Hog's Beef Jerky - Whiskey & Honey

Next in the series on Hog's Beef Jerky is this "Real Whiskey & Honey" variety. See my previous review of their Habba-Q beef jerky.

Hog's Beef Jerky is a brand of Hog's Beef Jerky, Inc. based out of Seville, OH. It's the creation of John Welton, a long time master jerky maker who got started back in the early 1990s.

This "Real Whiskey & Honey" beef jerky is made with Jack Daniel's Whiskey.

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McDonald's Meats Smokey Dried Pork Strips

Next in the series on McDonald's Meats are these Smokey Dried Pork Strips. See my previous reviews of their Original Beef Jerky, Smokey Dried Beef Strips, and Cajun Smokey Dried Beef Strips.

McDonald's Meats is a full service butcher shop in Clear Lake, MN, in operation since 1914. It was actually in operation before then, but under a different name.

In addition to these Smokey Dried Pork Strips, McDonald's also offers them in other flavors, Teriyaki, BBQ, and Cajun. I only have this Original variety to review. The company makes some 22 varieties of jerky in beef, pork, turkey, buffalo, and venison.

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Clint & Sons Beef Jerky - Original

Clint & Sons is a meat processing facility located in White Deer, TX. The business has been family owned since Clint Freeman opened it up in 1944. Today it's run by his sons and grandchildren.

The company's primary business is in custom slaughtering and processing, but beef jerky is a popular product of theirs. They also operate a BBQ restaurant, and manufacture other snack food products.

Clint & Sons offers two flavors of beef jerky at this time, this Original variety and a Hot variety which I'll review later.

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Jerk Nation - Moms Apple Pie

Next in the series on Jerk Nation Beef Jerky is this Moms Apple Pie variety. See my previous reviews of their Original Spicy and Chili Lime beef jerky.

Jerk Nation is owned by Adams Gourmet, Inc. based out of Parkland, FL. It's the first to incorporate the "shake & season" concept, where beef jerky comes with a seasoning packet. You tear open the packet, pour the seasoning into the bag, seal it, and shake. The result is a seasoned beef jerky.

The advantage is that you can control how much seasoning to put on, or perhaps enhance it with your own kitchen seasonings.

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Spencer's Beef Jerky - Sweet & Spicy Mango

Next in the series on Spencer's Beef Jerky is this Sweet & Spicy Mango. See my previous reviews of their Sweet & Spicy Orange and Black Cobra Pepper beef jerky.

Spencer's Jerky is a brand of Spencer's Jerky, LLC based in Orlando, FL. The company started out in early 2009 with Spencer Freiman buying a dehydrator and making jerky for himself. Since then he has expanded production and gone national.

This Sweet & Spicy Mango contains mango along with mango juice.

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Jerk My Beef - Peppered

Next in the series on Jerk My Beef is this Peppered Beef Jerky. See my previous review of their Original Beef Jerky.

Jerk My Beef is a brand of JMB Jerky, Inc. based in Austin, TX. It's owned and operated by Shaun P Kerns who's been making jerky for five years. The company has been selling it's jerky locally for the past couple years, but just this year launched a website to begin selling globally.

Based on the company's literature, the story behind Jerk My Beef seems like many others, where Shaun grew tired of all the other jerky brands tasting like shoe leather, and so set out to make his own.

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Desert Star Texas Style Brisket - Original

Desert Star is a brand of Prime Snax, Inc., based out of Salt Lake City, UT.

Prime Snax makes two lines of jerky under the Desert Star brand, this Texas Style Brisket, which is a brisket cut into thin strips, and a plain Beef Jerky much like what you get with the major brands. The Texas Style Brisket I'm reviewing here is the company's newest line, having been produced for about a year now, but is just starting to hit stores nationwide.

Prime Snax also owns other brands including Arizona Jacks, Chipper, and Nature's Snack. They also make jerky for other companies including Perky Jerky.

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House of Jerky - Teriyaki Beef

When it comes to gourmet beef jerky, the House of Jerky brand is one that comes to my mind. I've always enjoyed this brand for years, but haven't purchased much of it, probably due to the fact that you don't find this in the large grocery store chains.

But when I'm out touring around other towns, and happen to see a beef jerky shop, I'll walk in, and 9 times out of 10 its an outlet for House of Jerky. The brand is very well represented in those small touristy towns, and along roadside stands.

The company is a husband and wife venture that got started here in Southern California, and sadly enough, moved to Indiana to set up its national headquarters. Nothing against Indiana, it seems California can't keep a good company within its borders.

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Liberty Jerky - Spicy

Next up in the series on Liberty Jerky is this Spicy beef jerky. See my previous reviews of their Garlic Beef Jerky and Original Beef Jerky.

Based in Lincoln, CA, Liberty Jerky is owned by the husband and wife team of Bill and Mary Ann Browne, who have been making beef jerky for over 20 years. Friends and family members liked their jerky so much, that they finally launched Liberty Jerky in November 2009.

This Spicy Beef Jerky is described as the company's original flavor but with the heat turned up. The packaging doesn't say anything about it being "hot", though their website does.

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Mark's Meat Co. - Spicy Garlic

Next in the series on Mark's Meat Co. is this Spicy Garlic beef jerky. See my previous review of their Lemongrass Teriyaki.

Mark's Meat Co. is a new beef jerky brand having launched this year. It's based out of Carmichael, CA, and is the creation of two friends, Mark and Chris. Mark had been making jerky for about six years, when he had Chris try some of it out. Chris was quite impressed, enough so that he encouraged Mark to launch a business. Now the two are business partners.

This Spicy Garlic beef jerky is described as being a "bold combination of garlic, cayenne and ginger".

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Hog's Beef Jerky - Habba-Q

Hog's Beef Jerky is a brand of Hog's Beef Jerky, Inc. based out of Seville, OH. It's the creation of John Welton, a long time master jerky maker who got started back in the early 1990s.

Like many others, his friends and co-workers tried his jerky and found it to be so good that he felt encouraged to turn his hobby into a business. Today he runs a USDA inspected facility and a shop where locals can come in to buy his products. He can also be found at local hunting and outdoor tradeshows selling his jerky.

This "Habba-Q" is basically a combination of habanero pepper and barbeque. Hog's Beef Jerky offers 12 different flavors altogether, available in beef and turkey.

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Hells Kitchen Beef Jerky Competition

Hells Kitchen, a restaurant and bar in Minneapolis, MN, announced it's first annual beef jerky competition, and is calling for entrants, judges, and fans.

Grand prize is $300.00 plus "national recognition".


Here's the announcement they sent me today...

You may not have noticed it, but bars across the country are in the midst of a jerky craze...not the prepackaged strips you get at gas stations, but jerky made from home recipes featuring curious names such as Kill Me, Spicy Asian and Lethal. Pros as well as amatuers are scouring the internet to find recipes they can improve upon and add their own twists....and bars as well as restaurants are selling out of newly-arrived batches in a matter of hours.

Intensifying the competition, Hell's Kitchen, an award-winning, chef-owned restaurant in Minneapolis, will host the first annual National Jerky Competition on Monday, April 5, 2010, and has initiated a nationwide Call for Entries. Pros as well as amatuers can enter, with a Grand Prize of $300 cash plus a chance for national recognition. Any type of homemade jerky is welcome, from traditional beef strips to northwoods venison as well as outlandish varieties such as chocolate-dipped or peanut butter laced.

Thursday, March 25 is the deadline for entries, with the actual competition scheduled on Monday, April 5 (the same day each year as the Final Four Championship Game). For more information and Entry Form, go to www.HellsKitchenInc.com and click Special Events.

Visit Hells Kitchen (the restaurant and bar) online...
http://hellskitcheninc.com/

You can download the entry form here
http://hellskitcheninc.com/content/JERKY_Entry_Form_Web.pdf

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Samak Smoke House - Turkey Jerky

Next in the series on Samak Smoke House is this All Natural Turkey Jerky. See my previous reviews of their All Natural Beef Jerky, and Spicy Chipotle Beef Jerky.

Samak Smoke House is a smoke house and country store located in Kamas, UT. It's a mom & pop business run by Jen Hisey and David Witham. The couple makes jerky in their own USDA inspected facility, smoking them over cherry wood chips. They also smoke salmon, trout, buffalo, and deer. They make cookies, energy bars, and biscotti too.

Samak Smoke House offers two lines of jerky, this All Natural line, which comes in the black package, and an Original line which comes in a tan package.

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Jerk Nation - Chili Lime

Next in the series on Jerk Nation is this Chili Lime beef jerky. See my previous review of their Original Spicy.

Jerk Nation is a brand of Adams Gourmet, Inc. based in Parkland, FL. It's the first "Shake and Season" concept, where the jerky comes with a seasoning packet. You tear open the packet, pour in the amount of seasoning you want, then shake the bag.

The meat has a slight bit of moisture on the surface that allows the seasoning to stick. The jerky was actually manufactured by Magnolia Provision, who makes the Smoky Mountain brand.

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House of Jerky - Hot Beef

Having reviewed varieties from the House of Jerky brand already, I came to this package of "Hot Beef Jerky", wondering if this would actually be "hot" as the label claims. It seems whenever you see a product claiming to be hot, it's usually never hot, more like mild.

A quick look at the ingredients list confirms that this could definitely be hot, combining a mixture of Tabasco Sauce, habanero pepper, and red chili pepper.

If you've read my other reviews of House of Jerky, you'll know that I've given them all "best" ratings, for the taste-complexities, outstanding natural meat flavors, and ease of eating. With such a record of excellence, I wondered if the "best" streak would continue into this Hot Beef variety.

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Jerk My Beef - Original

Jerk My Beef is a brand of JMB Jerky, Inc. based in Austin, TX. It's owned and operated by Shaun P Kerns who's been making and perfecting jerky for five years. The company has been selling it's jerky locally for the past couple years, but just this year launched a website to begin selling globally.

Based on the company's literature, the story behind Jerk My Beef seems like many others, where Shaun grew tired of all the other jerky brands tasting like shoe leather, and so set out to make his own.

Right now, Jerk My Beef makes two flavors, this Original, and a Peppered.

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