Bakke Brothers Brand Jerky - Teriyaki

Bakke Brothers Brand is owned by Whiskey Hill Smokehouse, LLC based out of Hubbard, OR. Whiskey Hill also owns The Jerky Hut, as well as its own house brand, Whiskey Hill Smokehouse.

Bakke Brothers was started by Phil Bakke, one of Whiskey Hill's founders. The brand differs from The Jerky Hut in that it's free of preservatives such as sodium nitrite, sodium erythorbate, et al, and it's also gluten-free.

This Teriyaki Beef Jerky is marketed as, "Gluten Free", "No MSG", and "No Nitrates", and other than that, is simple marked, "Teriyaki".

Ingredients

Beef, water, brown sugar, powdered molasses, sea salt, dried soy sauce, honey, celery powder, natural smoke flavoring, garlic, onion, black pepper, yeast extract

Review

The first flavors I pick up is a lightly smoked, teriyaki flavor, with a shade of onion. The chewing brings on a moderate sweet, with a bit more onion, and traces of garlic. The teriyaki picks up a bit.

For being labeled as, "Teriyaki", it does offer a teriyaki flavor, though not fully in the classic, Japanese style. It has a sweetness, but not the thick sweet one might envision when they think of a teriyaki steak. It doesn't quite have the pronounced ferment flavor, but it does have shades of that character. I don't pick up any of spicy, pungent, contrasting seasoning.

Otherwise, the primary taste profile is a teriyaki sauce comparable to a Kikkoman's or Yoshida, but one where the sweet and fermant qualities are toned down, and seasoned most notably with onion.

These are thick sliced strips of beef that appear to be quite lean. They bite off easily enough, with maybe a touch of chewiness and a little bit of gummy texture. They don't quite chew down to a steak-like feel, they tend to remain gummy and a little crumbly. There's a light oily film that remains on the fingers.

Verdict

This Teriyaki beef jerky from Bakke Brothers Brand delivers a simple teriyaki-style taste that seems perfectly suited for meat snackers that want that expected flavor without anything over-the-top, fruity, peppery, or unusual. What makes it different is that it's delivered on thick slices of pure beef that pack on proteins and gives you a substantial meaty, beefy feel in your hands. While my expectations for teriyaki tends to wander into the more Japanese traditional, this interpretation is clearly marked for the American palate, keeping it simple, but giving you a lot of meat to chew on.

Rating: Average (3/5)

Where to buy:

• http://www.bakkebrothers.com