The next review on Mountain Man will focus on a 1.8 ounce/50 gram bag of their sweet hickory flavored beef jerky. This jerky was kindly submitted for review by Robert Lahue, the owner of Mountain Man beef jerky.
This jerky is distributed by Robert Lahue, and located in Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada. The jerky is made and packaged in a commercially licensed facility. Mountain Man jerky is advertised to contain “no nitrates”, “no msg”, “no gluten”, “no soy”, and “no preservatives”. There are an impressive 18 different Mountain Man flavors available.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef Slices, Pineapple Juice, Brown Sugar, Liquid Hickory Smoke, Sherry, Garlic Juice, Onion Juice, Vinegar, 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.
We have an interesting liquid marinade here with pineapple juice, liquid hickory smoke, garlic juice, sherry, onion juice, and vinegar. Pineapple juice is interesting, where it has a natural enzyme named bromelain that is widely used in the food industry as a meat tenderizer. Garlic and onion juice are about the healthiest juices you will ever find.
The hickory flavor is achieved from using liquid hickory smoke. As a general rule, liquid hickory smoke is one of the best liquid smokes out there.
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. Instead, salt is the main preservative used, and vinegar to a lesser extent. As a plus, this jerky also qualifies to have no MSG added.
Decent (7/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
These jerky strips are small to medium in size, with a medium thickness. While not right or wrong, this jerky is cut against the grain, where normally jerky is sliced with the grain. The texture is dry, but not too dry, which results in jerky that is reasonably easy to chew. There are some visible signs of fat that add to the overall natural beef flavor. Handling this jerky does leave a little oily residue on your fingers.
The first taste detected is a moderate sweetness that stays within reason. It does not take long for a mild hickory flavor to settle in. There is a moderate pineapple flavor, along with a mild combination of onion and garlic.
This flavor is moderately salty, and there is a light tang from the pineapple and vinegar. With a fair amount of sweetness, the natural beef flavor is muted to a certain point. Overall, this sweet hickory flavor delivers on both counts.
This 1.8 ounce/50 gram bag of jerky retails for $5.00. That works out to $2.78 an ounce, which would rate as an expensive price. This jerky is worth your money for people who would enjoy a sweet tasting hickory 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. 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 hickory 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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