REVIEW: The Jerky Connection – Teriyaki Habanero Beef Jerky

I am not too fond of jerky reviews because I am not allowed to eat any jerky because of my stomach surgery. So watching these videos and seeing the jerky makes me so so sad. It is torture I tell ya! Plus now I am on a low carb diet, and beef jerky would be something I could normally eat on such a diet. Double sadness for me. Beyond all my personal woes, I am happy to present some very happenin’ jerky. I love the names of The Jerky Connection products. We have 5 of their products to review, and while some like this Teriyaki Habanero beef jerky have normal names, you got to get a load of their other products on their website. Such hits as Louisiana Road Kill, Santa’s Flaming Sleigh Ride, Satan’s Flaming Hemorrhoids, and 7 Gates of Hell to name a few of my favorites. The 4 other beef jerky flavors in the order that we will be doing them in over the next 4 weeks is Insanity, Hillbilly Hangover, World Destruction and lastly we finish off with The Reaper.

The Jerky Connection has captured all the major spicy product awards in the industry for many of their flavors. On BestBeefJerky.org, 7 of their flavors received Best honors with 5 stars, and another 5 more flavors had 4 1/2 stars. They swept the category at this year’s 2013 Golden Chiles with 1st, 2nd and 3rd place honors, and received a 1st and 2nd at the 2012 Hot Pepper Awards, and got 2nd and 3rd at the 2013 Scovie Awards. Not too shabby, eh? Now with their relocation to Texas, they are very happy to be able to be working in the beef capital of the world. I am sure our reviewers might notice a beef quality difference than what they buy in the stores. For these beefy reviews we have for our panel of spicy experts, Steve “The Machine” Smallwood, Heynetboy, and Dale Gilbert. Before we get to their reviews, let me educate you all on this fine dehydrated beef business.

About the Jerky Connection

The Jerky Connection got it’s start quite accidentally and out of necessity.
When owner Tom Greineder lost his job in manufacturing, He and his wife
Theresa bought a small dehydrator to save money on beef jerky, a family
favorite. Soon enough Tom began sharing his jerky with co-workers in his
next job, and the journey began. This sharing led to tons of requests, and
eventually he had to start charging for his jerky just due to the sheer volume
of requests. The rest is proverbial jerky history. What started as an
experiment has grown into a thriving family owned and operated business.

Originally hailing from Wrightsville Pennsylvania, The Jerky Connection
starting making waves in the state with their spicy beef jerky. A local legend
hailing from York County gave rise to one of the company’s signature jerky
lines The Seven Gates of Hell. Legend has it that the 7 gates of hell are
located on old Toad Road in a burned down Asylum. Tom and his family
thought that a line of spicy jerky for each gate could be fun. Tom began
adding a hot pepper for each gate and created a line that has taken the
Chile Head world by storm by the careful balance of heat to flavor. This
created a real stir in the market, and The Jerky Connection is considered
the best Spicy Beef Jerky in the market by many critics. The milder jerkies
have also won critical acclaim for their flavor and consistency.

July of 2013 marks a new dawn in the evolution of the company as The
family decided to move the business from their Pennsylvania roots to the
state of Texas to be in the middle of some of the nation’s best beef. With
this move comes plans to expand the business over the next few years and
build a USDA certified production facility. Given the throngs of loyal
customers and beef jerky lovers, This plan promises to become a reality
sooner than later.

Quality is Everything

Tom and Theresa decided early on that Quality is the number one priority
when it comes to beef jerky. Everything from the quality of the beef and
ingredients to the painstaking attention to detail in the trimming of the beef
plays a role in the creation of a beef jerky that is consistently touted as some
of the best available. If anyone doubts the dedication they just have to look
to the fact that the family uprooted themselves and moved to a completely
different state to use the best beef possible. Also, The spicy beef jerky is
made with peppers grown by only the best growers available.

Innovation and Creativity

Most Beef jerky companies are content with the tried and true varieties and
not much else. The Jerky Connection is never content. Tom is constantly in
his “Mad Scientist” workshop testing theories and creating new and unique
recipes that keep the fan base and jerky loyalists clamoring for more. When
he finally does settle on a final culinary concoction, the jerky is not just
labeled with a hum-drum boring name and label. Each jerky is named
creatively and packaged with a artfully designed label. While some jerky is
descriptively labeled…most new labels bear a more creative name. Good
examples of this are the top selling Lizard Wizard, The Cajun inspired
Louisiana Road Kill, and even the hilarious Satan’s Flaming Hemorrhoids.

The Machine

Heynetboy

Dale Gilbert

The Jerky Connection
501 W Main st
Honey Grove TX 75446
www.TheJerkyConnection.com
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