What is Japanese A5 Wagyu beef?
For foodies and steak aficionados alike, there is nothing better than enjoying a delicious Japanese A5 Wagyu steak. From its picturesque marbling to its rich, sweet, and buttery flavor, this beef is unrivaled – the best money can buy.
So, what makes Japanese A5 Wagyu that extraordinary? It all comes down to the legendary process and tradition of cattle raising in Japan, which has been passed down throughout the generations. For a Wagyu Certification in Japan, the cattle must be fed a diet that mainly consists of grain, and bred on fattening farms where they each get a name (Moolan, anyone?) instead of a number.
Wagyu (pronounced “Wag-you”) translates to “Japanese cow” (Wa meaning Japanese and Gyu meaning cow), but this does not mean just any Japanese cow gets to be labelled Wagyu. Instead, it is a specific breed of Japanese cattle with unique genetic attributes that produces extensive marbling of fat on the inside of the muscle tissue. This fat has a lower melting point than the human body temperature. The result? Unparalleled tenderness, incomparable juiciness, and exceptional flavor.
OUR Wagyu
Boat & Barn’s Japanese A5 Wagyu is imported from multiple prefectures all across Japan, including Iwate, Gunma, Hyogo, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima. We work with credible and devoted farmers to bring the best meat from Japan’s Kuroge Wagyu cattle, the only Wagyu breed that produces Japanese A5 Wagyu, to America. The cattle are raised “with respect and affection”, with their diet and exercise carefully managed in a very low-stress environment. The low-stress levels of the healthy cattle are necessary to achieve A5 quality, which is the rarest of all steaks.
Grading
To achieve an “A5 Wagyu” label, the highest grade of Wagyu, the meat must be raised in Japan and earn the top score on the Japanese rating system, approved by the Japanese Meat Grading Association.
The Japanese Beef Marbling Score (BMS) is the most common tool used to measure quality of the meat. It assesses the percentage of fat within the muscle (the marbling) on a scale of 1-12, with a score of 12 being the highest fat ratio and thus best quality. The firmness and texture as well as color and brightness are also evaluated.
In the United States, beef is graded on the USDA grading scale. To give you an idea of how outstanding our A5 Wagyu is, USDA Prime beef, which is the highest quality in the U.S., would notch a BMS score of about 4 or 5 on the Japanese scale.