This is Wagyu beef,
这是和牛肉
one of the most expensive meats in the world.
世界上最贵的牛肉之一
Produced in Japan and prized for its rich marbling and buttery taste,
产于日本 因丰富的大理石样花纹和黄油口感而闻名
high-grade Wagyu can cost up to $200 per pound.
高级别的和牛肉价格高达每磅200美元
And the cows themselves can sell for as much as $30,000.
一头和牛最高能卖到三万美元
But what is it that makes the meat so expensive?
可是为什么和牛肉会这么贵呢？
The term Wagyu literally translates to Japanese cow.
Wagyu翻译过来就是“日本的牛”
And it generally refers to four main breeds.
它一般指图上这四个主要的品种
These cows were bred for physical endurance,
通过增加肌肉间脂肪含量的方式
giving them more intramuscular fat cells.
来培育和牛 以提高其身体耐力
The fat is distributed more evenly throughout their muscle,
因为肌肉间的脂肪分布得更加均匀
which is why Wagyu beef looks pink and tastes so tender.
所以和牛肉看上去是粉色的 口感柔嫩
And the Japanese government tightly regulates
为了保护和牛肉的价值和质量
Wagyu production to protect the value and quality of the meat.
日本政府对和牛肉的生产管理非常严格
Wagyu is graded on two main factors:
和牛肉的分级主要依据两点
how much meat can be yielded
一是步留等级
and the quality of the marbled fat.
二是肉质等级
Only A3 to A5 Wagyu is certified for sale in Japan.
只有A3到A5级别才可以在日本认证出售
And the higher the grade, the higher the price.
级别越高 价格越贵
Wagyu beef has gained almost legendary status.
和牛的地位几乎被神化
And there are many myths about Wagyu farms and the way the animals are treated,
关于和牛牧场和饲养方式的传言有很多
from getting daily massages to being fed beer.
诸如每日按摩 喝啤酒什么的
But these often aren’t true.
但这大都不是真的
The cows are raised very differently in each region and by different farmers.
不同地区和农场主的饲养方式差异很大
But they’re often raised by a breeder until they’re about ten months old,
通常和牛由饲主喂养到十个月大
and then sold at aution to a fattening farmer.
然后在拍卖会上卖给育肥农场主
By the time the calves are sold at auction,
和牛的小牛在拍卖会上的售价
they can already fetch 40 times of the price of US cattle.
已经要比美国成年牛贵40倍
The fattening farm will keep the animals in small pens
育肥农场会用小围栏圈养小牛
and feed them a mixture of fiber and high-energy
用大米 小麦和干草制成的高热量浓缩物
concentrate made from rice, wheat and hay.
和纤维混合饲料喂养它们
They are often fed this three times a day for almost two years,
如此这般 每天三次持续喂养近两年时间
until the animals are almost 50% fat.
直到脂肪含量接近50%
Only the pregnant cows and breeding cattle are allowed to graze on pasture.
只有孕牛和种牛可以去牧场吃草
The length of the fattening process and the import prices of the huge amount of concentrated feed
育肥所需时长和进口大量浓缩饲料的支出
increases the cost of the beef.
增加了牛肉的成本
And over this fattening period, each cow will eat five tons of feed.
每头牛在育肥期间要吃掉五吨饲料
If and when a cow goes to auction, it can sell for as much as $30,000.
这个时期的和牛拍卖价格可以高达3万美金
Comparatively, black Angus cattle, which are considered the cream of the crop
与之相比较 在美国和澳大利亚等国家
in countries like the United States and Australia,
被认为百里挑一的安格斯牛
typically don’t sell for more than $3,000.
售价通常不超过三千美金
And depending on the kind,
根据不同种类
the Wagyu can fetch close to $200 per pound.
和牛肉每磅售价能接近200美金
High marbling is the common goal,
丰富的大理石纹路是和牛培育的共同目标
but the approach varies by farm and area.
但不同的农场和地区方法各异
While there are more than 300 varieties of Wagyu available,
尽管市面上有三百多种和牛肉
the most notable cuts come from 10 regions.
但最有名的来自十个地区
One of the most expensive cuts is Matsusaka Wagyu from Mie Prefecture,
最贵的牛肉是来自三重县的松坂和牛
made exclusively from virgin female cows
只从没生育过的母牛身上取用
and highly prized for its tenderness.
因肉质鲜嫩而备受推崇
In 2002, one Matsusaka cow
一头松坂牛在2002年
sold for 50 million yen, or roughly $400,000.
能卖5千万日元 相当于40万美金
However, the best-known cut of Wagyu is Kobe beef,
然而 最出名的和牛肉却是神户牛肉
which comes from the city of Kobe in Hyogo Prefecture.
来自兵库县的神户市
And is made exclusively from steers, or castrated bulls.
仅用阉牛制作
Although Kobe is commonly seen on US restaurant menus,
尽管在美国饭店菜单上随处可见神户二字
customers should be wary of items like Kobe burgers,
消费者们应慎重选择神户汉堡这类菜品
as authentic Kobe beef is too tender to be formed into a patty.
因为纯正的神户牛肉过于柔软无法做成肉饼
Several US restaurants are actually serving hybrid “Wangus” beef
有些美国饭店提供的实际是杂交品种的“和牛”肉
from domestically raised Wagyu and Angus cows.
是国内饲养的和牛和安格斯牛杂交而来的
The highest ranking Wagyu is A5 Miyazaki,
最高级别的和牛是A5级别的宫崎和牛
a two-time winner of the Wagyu Olympics.
曾两次获得和牛奥林匹克冠军
A5 Miyazaki will cost you $100 or more per pound.
A5级宫崎和牛每磅售价100美金 甚至更高
At SakaMai in New York City, it’s the Wagyu of choice.
纽约的SakaMai餐厅选用的就是宫崎和牛
The restaurant is best known for serving it
这家饭店的招牌菜就是
in an $85 Katsu Sando,
售价85美金的宫崎和牛Katsu Sando
a popular Japanese-style sandwich.
这是一种很受欢迎的日本三明治
Ah, on a busy night,
比较忙的时候
we probably serve about 25 for them
每晚可以卖出大约25个三明治
at $85 a pop.
每个85美金
Because Wagyu is so difficult to find in the US,
和牛肉在美国确实很难找
yes, we do have a number of customers coming to us just to try the Wagyu.
有很多顾客是专程来我们店吃和牛肉的
Sometimes two-top will come and just order the sando by itself.
有时候两个人一起来吃饭 都只点了和牛三明治
There are a lot of tariffs and quotas on Japanese beef imports,
进口和牛肉关税很高并且有配额限制
and it’s actually not allowed to import live cattle.
事实上也不允许进口活牛
So it is very difficult to source Wagyu.
所以和牛的货源很难找
So is it worth it?
那么和牛肉是否物有所值呢？
We decide to have our team give A5 Miyazaki Wagyu a try.
我们决定体验一下A5级的宫崎市和牛肉
Holy s**!
天哪
It’s so good.
太好吃了
It’s really like… um… it’s like buttery.
它吃起来特别像……嗯……像黄油
– It’s like, as if it was like coated in butter. – Right?
-就像它外面包裹了一层黄油一样 -是吧？
But it wasn’t, it was really just salt and pepper, which is crazy.
但它只加了盐和胡椒调味 真是不可思议
And there might be something even more sought-after than the A5 Miyazaki.
但还有比A5级宫崎和牛更受欢迎的东西
Hailed as the rarest steak in the world, olive Wagyu
就是被誉为世界上最稀有牛排的橄榄和牛肉
comes from cattle raised on pressed, dried olive peels mixed into their feed.
喂养小牛的饲料中混合了压缩干橄榄皮
It was developed in 2006
这个品种是日本农场主Masaki Ishii
by a Japanese cattle farmer named Masaki Ishii.
在2006年培育出来的
Only about 2,200 of these cows were slaughtered in 2018.
2018年只宰杀了约2200头橄榄牛
And they all live on the island of Shodoshima, home to Japan’s oldest olive oil plantation.
这些牛全都来自日本最古老的橄榄油之乡小豆岛
This special Wagyu is said to be extra tender,
据说这种特殊的和牛肉非常的嫩
and can cost anywhere from $120 to over $300 for a steak.
每块牛排的售价从120美金到300多美金不等
While Wagyu’s popularity grows worldwide,
虽然和牛在全世界都倍受欢迎
the domestic picture is a little different.
但在日本国内却不大一样
Wague’s popularity in Japan is actually slumping slightly.
事实上和牛肉在日本的热度略有下滑
And the country imported more US beef than any other country as of 2017.
2017年 日本是进口美国牛肉最多的国家
The value of Japanese exports
在过去五年中
of Wagyu has risen over 200% in the past five years.
日本出口的和牛的价格涨幅超过了两倍
And as Japan’s population ages,
随着日本人口老龄化
farmers are struggling to keep up with increased global demand,
农场主们在努力跟上日渐增长的全球需求
raising prices even more.
和牛肉的价格甚至更高了
But the high cost hasn’t discouraged international sales.
但和牛的昂贵价格并没有影响其国际销量
In 2013, Japan exported 5 billion yen worth of Wagyu.
在2013年 日本出口的和牛肉超过50亿日元
Last year, exports hit 24.7 billion yen.
而在去年 和牛肉出口额高达247亿日元
And many producers are now getting halal certifications for their slaughterhouses,
为了把和牛肉出口到穆斯林国家
so they can export to Muslim countries.
很多厂家为自己的屠宰场取得了清真证书
However, Japan may eventually have some competition
然而 日本在高端和牛市场
when it comes to producing high-quality Wagyu.
迟早会面临一些竞争
Countries like the US, Australia and the UK
比如美国 澳大利亚和英国这些国家
have been working on breeding their own Wagyu,
已经在培育自己的和牛品种
usually rely on crossbreeding.
通常采用的是杂交繁育的方法
Most British, American and Australian Wagyu
大多数英国 美国和澳大利亚的和牛
are only 50% purebred,
只有50%的纯正血统
but that maybe changing soon.
这种情况很快就会有所改变
In the UK, for example, the Wagyu Breeders Association
比如英国的和牛育种协会
now registers DNA-verified full-blood Wagyu bulls,
会对通过DNA鉴定的纯种和牛登记造册
and certifies authentic British Wagyu.
并且给纯正的英国和牛予以认证
New methods and increased regulation
这些国家使用新理论并提高管理标准
may result in a product as good as the original,
有望培育出与正宗和牛媲美的品种
which means there soon
也就是说要不了多久
could be a lot more Wagyu that costs a lot less.
就会有大量价美物廉的和牛上市