Gold-medal Iberian red stag in the rut

The Iberian red stag is smaller than the red deer of central and eastern Europe, and its antlers are judged by different standards: here a great trophy is a matter of structure, pearling and age, not kilos of beam. A gold-medal program is built around a single fact: mature stags reveal themselves during the rut, and almost only then.

Why the rut governs everything

In the rut an old stag leaves his home ground, roars, fights and shows himself at hours when for the rest of the year he would not step out. That is the window. It begins in mid-September and runs through October, with a peak that shifts each year according to the weather and the estate's altitude.

How it is hunted

On the stalk, walking in on the roar before first light or in the last hour. It is hunting by ear as much as by eye, and probably the most striking thing you will ever hear in European hunting.

The band, before the shot

Exactly as in the mountains: the guide estimates the CIC band in the field and tells you before you shoot. No surprises on the invoice and no argument once there is no going back.

Booking

The rut is a few weeks long and the estates holding stags of this class are committed well in advance. Along with the montería, it is the product with the least date flexibility in the catalogue.