Ruffed Grouse smell
 

So I was out hunting deer this morning and I had a chance at a ruffed grouse, so I took it. It was a clean head shot with the 270, no meat or gut damage at all. Since I was in the middle of a deer hunt, I decided just to put the bird in my bag and dress it when I got home. Got home, stepped on the wings, gave the feet a pull, and right away it was apparent that this bird smelled more strongly than the other grouse I've taken. I cut the legs off and breasted it, and noticed that even the meat itself has this odour, which I associate with punctured grouse guts. Vaguely "piney" but also a bit foul. Even after rinsing. I've never had a grouse that smelled so strongly. The meat has always been basically odourless when I butchered it. Is this just a function of what they're eating this time of year, or where this one lived? Or did the bird spoil between when I killed it and when I got home (a period of 4 or 5 hours)? I figured, since there are people who actually hang their birds for a few days with the guts in, that it would be ok to wait a bit before gutting. Was I wrong?

Are you sure it was a ruffed?

A lot of people think the female spruce is a ruffed. What colour is the meat?

my take
 

Their diet has changed so spruce needles are part of the menu.They should be cleaned while warm and if hunting place in a plastic bag.The meat will be fine ,I leave them in the fridge in a bowl of cold H20 with a little salt + vinegar as it gets rid of the spruce flavor .

Yeah that spruce stench is pretty foul. Like Pioneer said just brine the meat for 24 hours and it'll take care of the smell/taste

That's what I figured. I've never shot one this late in the season before. Does anyone have specific proportions for the salt/water/vinegar mixture?

Yeah I thought of that possibility, but it definitely had the barring on the tail feathers that a ruffed has, and the feathers sticking up on top of the head. I got one spruce grouse last year. This meat is definitely lighter-coloured than that one was.

I’ve also heard soaking them in milk or buttermilk overnight helps as well.