ORIGINAL: Steve863

Eventhough most hunters are men, I think there are more "old wives tales" in hunting than in most other things! I surely would think that it's best to make the quickest, cleanest kill possible, but I don't think anyone has ever proven for certain on how the meat of a deer killed instantly to one who may have lived for a while before it expired really differs. I don't think it could really be done, mostly because NO two people cook it up the same way(even the same person, on different days) and as with humans I am sure the muscle mass of any two deer will differ considerably which in turn will have an effect on taste and texture.

I also have never bought into the theories that aging the meat, draining it in milk or ice, or any other special procedure will make it any better than just simply cutting it up and freezing it promptly after it was butchered in a clean environment. Again for the same reasons I mentioned in my first paragraph, I don't think anyone can prove that any special handling of the meat will improve it.