Blackberry-flavored bourbon gives lean venison a fruity edge alongside brown sugar, soy and Worcestershire sauce. Beverly Hills Outdoors demonstrates this harvest-season jerky and credits Jerkyholic’s bourbon recipe as the starting point. BULK keeps the venison and measured source flavor combination.

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Video by Beverly Hills Outdoors · Watch on YouTube

Ingredients

Starting batch: 2 lb raw lean venison; finished yield varies.

• 2 lb lean venison, trimmed and sliced about 1/8 inch thick
• 1/2 cup blackberry-flavored bourbon
• 1/4 cup loosely measured brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 4 tsp liquid smoke
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp molasses

Equipment: sharp knife, cutting board, kitchen scale, covered food-safe container, oven, oven-safe racks, thin-tip food thermometer, clean tongs, and an adjustable-temperature dehydrator.

Allergens: Soy sauce commonly contains soy and wheat. Worcestershire often contains fish and may contain wheat. Bourbon is an alcohol ingredient; check all labels.

How to make this jerky

Step 1: Trim and firm the venison

Start with cold, lean venison. Trim away exterior fat and silver skin, then briefly firm the roast in the freezer if it is difficult to slice. Keep raw venison refrigerated at 40°F or below while preparing the other ingredients.

Step 2: Measure the blackberry bourbon

Measure 1/2 cup blackberry-flavored bourbon into a clean bowl. Keep the venison chilled while preparing the remaining sauce ingredients. The source starts with presliced venison; if cutting your own, use even strips about 1/8 inch thick across the grain.

Step 3: Make the marinade

Stir blackberry-flavored bourbon, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, liquid smoke molasses and black pepper in a clean bowl until the sugar disperses. Add the cold venison only after the marinade is evenly mixed.

Step 4: Coat and refrigerate

Turn the venison strips through the marinade until both sides of every piece are coated. Cover in a food-safe container and refrigerate overnight at 40°F or below, turning occasionally. Separate any slices stuck together so the coating reaches every surface.

Step 5: Heat to 160°F, then dry

Before drying, place the strips and marinade in a saucepan, adding enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and check with a thin-tip thermometer that the thickest strips reach 160°F internally. Work in batches if necessary. Drain with clean utensils and discard the used liquid. Arrange heated strips in a single layer on clean dehydrator racks, leaving air spaces between them. Dry at 145–155°F and check periodically. The dryer air temperature does not verify the temperature inside the meat.

Step 6: Check, cool and refrigerate

Cool a test strip before bending it. Look for a dry center and small cracks rather than a soft, wet middle; return moist pieces to the dryer. Cool the entire batch completely on clean racks before packing. Refrigerate finished jerky and freeze extra portions. A texture test does not establish a safe room-temperature shelf life.

Why this flavor works

Blackberry-flavored bourbon contributes fruit aroma without a separate jam or berry puree. Brown sugar softens the savory sauces, while liquid smoke gives a clear smoked note. This differs from maple-bourbon formulas in both sweetener and fruit flavor.

Serving and storage

Serve a small refrigerated portion with a simple lunch or fresh fruit, keeping the remainder chilled.

Keep the finished jerky refrigerated. Pack only fully cooled strips, keep hands and containers clean, and freeze portions you will not eat promptly. Moisture, thickness, and handling affect keeping quality; this home method does not establish commercial shelf stability.

A ready-to-eat option between batches

For a convenient jerky snack when you are not making a batch, explore BULK Texas Style Original Beef Jerky. Its seasoning and production process differ from this homemade adaptation.

Browse every published BULK jerky recipe.

Sources and further reading

• Blackberry Bourbon Venison Jerky — Beverly Hills Outdoors
• USDA: how to make meat or poultry jerky at home
• National Center for Home Food Preservation: jerky

Original BULK adaptation based on the credited source recipe and video. Source footage and creator credit belong to Beverly Hills Outdoors. Photographs are timestamped source-video stills. Use the full written method for details.

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