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A Word on Gamey Flavors

Strong. Wild. Distinctive.  These are some of the more objective words to describe that particular quality of undomesticated game meat. As a matter of preference, it comes as little surprise to me that some people actually seek out this aspect of flavor as something desirable; I am not one of those people!  Gamey flavor reminds me of the things that went wrong in food prep. It makes me fixate on one overpowering flavor and things other than what I should be focused on -- enjoying distinct, sometimes nuanced flavors, aromas, textures, and their combinations and contributions in a meal.   The cause of gamey flavors, without delving too deeply into the science of taste and aromatics, indicates alignments on a matrix of butchering techniques, time, animal diet, food preparation, animal age, time of harvest, and bacterial action, in no particular order.  In any case it does not always indicate meat spoilage .  In fact, spoilage in my experience (thankfully relatively limited) is a