Quality of venison during the rut

[Brittany Chukarman]

For those that have taken mule deer during the rut,on a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the venison? Whitetail?

 

[Stone_Ice_1]

I have found that it really depends on the deer. One of the worst deer I've ever taken was a forkhorn mule deer during the rut. Every single bite of that deer tasted just like the nasty smell of a rutting buck. On the flip side I've also taken mature bucks during the rut that tasted good.

In general though a mature buck during the rut won't be nearly as good as it is before the rut. But if you really want some meat during the rut and not interested in the antlers, just get a doe.

 

[devon deer]

Obviously living in the UK i can't comment on your native deer.
But, as we can sell our venison, i eat the venison from the females, and ALWAYS sell the stinky red rutting stags, meat tastes too strong for my palate.
Cheers
Richard

 

[worm]

We like the taste of the mule deer here in NV. But I will take a whitetail from NE MO any day over a mule deer.

 

[genesis273]

My family will eat around 20-25 deer a year. 99% of the time you can't tell the difference between a mature doe or buck. I have noticed that the longer I wait to skin a buck during the rut, the stronger the taste. If I take care of it quick, no strong rut taste.
That's just my observation from consuming that many deer for over 25 years.

 

[----]

I've ate lots of rutting whitetail, and both the mountain deer and the river bottom bucks are always delicious. I am convinced whitetail were put on earth for the sole purpose of filling my stomach.

The couple rutting mule deer I've eaten have tasted just fine, but the raw meat on both had a pretty obvious aroma that goes away when cooked, and doesn't translate to taste for me. I wonder if that smell is the reason some people can't get in to the meat. I've noticed this smell with some of the rutting antelope I've shot also. Never had a whitetail that smelled.

Flavor is a very personal thing, everyone tastes things differently and what's 'gamey' to some people isn't to others. I still don't know what 'gamey' tastes like because I like all of it.

 

[Nameless Range]

Mule Deer during the rut - 5
Whitetail during the rut - 8

That is certainly overgeneralizing it though. There is most definitely a difference between species, but within each species there is a fair amount of variation.

A stinking rutting Mule Deer buck that lives feeding off the hayfields of SW MT valleys might taste better than a yearling doe muley that lives feeding off the gumbo and sagebrush of eastern MT.

Another factor is age. Typically - Older = tougher and gamier.

Now I'm just guessing, but I would assume a lifetime of different topographies may contribute to muscle-makeup, and therefore muscle texture/taste.

Randy11 has a point worth considering. Rutting Muleys smell awful, as does their meat, though it may not translate into taste. Fry everything in bacon grease. That's my motto.

 

[ric]

There is no difference between rutting and not. More important is how you take care of the meat from the moment it dies, and also to a lesser extent, how it was shot, meaning did you case it around a bunch, wound it, etc. I have learned that there is rarely bad meat, the problem is how it was taken care of.

 

[dihardhunter]

There is no difference between rutting and not. More important is how you take care of the meat from the moment it dies, and also to a lesser extent, how it was shot, meaning did you case it around a bunch, wound it, etc. I have learned that there is rarely bad meat, the problem is how it was taken care of.

this^ ^ ^ ^ - if it's too tough, use a Jaccard tenderizer. I will say I like whitetail better for steaks and chops, but a good sage-fed muley makes some dang good sausage.

 

[Bambistew]

Depends... My experience is they're either pretty good or nearly inedible. One I shot was so bad I could taste him in the salmai and brauts he was made into.

I think it depends on how "rutted" up they are. Shooting one that's been chasing does for a couple hours, vs shooting one thats been laying around and/or feeding for half the day could be part of it as well. But who knows. Thats my hypothesis and I'm sticking to it. The absolute gag worst ones I tried to eat were chasing does pretty hard when I put the hammer down. The meat was well taken care of as was the animal.

I think Randy nailed it. I've never had a bad whitetail either. Rut or no.

 

[Brittany Chukarman]

I know there's a lot of factors involved in having good meat. Here's the deal. In Oregon if you don't draw your 1st choice you are given a preference point. I wanted to save up a few points for a unit to hunt with my nephew when it fit his schedule. I also qualify for LOP tags. So I put down the worst odds to draw 1st choice then my LOP so I can hunt my place and still gain a point. This time I was one of 2 in the state to beat the 828:1 odds. It's a rut hunt with an outside chance at a big, mature muley buck. There's also some whitetails in the unit. I've been fortunate to take a lot of good mule deer back when they were still thriving. I really don't care about score or inches. An October 3 pt is just fine with me, love the meat and never had a bad one. I would like to get a good whitetail and it seems the rut doesn't affect the meat as much it does with muleys which may not be a problem anyway. I'm not going to worry about it, just go and do the best I can.

 

[sagebrush]

Like others have said, field care is more of a factor than the rut. Puncture the stomach or bladder and you have a problem. Biggest problem I see is guys cutting out or skinning around the tarsal glands and then using the same knife to skin or bone out the rest of the deer.

 

[spook12]

Biggest problem I see is guys cutting out or skinning around the tarsal glands and then using the same knife to skin or bone out the rest of the deer.

Bingo.

 

[starvingoutdoorsman]

Honestly I think that is just depends on a combination of the animal, where its living/feeding, age, shot placement (guts vs. heart type shots), and how its taken care of. But even then I have had bad deer when I swear it would have been perfect. So my formula might be bad. Its hunting. You can find the best deer one year and shoot another in the same area and its not very good. At least that's been my experience.

 

[Southwind]

A lot of factors but grain fed Kansas Mule deer bucks have always seemed pretty tasty to me. I do prefer the female and young for the best table fare however.

 

[Elkmagnet]

The rut seems to not be a factor in my experience.

 

[Ben Long]

Get the heat out of the carcass and the carcass out of the heat. In NW MT, where I hunt, the former is the issue, as usually it's plenty cool during late November. Big, thick-necked and thick-hided bucks hold a lot of heat. I do think that, in general, young animals taste and chew better than older specimens, run ragged and full of lactic acid and hormones. But properly cared for, older bucks taste fine, IMO. If I'm wrong, off to the sausage grinder!

 

[jvanderlinde]

I think the mule deer stink plays more mind games with a persons head than anything. I think its hard to beat a nice corn feed whitetail.

 

[Joe Hulburt]

I've never killed a rutting mule deer but I've killed a heck of a lot of rutting blacktails an a handful of rutting whitetails. I would guess I've butchered and eaten close to 100 deer and I've never noticed any gamey taste. Once in a while the older rutting bucks are a little chewy but the whole "strong tasting" thing is a mystery to me.

Rutting bull elk are pretty stinky but again never tasted any difference and I've eaten 30+ of them. I lean towards thinking it's a mental thing. Could be I'm just not a picky eater too....

 

[1_pointer]

I know there's a lot of factors involved in having good meat. Here's the deal. In Oregon if you don't draw your 1st choice you are given a preference point. I wanted to save up a few points for a unit to hunt with my nephew when it fit his schedule. I also qualify for LOP tags. So I put down the worst odds to draw 1st choice then my LOP so I can hunt my place and still gain a point. This time I was one of 2 in the state to beat the 828:1 odds. It's a rut hunt with an outside chance at a big, mature muley buck. There's also some whitetails in the unit. I've been fortunate to take a lot of good mule deer back when they were still thriving. I really don't care about score or inches. An October 3 pt is just fine with me, love the meat and never had a bad one. I would like to get a good whitetail and it seems the rut doesn't affect the meat as much it does with muleys which may not be a problem anyway. I'm not going to worry about it, just go and do the best I can.

Just kill the one with the double throat patch for me!