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Wagyu - anyone else disappointed

iainpb

By iainpb
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iainpb

iainpb

Posted
Posted

I was recently in Amsterdam and a tasting menu offered an upgrade to include wagyu beef, as I've never tasted it before i'd thought i'd take the opportunity. This is the cow that is apparently predisposed to being fatty and marbley, listens to classical music, is massaged and drinks beer. Although, it was a great piece of meat, it just wasn't anything super special as you'd expect from the hype (and the price tag).

Has anyone else been disappointed?

Baselerd

Baselerd

Posted
Posted

Wagyu is great, but like all super-high end stuff the price does not scale linearly at the top end. If I spend top dollar on fancy ingredients / meals, I usually opt for nice sashimi or foie gras.

rotuts

rotuts

Posted
Posted

well, Ive never have W beef.

first off: beware of 'labeling' second did it look any different on your plate? was it 'aged' which is another angle entirely. cooked to your liking? ....

im not really being helpful, but I sure do bet that 'properly aged' 'properly cooked' W-true style beef is different.

your cow probably was an opera fan, not so much a Mozart fan.

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted (edited)

I'm no fan of Kobe or Wagyu. Tastes like the fatty stuff I cut off of steak. Texture isn't like beef either.

Nope. I don't like it one bit.

Edited by gfweb (log)
Paul Bacino

Paul Bacino

Posted
Posted (edited)

I personally havent had beef graded higher than a 8 BMS Prime or American Wagyu. I use a local ( Majinola Beef ) raised producer, the cattle diet is supplemented with the spent grain and usually scores 7-8. I also have a patient the raises a herd-- I source beef from also ( Morgan Ranch ).

If your talking higher graded beef ( American scaled or Japanese ) 8-12. I'm probably out of this discussion. That stuff is very marbled stuff and cost is way out of what I would pay myself too.

That kind of stuff might go well cook on a hot salt block..in my opinion. That fat needs to liquidate.

Like I always say if you cook this type of product you need to cook it to temps around 145 F finished a good medium. Im not sure I would ever ever make anything raw from it.

All that been said!! I love this stuff. What I see has texture and flavor.. ages real well too.

Edited by Paul Bacino (log)

Its good to have Morels

iainpb

iainpb

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

It was a reputable place so i'm sure i got the real thing, though this rating scale for beef is new on me - will have to look that up. It was soft, very soft though i don't recall a huge amount of marbling and it was practically raw. I think i've had beef at least as good if not better and i probably wouldn't pay that kind of premium again for it. But, you have to try these things!

I'm intrigued on the classical music also, I hope someone has done the appropriate research and there's not just a lot of cows trying to put their hooves in their ears at yet more Beethoven.

furzzy

furzzy

Posted
Posted

Wagyu is great, but like all super-high end stuff the price does not scale linearly at the top end.

Important to always keep in mind!

Here is a scale best represented.. by marbling!!

http://www.nikuya.ca/products/our_view_marbling.htm

Very interesting information. I've looked over their entire site; unfortunately, they don't ship to consumers. I've a Wagu bone-in Rib-eye from D'Artagnan in the fridge. Would love to order another of those & obtain one for Nikuya and compare. I may call their sales line & see where I might obtain one. If I am able to do so, I'll report back.

Here's the one I have - the marbling wasn't quite what I expected, and certainly doesn't match the high end from that scale. First one I've ordered from D'Artagnan, so will have to check out the flavor, etc. Thus far, the appearance definitely doesn't beat the Prime rib-eyes that we buy from Fox & Obel in Chicago - not even sure it beats the Choice.

image.jpg

image.jpg

Shalmanese

Shalmanese

Posted
Posted

I've had some pretty great Wagyu and some pretty lousy Wagyu, the label doesn't mean very much. The best Wagyu is not only well marbled, but has a rich, beefy flavor that coats your entire mouth with juicy beef fat. The lousy Wagyu has the same degree of marbling but when you chew it, the meat tastes dry and the fat tastes greasy instead of rich. I've never found that much rhyme or reason to it but it's obvious when you taste good Wagyu why it's prized.

PS: I am a guy.

Paul Bacino

Paul Bacino

Posted
Posted

Here is a rough example of Grade 12 Miyazaki or Matsuzaka beef!!

Wagyu.jpg

Like I say..look for this stuff...for the true meaning. A " quest for the holy grail"

Its good to have Morels

OliverB

OliverB

Posted
Posted

I've had it before and also never was impressed enough to justify the price. Prime from CostCo is easy as good and a lot cheaper. Got some frame worthy cuts there many times.

I bet a big portion of the price is based on the name, as with so many things. I doubt the fact they listen to music matters much, though the beer might help fatten them up (and make them happier)

I doubt I'd ever buy it, unless I came across a recipe that really makes this shine all by itself - and I'd think I'd have the skills to pull it off.

"And don't forget music - music in the kitchen is an essential ingredient!"

- Thomas Keller

Diablo Kitchen, my food blog

gfweb

gfweb

Posted
Posted

I've had Kobe beef at a top restaurant(lots of sake...I don't remember the name) in Japan. I assume it was the good stuff. To me, it was unpleasantly fatty and lacked a firm beefy bite. I was surprised.

Paul Bacino

Paul Bacino

Posted
Posted

Please read this..http://blog.mckendricks.com/2010/04/wagyu-in-search-of-the-best-steak/He sourced this..impressive

Paul Bacino - While you said you've never actually had the Grade 12 Miyazaki, have you any idea where to source it? I read that entire article & followed some of the links, but nothing took me to any actual source for it.

I tried to go back in my notes..but I actually got the owner of that steak house to get me that info.. I'll see..if I can reconnect with him...

Paul

Its good to have Morels

Paul Bacino

Paul Bacino

Posted
Posted (edited)

I'm really wondering..if different cuts of wagyu..wouldn't be better..ie

Tri-tip, eye of round,short rib, top sirloin, chuck eye.

I bet most served..is strip,ribeye or filet. I agree with most. For me a balance is needed.. And

I really like the grades discussed. Btw...I picked up some really nice Prime Top Sirloin@ Costco.

Very nice.

I just think..generically call Wagyu. We have to see all the levels available. Consider the grade.

Edited by Paul Bacino (log)

Its good to have Morels

nickrey

nickrey

Posted
Posted

The cooking process is just as important as the meat. Wagyu is typically sliced thinly so the monounsaturated fat can render properly. If you cook a thicker piece, aim for medium. If you try to cook thick steak rare the fat will not melt and will be rather chewy and unpleasant.

Nick Reynolds, aka "nickrey"

"The Internet is full of false information." Plato
My eG Foodblog

Bill Klapp

Bill Klapp

Posted
Posted

I have had great and mediocre, but in both cases, it could never really justify the price versus other luxury foodstuffs, and while you might say that I am the product of historical bias, the stuff is not beef to me, in taste or in texture, as some have suggested above. Given the apparent worldwide tendency away from red meat (at least eaten in the huge quantities that a majority of Americans once did), I am no longer sure what the point is. Give me carne cruda (hand-chopped raw veal) covered with white truffles, world-class smoked salmon, oysters, clams, scampi or possibly even caviar...with change back, vis a vis waygu. If I want to eat fat instead of protein, let it be the perfumed pork fat known as lardo, raw pancetta or that beautiful half-inch ribbon of pure white fat encasing a great prosciutto. And as for beef, a few times a year I can treat myself to a nice prime, aged steak or roast from Flannery's, Lobel's or one of the other high-end purveyors...

Bill Klapp

bklapp@egullet.com

dcarch

dcarch

Posted
Posted (edited)

If some one wants to treat me to a Kobe dinner, I would really enjoy it.

Meanwhile I have been overloading (in NYC) on:

Porter House $3.99 a lb.

Rib eye steak $5.99 a lb.

T-bone $4.99 a lb.

dcarch

Edited by dcarch (log)
scamhi

scamhi

Posted
Posted

If some one wants to treat me to a Kobe dinner, I would really enjoy it.

Meanwhile I have been overloading (in NYC) on:

Porter House $3.99 a lb.

Rib eye steak $5.99 a lb.

T-bone $4.99 a lb.

dcarch

Where are you sourcing good meat for those prices?

PM is OK if you rather not post.

dcarch

dcarch

Posted
Posted

If some one wants to treat me to a Kobe dinner, I would really enjoy it.

Meanwhile I have been overloading (in NYC) on:

Porter House $3.99 a lb.

Rib eye steak $5.99 a lb.

T-bone $4.99 a lb.

dcarch

Where are you sourcing good meat for those prices?

PM is OK if you rather not post.

Shoprite supermarket, (NY area) for their store card members.

Trimmed lamb loin chops, $5.99 a lb.

dcarch

huiray

huiray

Posted
Posted

I tend to think that there is a cultural clash between what "beef" means. Japanese Wagyu does imply a certain appreciation for the texture, mouth-feel, etc etc of a kind of food ingredient, different from the North American cultural expectations of meat-being-chewed-in-the-mouth expectations. I somewhat think that the twain shall never truly meet.

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