What is Wagyu Kobe Style Beef?

“The dry aged Kobe ribeye I got today was the best I've ever seen from the USA. If I didn't know where it was from, I would have thought it was Japanese!" ...John Villa, Executive Chef, TAO Restaurant

Wagyu bull grazing in its field.

Wagyu, Kobe style beef is the hottest meat in today's marketplace. It is striking because its high degree of marbling adds an extraordinary depth of flavour making Wagyu the most tender, most succulent and best tasting beef one can find.

DeBragga offers three origins of Wagyu beef. All are exceptionally fine tasting; all meet the exact rigid requirements of the Kobe Beef in Japan. Unlike other Wagyu purveyors, DeBragga also dry ages Wagyu and offers a selection of Dry-aged Wagyu Rib Roasts: Dry Aged Wagyu 7 Rib Roast, Dry Aged Wagyu 4 Rib Roast & 3 Rib Chops.

Japanese Wagyu or "Kobe Beef" - originating in the second century primarily as a work animal for the rice paddies, the Wagyu of Japan has come to be known today as the most highly marbled and most expensive beef produced in the world. The marbling is so intense that you could say that this is a piece of fat marbled with beef! In fact, the most prized Wagyu of all, the A5 grade, is judged on 4 different criteria: the marbling intensity, the color of the fat, the color of the muscle tissue itself (the meat), and the shape of the muscle. If any of these criteria does not match the highest standard then that carcass will not receive the coveted A5 score.

And at DeBragga, this is the Japanese Wagyu we offer, the very best, the A5 Wagyu Kobe style beef. Now, many of you know Japanese Wagyu as "Kobe beef". Kobe is actually a prefecture, or state in Japan where Wagyu is produced. In fact there are many places in Japan
raising Wagyu. The key is, regardless of where in Japan the Wagyu/ Kobe is raised, it is the Japanese government inspector that determines whether a given carcass merits the outstanding A5 score.

"I made the Kobe Beef from Japan last night. I have never had it's equal. The family loved it."... Warren A. Hampton, Esq.  (DeBragga.com customer)

BREAKING NEWS: APRIL 21,2010 : All trade from Japan has been suspended after a suspected foot and mouth outbreak was discovered there yesterday. Debragga has temporarily suspended the importing and sale of any beef from Japan until such time as the product has been confirmed safe and exports from Japan resume.

Australian Wagyu/Kobe Beef - Nick and Vicki Sher are considered the preeminent producers of Wagyu in Australia. Crossbreeding Holstein and Wagyu to achieve the high marbling and light muscle color the Japanese prize, has led Sher to earn an exclusive contract for all of Sher’s Wagyu / Kobe cattle to be shipped to Japan!  DeBragga got lucky when the Japanese could not take all the middle meat from their Wagyu: the strips, ribeyes and tenders. The quality of the Sher Wagyu/Kobe is spectacular and the flavor is mild yet unctuously rich. The cattle are all Naturally Raised, free of added hormones and antibiotics and fed a clean diet of grains and grasses. The muscles of their Wagyu/Kobe cattle are smaller than Japanese Wagyu but that is the only discernable difference in our opinion. At a substantially less expensive price, this is world class Wagyu/Kobe at its best. In fact, the Sher Wagyu/Kobe was the first  Australian producer to actually export live breeder animals back to Japan!

American Wagyu/Kobe Beef - Imperial Wagyu Beef is a group of America’s finest Wagyu producers dedicated to offering a distinctive Wagyu/Kobe style beef. They promote a cross breed of Wagyu and Angus which yields a beef with rich marbling and deep muscle color. The result is the intense marbling so desired in Wagyu/ Kobe with a full beef flavor so important to American lovers of great beef. In a word, this is the finest beef in the world for those who want pronounced beef flavor and rich marbling.

Their breeding and calving operations are regionally located throughout the United States. When the calves reach about 12 months they are transferred to Imperial’s feedlots in Iowa and Nebraska where they are fed a special diet for over 400 days. These feedlots are small, low density, family owned operations. The care of the cattle is paramount, because the more comfortable the animals are, the better marbling  they achieve. The producers we visited in the Spring of 2009 are currently involved in a project with Iowa State University to develop improved environmental procedures that, not only benefit the local farmers and their land, but ensure better health for the cattle.  At processing, the carcasses are initially graded by the USDA officials (every carcass scores well above Prime). The Imperial Wagyu folks then grade the carcasses again according to the Japanese standards for marbling content and consistency. The strict grading Imperial does against the toughest quality standards in the world from Japan results in a quality of Wagyu/Kobe beef unequaled by other American producers. You get what you pay for - and so much more!