Elk flavor
- Thread starter Howie
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idelkslayer
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My wife and I did a blind taste test a few years ago of a forky whitetail killed in northern Idaho forests, forky mule deer killed in sage country, and a spike elk killed in northern Idaho all in the same year within weeks of each of other. We could not discern any difference between the mule deer or whitetail. We could tell the difference between the deer and elk.
Having killed elk in northern forests and in sagebrush country I have never noticed any difference between them. Also having killed mule deer in both types of habitat, I don't notice anything different between them.
The biggest difference I notice in meat quality is that older animals are just tougher. I wish that I had aged him, but my biggest whitetail buck was old. It was the toughest meat I've ever had but even then the flavor was great and we have teeth for reason. The oldest cow elk I've ever killed was only a little bit tougher than the average raghorn bull I typically eat. Time of year hasn't made any difference either. Elk and deer killed from September through December without any noticeable difference.
Having killed elk in northern forests and in sagebrush country I have never noticed any difference between them. Also having killed mule deer in both types of habitat, I don't notice anything different between them.
The biggest difference I notice in meat quality is that older animals are just tougher. I wish that I had aged him, but my biggest whitetail buck was old. It was the toughest meat I've ever had but even then the flavor was great and we have teeth for reason. The oldest cow elk I've ever killed was only a little bit tougher than the average raghorn bull I typically eat. Time of year hasn't made any difference either. Elk and deer killed from September through December without any noticeable difference.
100% the young bull I killed in Colorado in 2020 had no hint of “gamey”, the bull I killed eating corn and soybeans this year was much older and has a definite stronger flavor. Not bad, but stronger.
MThuntr
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I'll argue there is no difference in elk flavor from sagebrush vs forest elk. Of course my elk hunting areas will almost always have a mixed of both timber and mountain big sagebrush so even if I shoot an elk in the timber, they likely were not far from sagebrush. I could be 100% wrong because I don't often hunt areas where sagebrush isn't available throughout the year.
Elk prefer herbaceous forage (forbs and grasses) from spring through fall/early winter. On Sagebrush summer ranges, something like 50-75% of their spring/summer forage is forbs (high TDN) with the rest being mostly grasses (wheatgrasses, fescues, and needlegrasses). Their browsing of shrubs is limited to something like 7-15% of diet in the summer and most of that browse is not sagebrush because there are browse options that likely have better forage quality. For mountainous summer range, I read that mountain elk preferred ninebark, huckleberry, and snowberry. These are classic shaded forest understory shrubs which would make sense for summering animals in the shade of a cool, mid to high elevation forest. The transition from herbaceous forage to woody browse (big sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, mountain mahogany, aspen) is often when these areas get enough snow to push them down into winter grounds which are often sagebrush dominated.
So my claim to same taste (given similar age classes), elk shot during the fall will likely have diets high in grasses and forbs whether in sagebrush country or forested country. Sure elk are going to intermittently browse sagebrush and conifers but I don't think it affects the flavor during a normal hunting scenario. Now an elk shot on on sagebrush wintering grounds that's been eating mostly sagebrush may have a different flavor but I don't think that's the question.
Elk prefer herbaceous forage (forbs and grasses) from spring through fall/early winter. On Sagebrush summer ranges, something like 50-75% of their spring/summer forage is forbs (high TDN) with the rest being mostly grasses (wheatgrasses, fescues, and needlegrasses). Their browsing of shrubs is limited to something like 7-15% of diet in the summer and most of that browse is not sagebrush because there are browse options that likely have better forage quality. For mountainous summer range, I read that mountain elk preferred ninebark, huckleberry, and snowberry. These are classic shaded forest understory shrubs which would make sense for summering animals in the shade of a cool, mid to high elevation forest. The transition from herbaceous forage to woody browse (big sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, mountain mahogany, aspen) is often when these areas get enough snow to push them down into winter grounds which are often sagebrush dominated.
So my claim to same taste (given similar age classes), elk shot during the fall will likely have diets high in grasses and forbs whether in sagebrush country or forested country. Sure elk are going to intermittently browse sagebrush and conifers but I don't think it affects the flavor during a normal hunting scenario. Now an elk shot on on sagebrush wintering grounds that's been eating mostly sagebrush may have a different flavor but I don't think that's the question.
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FairWeather
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There’s the Roosevelt Elk along the PNW coat. They live in a fricken jungle.
Raisin Bran
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I would agree. All the elk I have shot over the years it has been the old Bulls that were ”gamey”. Worst Elk we ever had was a big regressing 6x that came out of the park when the snow was to deep. His teeth were worn down to almost nothing and was aged at 12 years old. (This was before wolves decimated the Greater Yellowstone Park) He tasted like the swampiest, toughest shoe leather you can imagine! But… just 2 years ago I shot a spike Bull and he was less than savory. Probably won’t shoot another Spike…need to let them marinate on hoof another year or so
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more_cowbell
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I got a bull that was aged around 8 years old. Lots of burger (10% beef suet) and breakfast sausage!
Howie
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Again, thanks for all the info
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noharleyyet
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Never had any that was the slightest but worse than delicious.
shannerdrake
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I don’t have the robust experience as most of the guys here with elk As I’ve only had meat from 8 different elk. However, I have eaten parts of close to 100 deer as well. All of our red meat has been wild game since 2017 and portions of it 20 years prior.
I can without a doubt claim with full confidence that there is a high degree of variability in taste, texture, and tenderness. I can also with the same level of confidence also say that I’ve been unable to determine what causes the variability.
I have had young does taste funky and rutted up mature bucks taste great. I shot a mature bull during peak rut that was one of the best tasting animals I’ve ever ate. It also took him a few minutes to expire despite having a slug through both lungs. Conventional wisdom says he was rutted up and full of adrenaline and shouldn’t have been “good.”
One of the absolute worst tasting animals I’ve ever had was a young bull that was dropped with a DRT high shoulder shot in the middle of an irrigated alfalfa field that he had spent a lot of his life filling up on. He was taken out whole and on ice within two hours. He should have been delicious and instead the meat off that bull was the closest to inedible as any game I’ve had.
Eat enough critters you will surely notice some variability in flavor, but I doubt you’ll ever eat enough to figure out their flavor before you pull the trigger.
I can without a doubt claim with full confidence that there is a high degree of variability in taste, texture, and tenderness. I can also with the same level of confidence also say that I’ve been unable to determine what causes the variability.
I have had young does taste funky and rutted up mature bucks taste great. I shot a mature bull during peak rut that was one of the best tasting animals I’ve ever ate. It also took him a few minutes to expire despite having a slug through both lungs. Conventional wisdom says he was rutted up and full of adrenaline and shouldn’t have been “good.”
One of the absolute worst tasting animals I’ve ever had was a young bull that was dropped with a DRT high shoulder shot in the middle of an irrigated alfalfa field that he had spent a lot of his life filling up on. He was taken out whole and on ice within two hours. He should have been delicious and instead the meat off that bull was the closest to inedible as any game I’ve had.
Eat enough critters you will surely notice some variability in flavor, but I doubt you’ll ever eat enough to figure out their flavor before you pull the trigger.
can you imagine if they were feeding in an asparagus field
noisy
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It's a mystery to me. Bull I shot this year went a mile and a quarter before dying and I expected the adrenaline to affect the taste, but the meat tastes great. I've honestly never had a bad elk, from calves to cows to bulls they've all been very good eating, but I have had a couple gamey deer I just could not eat, one a whitetail fawn and the other a three point muley. Older whitetail I shot this year tastes great. So who knows. But if you don't like the taste you can always donate the meat to the local food bank.
ImBillT
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I’ve killed an elk in a sage flat, an elk that had access to sage, but which also had access to wheat and plenty of other natural food sources, and an elk in the mountains that was far enough from sage that I seriously doubt it had eaten a meaningful amount of sage in its lifetime. All three tasted better than mule deer in my opinion.
All of my mule deer have been plains deer, but some had access to cotton, some sorghum, some wheat, and some mostly just desert scrub. All probably had access to sage, and all tasted better than whitetail in my opinion.
All of my mule deer have been plains deer, but some had access to cotton, some sorghum, some wheat, and some mostly just desert scrub. All probably had access to sage, and all tasted better than whitetail in my opinion.
ImBillT
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Man that’s a shame on the lopes. The only one I’ve killed I treated like everything else, except it was August and over 100 degrees. I just quartered it, hung the quarters on a gate frame for 3hrs, stuck it in a cooler full of frozen water bottles and drove home. Let it sit in the cooler for 3-4 days and then butchered and froze it. I was worried it would be off because where I shot it was volcanic gravel with no plant for miles other than creosote bush. I think it tasted better than any cervid I’ve ever killed included elk. Super tasty. I’ve heard the opposite, but I didn’t feel like I did anything special and I thought it tasted incredible.
We don’t do anything special with our antelope. It’s a favorite in our house
Khunter
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do not go through any hoops whatsoever to control antelope flavor. no idea what your issue is. Habe. o killed a bad tastimg looe. quite the contrary, great meat cooked as plain as can be with minimal spice.
I’m not complaining at all. Antelope is my favorite and I do nothing special to it. But most say you have to do 7 different kinds of witchcraft with them or they are bad.
Khunter
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well most people (except HTers) are dumb so there is that.
