every time I see a recipe posted with Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup in it, I have to smile.

Turnerhunter, I question two things you have posted: One is your concern that aging results in too much weight loss. That is, in itself, a personal preference, if not merely an economic concern. In my opinion, the flavor gain from evaporation is a positive gain.

The other issue is one I admit to not having a scientific bent on. Or at least, the science I have read is flawed. It is the popular view that killing a startled animal will result in poor quality table fare. I can't share that view as my experience has shown me otherwise.

My first big game hunt was a memorable for several reasons. I went to Newfoundland for caribou. My guide and I glassed a good bull a mile away on a ridge. We stalked it till rounding a copse of shrubbery and spotted it running away from us. He had clearly caught our scent before we got to him.

Without asking my guide, I shouldered my 270 and took an offhand shot at the running animal and heard the bullet strike. It was at about 175 yards, and I hit him some four inches below his heart. The caribou did not go down at the shot. My guide yelled to me to fire again, which I did, but this time I wasn't as accurate, and I broke his rear right leg, finally putting him on the ground.

When we got to him, he was still very much alive. I put the coup de grace through his heart at point blank range as quickly as I could.

Suffice to say, I gutted, skinned and quartered him myself, and we both packed him back to camp.

The normal sequence of events there is to have the outfitter take the meat to a local butcher who will process the meat, and deliver steaks, sausage, burgers, and freeze it all. I insisted that it only be vacuum-packed for my trip back home. For those who are wondering, commercial airlines normally fly at altitudes of 30,000 feet or more, and it's pretty cold up there. I have never had any game or gamebirds spoil on me. I never pack them with ice of any sort. Additionally, when you give your carcass to a butcher who is processing all the other hunter's game, there is no guarantee you will get the animal you shot back.

On my return I aged the primal cuts in my walk-in cooler at work for three weeks. The meat was excellent.

Further to this point, gamebirds are usually shot on the wing. That means they are always juiced up and leaving fast.

[ 08-29-2003, 22:34: Message edited by: wayne nish ]

Hi wayne.
I agree that flavour will intensify with less water to a degree.Water is mostly benign in flavor not adding much to flavour.Guess thats why I mix mine with coffee in the morning.The real concern to me is,is it going to be worth it to my customer to walk out the door with 60 lbs of very well aged meat or with 75 lbs of tender venison that was aged for a shorter time.Remember the most shops will charge you for the hanging weight that the animal actually weighed when you brought it into the shop.The cost of bones,trim,bloodclots and damaged meat due to spoilage,poor field care and bruising plus loss of weight due to aging will all be passed on to the customer.Ever take your meat in to a butcher and pick it up only to ask where the rest of it is.I think that if a guy can do it at home then he has complete control over the finished product.Space in a meat locker is at a premium during game season.If your animal ties up that space for three weeks ,should the butcher charge more?

As far as meat quality on a stressed animal is concerned,I only have personal opinion to guide me.I do not believe that the short flight of an animal from danger,like getting spooked,alarmed or shot at and hit will degrade meat quality.I do believe that extended stress over long period of time will leave the animal with greatly raised lactic acid levels that accumulate in the muscles.Sort of like us running a marathon and hitting the wall.We need time to recover because we have burnt up all the available energy in our bodies(glucose).After the glucose is gone we start to acidify.After a period of time we would rest,eat and replenish that energy.Only difference with that animal is that we have killed him before his acid levels could subsideand even out. Just my opinion.

If it is an economic decision, for your customers, then I agree completely.

To the second point, I don't how more pumped up my caribou could have gotten.

Just my experience.

turnerhunter ;

When you're talking about shrinkage, weight loss and moisture content you can sure see that your a meatcutter-sausagemaker!!

Sorry I couldn't help it!!

Excellent thread, guys

I'll be driving from California to Wisconsin in November for the Deer Rifle season, and then spend a few days in South Dakota shooting pheasants before driving back. The weather in Wisconsin was never above 24 degrees F when I was deer hunting there 3 years ago. All the deer the locals left hanging outside were quickly frozen. I had my deer processed shortly after it was killed and then frozen for the plane ride home.

Now what would be the best way to handle the meat while in Wisconsin, and assuming below freezing ambient temps on a 8 or ten day roadtrip back to California.

Elmo

This is a really helpful thread -- we have a lot of professional expertise here that I couldn't have guessed at.

So here's my question for the pros -- what would be your ideal way to handle the meat in the following situations:

1. Whitetail hunt, 2-3 day drive from home. Temperatures from 15-40 deg. F. all along the route and the animal can hang (skin on or off) for 2-3 days between kill and departure.

2. Pronghorn hunt, temps from 50-80 deg. F. Commercial meat processing facilities available in nearest town, return trip will be 1/2 day drive to nearest city then a 4-hour return flight.

3. Pronghorn or mule deer hunt, temps from 30-60 deg. F., meat processing facilities available in area, return trip will be 4-6 days by car.

4. Wild boar hunt, temps from 40-70 deg. F., no processing facilities in hunting area, return will require all-day warm-weather drive then 5-hour flight.

5. Upland bird hunt, temps 50-70 deg. F., game can be frozen and shipped or stored in a cooler for several days followed by a 4-hour return flight.