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I'll be hunting NF the first week of Oct. Does the meat of a bull moose get rank during the rut?
nockup - great question. I'm anxious to see people's results b/c I'm going to be hunting NF the same time frame next year. I've never heard anything other than moose meat is fantastic, so I'm hoping I get to find that out first hand.
I don't think the rut affects the meat quality. I base this on eating the meat of my own bulls killed in the rut, plus the meat from some others taken in rut. The end flavor and quality on the plate has more to do with post-kill game care, butchering, hanging, and generally keeping in top condition. My opinion is that the effect of the rut is minimal, but I'm sure someone will talk about inedible meat. Look at it this way. You almost never hear Alaskans complaining about the moose they kill, and most of the moose are killed at some stage of the rut.
Last year I harvested a good bull elk in the last few weeks of the rut. I let the meat hang for about a week or a little more. This is the most tender and great tasting elk I have ever tasted. Good shot, care for the critter and it will take care of your hunger pangs.
Last year I harvested a good bull elk in the last few weeks of the rut. I let the meat hang for about a week or a little more. This is the most tender and great tasting elk I have ever tasted. Good shot, care for the critter and it will take care of your hunger pangs.
Our Ak. bulls could not have been better table fare if they were young cows:) Killed the last few days of the season and were rutting hard.
As Kevin stated fild care is what will make or break you.
Age is a bigger factor. Older bulls are tougher and younger bulls are more tender IF they are well taken care of as stated above.
Every year added to an animal reduces it's tenderness.
I have only shot 1 moose, a 5.5 year old Bull. I shot him on Oct 3 in VT, which, I believe, most would say is about the peak of the rut.
The meat was aged for about a week to 10 days, and it is absolutely the best game animal I have ever eaten. We have cooked it about every way you can imagine and it's all great. I think the only thing you could do to make it bad is overcook it/dry it out.
I'd say that the last thing you have to worry about is the meat being bad because of the rut. Get it cooled down quickly, age it if you can, and enjoy it. (And what ever you do, don't throw away the shanks!)
I've shot plenty of moose in my time, 35 or so. I remember one that had decent antler growth but was much greyer than others. The sockets of the hips and shoulders were worn almost threw and most every joint was calcified and spurred up with arthritis. The best part that we shared in camp was far from tender.....loin. Generally, they are great any time you take one.
Cool them down. The best way to ensure top quality meet.
I've shot plenty of moose in my time, 35 or so. I remember one that had decent antler growth but was much greyer than others. The sockets of the hips and shoulders were worn almost threw and most every joint was calcified and spurred up with arthritis. The best part that we shared in camp was far from tender.....loin. Generally, they are great any time you take one.
I have ben on 17 moose hunts in Northern Maine with friends and relatives as we share the meat and the expenses. Cooling down and aging is critical. One important note is the blacker the better. If the moose is coal black then they eat fine regardless of the rut. If they show signs of grey and brown on there face then they will be tough and gamey!
My brother's bull that he shot stunk like rut really bad but the meat was awesome!! I can't wait to go back to get another one since I'm out of moose meat.
Best tasting big game meat that I've had in my opinion!
The only think I would make a note about on moose meat, is that is a very lean meat. My moose have ranged between a 2 year old up and thru to 12 year old. I agree with many here on is a great game meat and field prep is key.
Only thing I would add is a consideration of your ground meats and sausages. I usually go with pork fat or bacon ends. What does everybody else add in their lean ground moose meat to help hold together the patties?
As several has suggested, the way you TAKE CARE OF THE MEAT has a lot to do with its value as table fare. And that is even more true during the rut.
Bulls spend a lot of time "perfuming" themselves with urine. The hair on their bells, necks and bellies become saturated with it. If you get that stink on your hands and them handle the meat, you are not going to be happy with the quality of the meat.
The biggest/dominant breeding bulls can become borderline nasty as table fare at the height of the rut. This is because at that point they almost completely stop eating vegetation and drink a lot of cow urine. This nasty habit and the fact that they are burning up the fat reserves they worked all summer to build up, leaves them a bit less than wonderful when it comes to meat flavor.
Bottom line for me is that if I can get a rutty smelling bull skinned without the hair touching the meat, normally the meat will be OK. But at the peak of the rut, I just won't shoot an older bull.
Pete
Good point Pete and better timing. I'm visiting AK this Sept to chase moose.
Flying out of Longmare Lake near Soldontna for a 7-day remove guided hunt.
Been thinking/working the numbers about how much meat to bring back, how to get it home to the lower 48, etc.
Will try and keep the tips in mind if I'm successful.
Age is always a factor with any meat. Beef, pork, elk, any of it. Old dairy cows/bulls don't bring peak prices for a reason.... rut and/or estrus have no no real impact in the price. Age does.
You want a great eating elk kill a spikeor a yearling cow. If ya ask the spike he is likely in the rut too, just tired of gettin' his butt kicked....
WRT to gaminess(?), I don't think the rut effects flavor that much if at all. Diet certainly, meat care definitely.... but not the rut.
I do know later sept and into oct will make dealing properly with that amount of meat in the cool mountain air will make a huge difference.
Also know they say you can't eat the antlers..... but you can sure look at them a lot longer and with fonder memories than watching that digested meat swirling down the tubes..... there are ways of making the oldest nastiest things edible and I wouldn't pass on any of it. Personally if it means one or the other I can "suffer" my way through that..
Edit: Sorry, elk on the brain. Carry on....
If you think rutty moose meat is nasty, just try some rutty caribou. You'll feel much better about the moose!
Pete
any bull in rut will be foul if not killed & dressed properly.
As a kid, we had beef maybe once or twice a month. It was always moose. I didn't eat beef regularly till I went to college.
The rut doesn't matter. I did eat an awful one once, it was a 64" bull arrowed right after defeating another bull in a HUGE fight. He was still huffing and shivering when he was shot. Meat was so bad smelling dDuring cooking that it all got thrown out. Even the burger tasted awful.
My dad was a poacher and his dad before him. Between the two of em, they probably shot well over 200 moose in their lifetimes. As a youngster, I had to skin em all. I've skinned dozens and eaten them all. Some are sooo lean that the meat looks kinda blue-they are tougher for sure, but still good. D Meat care matters more than age, rutting, sex etc. Meat care is the MOST CRITICAL PART!
"Meat care is the MOST CRITICAL PART! "
My butcher says that the first moose families kill they have lost meat because the carcass is not cooled . He states moose need to be at least quartered to cool unless extremely cold
Meat care is most important. If you feel it has a taste rub olive oil on it.
In general, keep the meat scrupulously clean during butchering. Don't be afraid to use water to clean it early on, but not after it's been off-carcass for a day or so. You really want it to air out, dry externally, and crust over. Cool, shaded, ventilated hanging areas are perfect.
I'm not going to tell you a big 60+-er in the peak rut tastes like his junior prodigy. If that was the case we'd be doing filet mignon from 1300 pound stud Hereford bulls and loving it as much as an 800 pound steer. You definitely help the final product be it's best on the table by doing your best in the field. I love big moose antlers, but the tasty low-fat steaks, roasts and burger are my top trophy by far.
Rut and moose meat quality makes no difference. Rut and NF caribou is dicey. I have never shot a bad one but have seen some that were meat was just left in the field it smelled so bad and was metallic green.
