the.com/gamey
the flavor of an animal that earned its muscles instead of inheriting them
means Having the strong, slightly wild flavor or smell characteristic of game meat — or, by extension, anything plucky, racy, or a little off.
from From "game" in the hunting sense — the wild birds and beasts pursued for sport and the pot — which itself traces to Old English "gamen," meaning amusement, joy, or sport. The animals were the prize of the chase, so their distinctive flavor became "gamey." The same root branches into the cheerful sense of "game" as in willing or spirited ("are you game?"), which is why "gamey" can also describe a person who is plucky or a tale that is a touch racy.
- chemistry
- From fat-stored compounds animals build through age and exertion
- diet driven
- Wild forage tastes nothing like grain-fed pen life
- old french root
- Comes from gamé, meaning hunted wild beasts
- acquired taste
- Hated and prized for the exact same reason
high mountain game — elk, deer, and moose hunted in colorado and montana mountains with distinct wild flavor
pheasant — prized game bird in south dakota with stronger taste than chicken, hunting season october-january
venison from wild deer — hunted across north america, tasting distinctly different from farm-raised due to diet of wild plants