Venison Jerky — Peppered

The classic, and the one that outsells the rest. Black pepper on venison is the oldest pairing in wild game, and it's still the right one.

The flat one

Same meat as our sticks, in a flat strip rather than a round casing. Both are chopped and formed — the difference is shape and bite. The flat has more surface area for the smoke and the pepper to work on, and it eats slower than a stick does. If you want something to work on rather than something to finish in four bites, this is it.

Why pepper works on venison

Venison is leaner than beef, which means less fat to carry flavor and less to blunt a spice. Black pepper lands cleanly on it — sharp at the front, then the meat underneath. On a fattier meat the same pepper gets muted. Here it's the whole point.

Where the venison comes from

Made with grass-fed, pasture-raised venison from Pāmu Farms of New Zealand — one of the most respected farming operations in the world. Pāmu has been farming New Zealand land since 1886 and runs over 100 farms under formal animal welfare and environmental stewardship commitments, protecting more than 10,000 hectares for biodiversity alongside its livestock operations.

New Zealand is the world's benchmark for farmed venison, and grass-fed shows up directly in the flavor: cleaner and less mineral-heavy than deer finished on grain.

Who it's for

Anyone who finds sweet jerky cloying. Nothing sweet here at all.

People who want the flat, not a snack stick. More surface, more smoke, longer eat.

Venison regulars. This is the benchmark version — the one to judge the rest against.

Why it's blended

Like every wild game meat we carry, this is blended with other meats. There's a regulatory reason as well as a practical one — venison isn't covered by mandatory USDA inspection the way beef and pork are, so blending is what brings the whole product under the federal stamp. It also fixes a real problem: deer is extremely lean, and straight venison dries out hard.

How it's made

Hardwood smoked in small batches at Zick's Specialty Meats in Michigan, a family smokehouse running the same recipes for over forty years. No MSG. No fillers. USDA inspected every production day. See exactly what's in it →

See the full venison range, including sticks in mild, teriyaki and fire.