Wagyu beef is prized for its succulent texture and flavour, a result of the mono-unsaturated white fat throughout the muscle, which is commonly referred to as marbling. Marbling quality and density is what determines the grading of the beef, on an Australian scale that ranges from 1 to 9 (in Japan it is 1–12). In comparison, Angus beef generally marbles at a score of 2 or 3 on this scale.
Wagyu cattle are fed on special ration rather than grass, to ensure the milky white appearance of the intramuscular fat. The chlorophyll in grass can give beef fat a yellow tinge, and darken the colour of the meat. Given that sunlight also has a pigmenting effect on fat, Wagyu cattle spend most of their time sheltered from the sun. Wagyu cows feed on the by-products of beer brewing and popcorn production, as well as straw. The special diet promotes low levels of subcutaneous (outside) fat and higher intensity of intramuscular fat (marbling). Feeding the animals in such a way as to gain weight gradually – at a rate of about 800–900 grams per day rather than up to two kilos a day for some cattle breeds – increases their intramuscular fat levels. This bonus is twofold: the intramuscular fat is unsaturated, as opposed to the saturated fat found in subcutaneous fat; also, the fat is part of the final weight of the carcass, while subcutaneous fat is removed, so a higher price is paid.
The optimal age for processing an animal is thirty-four months. At this age it has matured sufficiently for the best qualities of the beef – the taste and the texture – to be enjoyed.
How this translates to your plate
Marbled fat starts to melt at 7°C, creating the tenderness that makes eating Wagyu beef such a pleasurable experience. The fat in Wagyu beef is a combination of two alpha lipoic acids (known as ALA): stearic acid and oleic acid. They are different from the cholesterol palmitic acid found in lean beef, and are recommended by the Heart Foundation as being good for heart health.
As the fat is marbled throughout the flesh, when it melts it does so back into the muscle itself. The flavour is flooded through the meat – fat being where any meat’s flavour comes from. Wagyu experts place a piece of refrigerated meat on the back of their hand, to see how long it takes for the fat to start to leave a little melted slick on their skin. This tends to happen within ten seconds.
Marbling alone, however, is not an adequate way to judge the quality of a piece of meat. A farmer could cross an Angus cow with a full-blood Wagyu, slaughter the calf at twelve months and it could still be called Wagyu beef. What Blackmore’s experience has shown is that maturing the animal slowly to more than thirty months develops the flavour in the beef. ‘There’s a real Japanese flavour,’ says Blackmore. ‘I’ve got them to Japanese standards.’
David Blackmore is certainly leading the way in the science of Australian Wagyu breeding, and even struggling to keep up with the demand.