Day 45 on brisket

[Andres]

So I am 45 days in and my fat cap on my brisket is noticeably hard. I should back up and say this is my first dry age experiment. Looking back i probably should have waited before starting the bone in rib eye also… Anyway I started this 45 days ago and it has slowly been aging i noticed that the seal became very loose week 1 and I chose to ignore it and not reseal the bag or use a new one. Today I noticed a stronger smell from my fridge. The smell is not nutty or musty but a bit foul. I noticed on the underside of the bag which is resting on a rack their is a soft portion of the meat. This seems very different than the rest since it is relatively hard. Did I ruin my brisket? Is it spoiled? What do I do???

[Ron Pratt]

Well, sir, there are the obvious questions which come to mind…is your refrigerator a modern frost free unit and has it been operating in the proper temperature range? The smell you describe really makes me wonder.
Ron

[Andres]

Yes the fridge is in fact a new Samsung that isn’t more than three years old. Completely frost free and operating within the recommended temperatures.

[Ron Pratt]

OK – then I have to wonder about your bagging method. Was that brisket still in a cry-o-vac bag or out of a butcher shop display?
Reason I ask is normally aging a beef sub-primal means it is free of bacteria when still in cry-o-vac from the source.

Is that new refrigerator used for anything else?
Ron

[Andres]

Yes we are only using the bottom shelf for dry aging other than that all our other groceries are stored in it. When I bought it the brisket was in fact in a cryovac bag and it was washed thoroughly before transferring. Does this help at all?

[Ron Pratt]

Well, Sir – I guess you didn’t follow the very first answer in the Q & A here. My guess is your handling introduced some bacteria.

HOW CAN I ENSURE THE BEST POSSIBLE SEAL AND BOND BETWEEN THE BEEF AND THE UMAI DRY® MATERIAL?

It is very important that the entire surface of your strip loin, rib eye, or top butt/sirloin be coated with the thick, sticky proteins, just like when it is first removed from the vacuum packing in which your beef supplier received it. Do not rinse, wash or dry the surface of the beef. If your beef is wiped dry, you will have less successful sealing and bonding of UMAi Dry® material. Furthermore, you may introduce contaminants or bacteria with such a “cleaning” process. When possible, purchase your strip loin or rib eye in the vacuum packaging.

[Andres]

Oh I only cleaned the outside of the cryovac bag before opening it I never rinsed the actual meat

[Ron Pratt]

Well then if it was my brisket I would go ahead and stop the aging. Play careful attention to the smell and proceed to trim off that soft side. Let me know the outcome.
Ron

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