The problem with a great 4th of July cookout is not the cooking — it's the supply run. Grocery meat counters get picked over the week of the holiday, the good cuts sell out by the 2nd, and what's left is whatever survived the rush. Ordering from a mail-order meat catalog sidesteps all of that: you choose exactly the …

The catalog retail calendar has two hard clearance windows: the week around the 4th of July and the week after Christmas. Both exist for the same reason — inventory that did not sell in its season has to move before the next season's stock arrives. For summer merchandise, Independence Day weekend is the deadline. …