The next review on Mountain Man will focus on a 1.8 ounce/50 gram bag of their sweet jalapeno flavored beef jerky. This bag was kindly submitted for review by the founder of Mountain Man, Robert Lahue.
While not common, the Mountain Man jerky brand is distributed under the name Robert Lahue. Robert is located in Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada. His jerky is advertised to have no preservatives, no nitrates, no gluten, and no MSG, all great characteristics for jerky. There are an impressive 18 different Mountain Man flavors available.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef Slices, Jalapeno Juice, Brown Sugar, Onion Juice, Garlic Juice, Liquid Hickory Smoke, Sherry, Salt, Molasses, Spices.
The beef used is not guaranteed to be free of growth hormones or additional antibiotics. Also, the beef is not guaranteed to have at least partial free range access to graze on grass. As a result, the highest ingredient rating that can be awarded is a Good (8/10) rating.
The liquid marinade used here consists of jalapeno juice, sherry, liquid hickory smoke, garlic juice, and onion juice. All of the vegetable based juices are healthy.
The sugar level used here is not known. Being a sweet based flavor, you would have to think it is fairly high. The salt level is high at around 410mg of salt per 28 grams of jerky. Our preference is 350mg of salt or less.
This jerky does qualify to have no sodium nitrite, or any other similar unhealthy preservatives. Also, as a plus, this jerky qualifies to have no MSG added.
Decent (7/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
The strips are medium to small in size, and sliced to a medium thickness. This texture is dry, but not overly dry. While not common, these strips are sliced against the grain, instead of with the grain. There are visible signs of fat that enhance the flavor, and this jerky is relatively chewy. Handling this jerky leaves a little bit of oily residue on your fingers.
The first taste detected is the sweetness. Thankfully, the sweetness never really exceeds a mild level. As with most Mountain Man flavors, the garlic, and more so the onion tastes are apparent. The saltiness is at a moderate level, and the natural beef flavor is somewhat dulled by the sweetness.
The actual jalapeno flavor is not all that strong. You could say the spiciness of this flavor is mild at best. Overall, this is a juicy tasting treat.
A 1.8 ounce/50 gram bag of this jerky sells for $5.00. That equates to $2.78 an ounce, which classifies as an expensive price. This jerky is worth your money for people who enjoy a mildly sweet jalapeno flavor.
Very Good (9/10) – Taste Rating
Bag Review
This is not your typical jerky bag, mainly because the label is printed lengthwise instead of heightwise. The label on the front covers the entire bag, and there is nothing on the back. This bag is not resealable, but that should be expected for a quantity of jerky consisting of two ounces and under. Most important, this jerky is vacuum sealed, the best way to help preserve the jerky.
On the label there is a picture of Robert Lahue with a mountain in the background, where British Columbia has many mountains. The Mountain Man brand name curves along the mountain peak. The slogan is “The Best in the West”. Facts printed on the bag are “no nitrates”, “no msg”, “no gluten”, “no soy”, and “no preservatives”.
Another interesting fact stated on the bag is “Did you know: It takes 1/2 pound of fresh meat to make this pack”. While there is no Canadian Department of Agriculture or British Columbia Department of Agriculture stamp printed anywhere, it does explicitly state on the bag itself that this jerky was made and packaged in a commercially licensed facility.
All important bag categories are covered here. To the credit of Robert, he supplies an email address, and a phone number for customer inquiries. As per Canadian law, there are French translations provided.
The sweet jalapeno flavored 1.8 ounce/50 gram bag listed at the bottom was part of an online purchase in 2012. The ingredient list has since been slightly tweaked.
Check out their web site: www.mountainmanbeefjerky.com
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