Fat Yankee Jerky - Garlic

Fat Yankee Jerky is a new brand that launched in May 2016 by Keith Rainville and his wife Brenda. Both hailing from Rhode Island, they moved to Florida about 12 years ago. Keith wanted to start a new business, and decided to get into the meat snack industry after friends told him how awesome his homemade jerky is.

Fat Yankee Jerky uses hand trimmed, top round black angus beef, sliced thick. It's marinated in 6 pound batches for 48 hours, and hand tossed after 24.

This Garlic is described by the company as, "Not even your Mamma will kiss ya! yeh its Garlic but at least you won't get bitten by a VAMP!"


Ingredients

Beef, chili, water, soy sauce, soy beans, salt, garlic, vinegar, garlic powder, wheat, potassium sorbate, sodium bisulfite, caramel color, sodium benzoate.

Review

The first flavor that I pick up is a strong garlic. There's also a light sweet and salt, and a faint spiciness that comes in after. The chewing brings on the natural meat flavors and a light tanginess.

For being advertising as, "Garlic", it certainly holds up. It's significant enough that it probably could keep you safe during a vampire apocalypse. It even has a noticeable garlic aroma when you open the package.

Otherwise, the primary taste profile is that of a natural meat flavor with a strong garlic. It's almost like a pan-fried steak with a generous helping from the garlic powder shaker. There's a light sweet and salt thrown in. The faint spiciness continues as such, and is light enough that I'd still rate this "mild" on my heat scale (level 1 out of 5).

The meat consistency looks excellent. Thick cut strips that feel semi-moist, and slightly drier in the chewing. It chews easily, with a meaty character, and with the texture of a well-done cooked steak. Very little fat is visible, and nothing stringy or unchewable was felt.

Verdict

This Garlic beef jerky from Fat Yankee belts out a strong garlic flavor and aroma that it gets the mouth watering before you get a chance to throw one into your face. The natural meat flavors in this actually taste more like a pan-fried steak, and reminds me of cooking up a New York Strip on a Sunday morning hangover. Garlic lovers will get a savory punch and spice that livens up the senses, while jerky traditionalists will love the meaty, steak-like chewing texture. Overall, this jerky has a simple character, but manages to keep your attention with a great fried-steak flavor and a heap of garlic.

Rating: Best (5/5)