Aging deer meat

No ice. Use frozen jugs and put on top of meat in cooler with plug pulled.

This was a 4.5 year old rutting buck. Tastes like Bambi.

What are you suspending the meat from? I have a spare fridge and would like to mimic this setup.

At our old camp, we’d hang them in the walk in cooler sometimes. Hide off and hide on. It does make a difference.

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Hide off and hide on. It does make a difference.

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Are you saying hide on or off makes a difference and if so, which do you prefer? Or just that aging them makes the difference?

A friend of mine has the cool bot over out in San Saba. It worked very well even hog hunting in the middle of summer.

We have access to a walk-in cooler where we hunt in North La. and always hang with the hide on also.

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Dry aging has to be more precise with temperature and humidity

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Interested how precise you’re talking. The deer I posted above stayed in the garage while I was gone for two days. When I put my infrared thermometer on it, it read 34° surface temp on the meat. I’ve read anything below 40° is fine. I’ve been doing this method for several years now. Never measured humidity levels though.

Go to Meat Eater pod cast Listen to episode 227 “Red Cutter”. They interview a Meat Scientist it’s very good and will give you tons of information on aging ect.

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I cut a 2x4 to fit across the top on the lip that usually holds the top shelf.

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That’s the exact setup I used. I had to look twice thinking it was a picture of mine from years ago. lol

The only slight difference is that when I first got into aging, a friend that’s a retired butcher in MT warned me about keeping everything sterile and not creating an environment where moisture could promote bacterial growth. So with each deer, I’d use a new drill bit, sterilize it, and slowly drill a hole into the fibula/ulna (making sure any bone fragments were collected & discarded). Then, thread an unpainted sterilized coat hanger or wire through the hole and twist it over the pole across the top shelf of the fridge.

I did 2X4’s at first, but figured it may be holding too much moisture. So. I’d wrap it with foil. Then, I tried pvc. It works ok on does, but bigger deer need a metal pole.

Instead of string, you could probably grab your tackle box and try some steel leaders. I wanna say I tried weedeater string once, but it really doesn’t want to be tied in a knot.

Anyway, nice seeing y’all take the extra effort to do this. Ice soup with gray meat drowning in an ice chest is a shame. I did it when I was in college and didn’t know any better. :/

The texture and flavor of venison with this aging method makes any subsequent preparation a delicacy.


(doe-aged 8 days)



(Same deer’s heart, aged one week)


One day, when the big bills are in the past, I’ll find a used walk-in for 10 grand or so and use it as a fishing camp during the summer.

I did the hide on once but getting that hide off after hanging was a pain.

Now hide off for a week or so.