Why Wagyu Matters The Wagyu breed has the unique genetic ability to store fat in the muscle as marbling. Wagyu is the highest marbling breed in the world. A high level of marbling is one of the key components of assuring a rich tender and eating experience. The Wagyu breed also has a unique fat composition. Compared to other breeds, Wagyu has twice the level of unsaturated and half the level of saturated fat. Wagyu fat is also high in Omega 3 fatty acid, Omega 6 fatty acid, and linoleic acid. In addition to being rich and buttery, Beef from the Wagyu Breed is also remarkably tender. Inferior cuts that are commonly though of as too tough and flavorless for grilling, are tender and delicious when from Wagyu Beef.
Brand Definition All Mishima Reserve cattle are at least 50% Wagyu or higher All cattle descend from 100% Kuroge Wagyu (Black Wagyu) bulls - leads to extraordinary taste and tenderness Grown slowly and fed well No growth promoting hormones of any kind Strict antibiotic residue free program Cuts where marbling level is a primary attribute are Strictly sorted by marbling into our three grade system
Wagyu Bloodlines / Calf Production Mishima Reserve Wagyu Beef cattle are bred and born in the USA across a small network of family ranches primarily in the Northwest and Rocky Mountain states Mishima Resever s network of family ranches cross the highest quality Full-blood Kuroge Wagyu (Black Wagyu) bulls with high performance predominantly Angus cows. This unique cross gives Mishima Reserve the unique ability to deliver higher volumes, relatively cost effectively, without compromising on our primary focus of delivering the highest quality beef produced in the USA. Within the Wagyu Breed there are several strains and subbreeds. Each strain/sub breed has its own relative strong points. Mishima Reserve Wagyu Beef focuses on the use of the Tajima strain of Wagyu it s full-blood bull herd. Tajima Wagyu us the strain of Wagyu associated with every top brand of Japanese Wagyu beef including Matsuzaka, Omi, and Kobe Beef.
Grown Slowly and Humanely/ Feeding Program Mishima Reserve Wagyu Beef cattle start their lives at one of our network of family ranches. These hybrid calves are raised by their mothers, consuming a combination and mothers milk, and as they mature with each passing month, more and more quality grasses. As a newborn calf our calves weigh about 40 lbs. By they time they are 8 months old they have developed enough to no longer need mothers milk, they weight 400+ pounds, and are more and more independent. At 8 to 10 months of age and 450 pounds Mishima Reserve Wagyu Beef calves are weaned on the ranch for 45 to 60 days. Weaning calves this way minimizes stress and sickness in the animal. After weaning the calves are sent to a growing location where they can grow to 650+ pounds in an environment that minimizes stress and sickness. When they cattle reach 650 lbs they are ready to move our finishing location (primarily in Northeastern Colorado). At the central finshing location, our cattle are raised slowly at their natural pace for a minimum period of 350 days and an average of 500 days. (typical US Beef cattle are pushed to grow much faster and finish in 120 days).
Raised Naturally The primary goal of our production and feeding practices is to maximize the truly unique genetic potential of out superior Wagyu bloodlines to produce the most tender and flavorful superior beef in the USA. To achieve the highest level of quality we need our cattle to mature slowly. Therefore it is counter productive for us to use hormones or growth promotants to speed up this process. No added hormones of any kind are used in the Mishima Reserve production system. We do not push our cattle to gain a maximum amount of weight per day, therefore the use of antibiotics in the feed to maximize consumption and digestion is not necessary. Because our cattle have more space and are not as physiologically pushed to gain a maximum amount of weight they are naturally healthy and rarely get sick. On that occasion that we do have a sick animal we isolate that animal from the rest of the heard until they are healthy. In this process antibiotics are used sparingly to improve overall herd health. In the rare case that an animal is treated with antibiotics, that animal is identified and not harvested for a minimum of 100 days to ensure that any trace of that antibiotic is completely out of their system.
Where Are The Cattle/Beef? Mishima Reserve partner ranches include: The Galt Ranch - White Sulphur Springs, MT The Dow Ranch - Post, OR Prescott Ranches - Ramah, CO Mogus Land & Cattle, Dillon, MT The majority of our calves from partner ranches are consolidated into a finishing lot in Northeastern Colorado, where they reside for over a year. Finished cattle are transported 6 miles from the finishing lot to a state-of-the-art harvest and boxing facility The final product is distributed from our warehouse outside of Denver, CO
Our Quality Goal In terms of marbling as a percent of the total surface area of the steak, USDA Prime is visually roughly 10% marbling and A5 is roughly 70% marbling. It is our goal to produce a spectrum of quality and richness that bridges the huge gap between Prime and Japanese A5 Wagyu. We want to be closer to Prime than A5 in price and closer to A5 than Prime in quality. In rough terms we feel our grading stacks up as follows in terms of average visual percentage of marbling versus lean in the longissimus muscle USDA Prime 10% Mishima Reserve 4 Star 10% Mishima Reserve 5 Star 20% Mishima Reserve Ultra 40% Japanese Wagyu A5 70% Typical Japanese A5 Grade Steak Typical USDA Prime Grade Steak
Grading and Specifications Marbling is a key attribute of many cuts. Particularly the higher value Middle Meats. To improve the consistency of these cuts we grade our carcasses and sort the high value cuts by grade into our in house grading system. Our house grading system is a 3 tier system that takes up where the USDA system leaves off. Our grades are called 4 star, 5 star, and Ultra. Cuts where marbling is not as important or as predictable are not sorted by grade and are all packed under our 5 Star Grade.
Spec List- Fresh Program ULTRA 5 Star 4 Star BMS 8+ BMS 6-7 BMS 4-5 ULTRA 5 Star 4 Star BMS 8+ BMS 6-7 BMS 4-5 STEAK ITEMS DESCRIPTION SPECIAL ORDER CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK AVG WT WAGYU TENDERLOIN 26015 26010 26005 189A, WING FAT OFF 2 14 WAGYU TENDERLOIN PEELED * 26009 26008 26007 190, SIDE MUSCLE OFF, PEELED 2 11 WAGYU STRIPLOIN 26030 26025 26020 180, 0x1 1/4" TRIM 2 28 WAGYU STRIPLOIN HALF CUT * 26390 26385 26380 180, 0x1 1/4" TRIM, HALF CUT 4 28 WAGYU STRIPLOIN BONE IN * 27342 27341 27340 175, 2x3 1/4" TRIM 2 31 WAGYU SHORTLOIN * 26028 WAGYU RIBEYE LIPON 26045 26041 26035 112A, 2x2 LIP, 1/4" TRIM 2 30 WAGYU RIBEYE LIPON HALF CUT * 26375 26370 26365 112A, 2x2 LIP, 1/4" TRIM, HALF CUT 4 30 WAGYU RIBEYE ROLL HALF CUT * 26034 26033 26032 112, 1"LIP, 1/4" TRIM, HALF CUT 4 25 CHUCK CUTS DESCRIPTION CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK WAGYU CHUCK EYE ROLL 26205 26200 26190 116D, 1/4" TRIM 2 47 WAGYU BRISKET 26165 120 1/2" TRIM 4 43 WAGYU BRISKET FLATS * 26175 120 A 1/4" TRIM 8 48 WAGYU BRISKET POINTS * 26170 120 B 1/4" TRIM 10 48 WAGYU CROSS RIB 26185 114E, 1/4" TRIM 4 58 WAGYU CHUCK TENDER 27324 116B, SILVER ON 16 56 AVG WT THIN MEATS WAGYU 103 RIB * 26123 26113 26103 103, CHINE ON, LIFTER ON, 9X9 B/I LIP 1 41 WAGYU RIBEYE LONG BONE * 26136 26134 26133 109E 8X8 B/I LIP 1 24 WAGYU RIBEYE B/I * 26147 26146 26145 109E 2x2 B/I LIP 2 37 WAGYU EYE OF RIBEYE * 26060 26055 26050 112C, NO LIP, 1/4" TRIM 2 16 WAGYU CAP OF RIBEYE * 26070 26065 112D, CLEAN 4 18 WAGYU TOP SIRLOIN PEELED 26090 26085 184B, CAP OFF, 1/4" TRIM 4 41 DESCRIPTION CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK AVG WT WAGYU FLAT IRON CHEF RDY * 18273 18272 SILVER OFF, STEAK READY 8 17 WAGYU FLAT IRON TOP BLADE 26160 26155 114D SILVER ON, 1/4" TRIM 6 33 WAGYU BNLS RIB SHORT RIB 26245 26240 123C, 3 RIB 1/4" TRIM 8 23 WAGYU RIB SHORT RIB B/I * 26250 123A, 3 RIB 1/4 " Trim 4 25 WAGYU BNLS CHUCK S/RIB 26235 26230 130, TRIANGLE CUT, 1/4 " TRIM 8 16 WAGYU CHUCK TAIL FLAP 26182 26180 116G, 1/4" TRIM 8 24 WAGYU TOP SIR CULOTTE 26100 26095 184D, 1/4" TRIM 8 32 WAGYU OUTSIDE SKIRTS 26265 121C, MEMBRANE ON 8 26 WAGYU FLANK STEAKS 26255 193, PEELED 8 17 WAGYU FLAP MEAT 26271 185A, PEELED 8 28 WAGYU HANGING TENDER 26275 140, PEELED 8 28 WAGYU PLD TRI TIPS 26260 185D, PEELED 8 16 WAGYU INSIDE SKIRTS 26270 121D, PEELED 16 33 WAGYU TERES MAJOR 26150 114F, PEELED 16 13 WAGYU KALBI EYE PLATE CENTER CUT * WAGYU KALBI EYE PLATE 26258 1/4" TRIM, VEIN OUT 8 50 WAGYU BEEF BACK RIBS 22219 MEATY BACK RIBS 8 40 ROUND CUTS OFFAL GRIND DESCRIPTION CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK WAGYU EYE OF ROUND 26132 171C, 1/2" TRIM 8 43 WAGYU OUTSIDE ROUND FLAT 25025 171B, 1/2" TRIM 4 55 WAGYU INSIDE ROUND 26130 168, 1/2" TRIM 2 44 WAGYU BALL TIP WAGYU SIRLOIN TIP 26135 167, 1/2" TRIM 4 52 WAGYU CAFÉ ROUND * 26140 166B FRENCHED HANDLE 1 54 DESCRIPTION CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK WAGYU OXTAILS 26279 HALF CUT 8 24 WAGYU CHEEK MEAT 26277 TRIMMED, BULK PACKED blk 30 WAGYU TONGUE 26166 ROOT OFF, SWISS CUT, IVP 8 28 DESCRIPTION CODE CODE CODE SPECIFICATION PACK WAGYU LEAN TRIM 85/15 26075 85/15, VACCUME PACKED 3 60 WAGYU FAT TRIM 50/50 26074 50/50, WAX BOX 3 60 WAGYU FAT 65030 WAX BOX WAX 60 WAGYU GROUND BEEF BULK 26006 75/25 4 20 WAGYU GROUND BEEF BULK * 85264 75/25 24 24 AVG WT AVG WT AVG WT
Etymology of Mishima Reserve The roots of the Mishima Reserve name are pulled from the history of the Japanese Wagyu breed. Cattle are not indigenous to the Island Chain of Japan. Chinese Yellow Cattle were introduced to Japan between 0 and 200 AD. Once cattle were introduced to Japan they were quickly adapted via selective breeding to become ideal work animals for Japan s mountainous terrain and small, tight farming spaces. As an isolationist country, the now indigenous Japanese Cattle (Wa-Gyu) were not crossed with any other breeds for many centuries and developed their own unique characteristics a small, nimble, work animal. In the 1850 s came the end to the Tokogawa Shogunate the new Emporer Meiji opened trade relations with outside countries. As part of this international trade policy several breeds of cattle were introduced to Japan. This policy was quickly ended as they found that cross breeding was not beneficial to the breed. But in various regions of Japan, Wagyu cattle were crossed with various imported breeds. Only on the small island of Mishima in the Sea of Japan did the Wagyu Breed remain in its purest form. Today these cattle are referred to as Mishima Cattle and are recognized as a separate breed strain from other Japanese Wagyu. We adopted Mishima as a part of our name as an homage or tribute to that aspect of the Wagyu Breed history and to the Wagyu Breed in its most concentrated form. And while we do have Mishima Cattle bloodlines in our Mishima Reserve breeding program, they are not the strains of choice. Mishima Cattle are too small and slow maturing to be a major part of our breeding program. Mishima Island