Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

Sure sounds like it. Lamb ain’t real good either but mutton is down right nasty.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

From all I've read over the years, these are the main reasons some deer (and other large game) may have a strong, 'gamey' taste:

1- A quick kill is essential for
good taste - an animal that is
wounded and runs becomes stressed, and a stressed animal builds up adrenaline in their system, which destroys lactic
acid and gives the meat a strong, gamey taste !

2- Quick and efficient gutting, cleaning and cooling of the body cavity - any leftover blood or intestinal fluids will taint the
meat, as will residual body heat
in the internal cavity ! The game should be hung in a cool, dry
place to air out and cool after it has been thoroughly cleaned !

3- Overlooking any of these factors will likely result in a strongly-tasting, un-appetizing meal ! Good care and proper procedure bring better results
and less wasted meat !

RJ ; Having tasted mutton vs. a well and properly cooked leg of lamb, I get your aversion; I just think that you've never been treated to lamb that's been properly prepared, seasoned
and cooked ! My dad was an officers' cook in the Navy, and
a true grill-master at home; that said, I'm pretty sure that had you
ever been privy to his roasted leg
of lamb on a spit, your eyes would have been opened to what good lamb should taste like ! It is one
of his specialties that I miss the most, as I haven't had any since before I got married (early '70s) ! Some few Greek and/or
Mediterranean restaurants do
a fair job, but even they can't compare to some of the meals
he cooked up, be they beef, pork or lamb !

(Incidentally, I've had venison,
elk, moose and bison; venison
was good, elk a little better and moose was much better, with bison topping the list !)

Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

It’s all in what you like or don’t like. I’ve had good and not so good in all of them. I’d deer elk and moose over bison any day but those are my taste buds.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

As stated, a lot depends on
proper procedure/
preparation ! Not everyone is equally skilled (or knowledgeable) at killing, cleaning and/or preparation/cooking !

Any/all stages affect the quality/taste of the meat !

Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

Very true but I don’t have the desire to eat bison. Too lean and too chewy for me. I’ve tried several and I’ll take wild meat over any bison I’ve ever eaten. Just a personal preference. Plus at $30.00 plus/ pound for bison I’d starve. Lol

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

So I guess what you venison lovers are telling me is that in all my 72 years of eating one thing and another, all the venison I've eaten (and I sample it at every opportunity) has either been improperly slaughtered, butchered or cooked. Hard to believe all those folks were so incompetent. Including me. And I've always considered myself a pretty good cook. Who knew?

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

Criticism (especially of anyone
in particular) was not my intent, and I don't doubt your cooking abilities ! It was just to make a point that many people don't get
to try or taste good venison due
to someone's mistake along the way ! That is not to say that everyone is incompetent, just
that not everyone always knows exactly what they're doing ! I've had good venison and some that was barely edible, so someone knew what they were doing, but not everyone ! Not ALL the
venison you've tasted was bad,
but some was definitely better; so
the lesser of the ones you've tried indicates somebody's mistake, somewhere !

Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

Some people just like one thing while others like something entirely different. If you don’t like venison you don’t like venison. Simple as that. I know some people who don’t like fish and others that love it. Something can be taken care of am prepared the best way known to human kind and it still won’t taste good to everyone. We all have our likes and dislikes. That don’t, necessarily, mean somebody didn’t take care of it right or they cooked it wrong. I’ve hunted and fished my whole life. Taken care of and prepared things the same way and one thing will taste great while the next is not good at all in the same species. A lot depends on the animal. What it’s eaten, how healthy it is, where it came from, time of year, age of the animal, lots of things. It’s not as simple as a quick, clean kill and being a good cook. That will influence the quality of it but there are many variables. Some people just don’t like stuff.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

Thank you for the clarification,
C.H. ! You have clearly and succinctly explained certain
points that I may have omitted
or overlooked, especially all the variables that you mentioned !
And you're right about peoples'
tastes; as mentioned in previous posts, some people love liver, but just the smell of liver cooking makes me gag and retch !
To each his own !

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Well I wasn't addressing my comments to anyone in particular on the stage, just to those folks who come back to "I don't like venison" with "well you just haven't had it prepared properly". Which to me certainly implies at the very least, that all the venison I've had was prepared by either folks who didn't know how to do it properly or just didn't give a chit. Hey, I just don't like it. It's sure ok with me if you do. I personally think it has a whole lot more to do with the critters' diet than anything else. I'd love to try some corn fed venison and put that theory to the test. I imagine most of the ones I've had were not eatin grain on a regular basis. And if you offered me a well marbled aged beef ribeye and a venison steak and I couldn't tell the difference? Then what the hell is all the fuss about - beef's sure easier to put in my larder than deer meat.

USAF Major Loc: Sea Bright, NJ

In northeastern Monmouth County NJ we are over run by whitetail deer. People with very discerning palates swear they can detect the taste of azaleas and rhododendrons. I personally can't.
I do recall that by late February when I was stationed in Michigan's U.P. venison tasted of cedar as there was little else for them to forage.

bottomcoon Loc: Tahlequah, oklahoma

We have a lot of acorns around here & the meat can definitely have a peculiar taste to it. My favorite venison comes from deer i take in Nebraska's December primitive firearms season. All they eat is corn & the meat is delicious. I've taken some good Kansas deer that lived on wheat & alfalfa, very good meat. I love hunting western Oklahoma but sometimes I'll take a deer that really taste like sage & it's just not good eating. I hang my deer & skin it right away. Go to a processing place & you'll see deer with the hide on that's been dead a couple days. Look at the skinned animals hanging up. You'll see huge bloodshot places where the poor critter was shot outside his heart lung area. I've seen some deer with 3 & 4 places on them. All that translates to the quality of the meat on the table. I want 1 shot one kill. I process my own deer, antelope or elk. I like venison. Oh yea, some
Commercial processing place is building a processing plant here that is going to process Buffalo. Tight lines.

Wv mike Loc: Parkersburg area. Wv

I’m with you on the processing your own I do my own deer pork and beef

Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

What they eat makes all the difference in the world outside of proper handling so I agree with that for sure.
I, actually, work part time at a local elk ranch where the elk are grain fed and live on alfalfa fields. You can’t tell one of their elk rib eyes from a beef rib eye except they’re smaller. Tastes just like beef. Same with all cuts but it’s $15.00/pound more to buy in their retail store than beef. The buffalo steaks are $30.00/pound. They raise those too. I say if your gonna buy elk or buffalo meat at $25.00 to $30.00/pound that tastes like beef just buy the beef at $10.00/pound.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

At the time that I tried the bison,
it was on sale at a local grocery
chain store (Basha's); I believe I paid about $12.00 for a 3/4-lb.
Delmonico cut ! Bought it mostly out of curiosity and for the price;
no way I could afford $30/lb., either then or now !