Darling Downs WAGYU Wins Best Steak for Third Year
Stockyard’s Wagyu Kiwami
The Darling Downs has done it again, with Wagyu produced in the region crowned Australia’s best steak for the third year in a row, at the prestigious Royal Queensland Food and Wine Show (RQFWS) Branded Beef and Lamb Competition presented by Super Butcher at the Brisbane Showgrounds on Friday.
Stockyard’s Wagyu Kiwami grilled 41 other entrants to take out the coveted John Kilroy Cha Cha Char Grand Champion Branded Beef of Show; previously Australian Agricultural Company’s (AACo) Darling Downs Wagyu won the coveted Grand Champion title in 2015 and 2016.
Chief Judge Elaine Millar said Stockyard’s standout steak, produced at Jondaryan, displayed exceptional qualities.
“It had textbook marbling, luscious juiciness, melt in the mouth tenderness and incredibly well-balanced flavours that were both delicate and robust, from sweet biscuit and pureed blanched almond through to Shitake mushroom - perfect for sashimi to charcoal grilling,” she said.
“Our judging panels were overwhelmed by the outstanding quality of this year’s entries, which certainly reinforces Australia’s position as a leader in the international beef market.”
While Woodward Foods Australia claimed the title of Australia’s best lamb for their HRW Tasmanian Lamb product.
Ms Millar described it as having a balance of sweet juiciness, silky texture, extensive palate length and complex yet delicate nutty and enoki mushroom flavours.
The Branded Beef and Lamb Competition is regarded as the most coveted and comprehensive of its kind in the nation, with entries slightly up this year.
Super Butcher Managing Director Susan McDonald said they were thrilled to support the competition and congratulated the winners on their success.
“Our customers, more and more, are looking beyond the meat they see in the store to the family which has produced it and how and where it is grown,” she said.
“A retail brand is a commitment, a promise, to the consumers - and producers going the extra mile and putting in the effort to develop their brand deserve the recognition this competition delivers.”
The awards followed two days of rigorous judging this week, which saw 14 expert judges including Jake Nicolson from Black Bird Bar and Grill and Glen Barratt from Wild Canary, taste their way through 70 of the nation’s finest beef and lamb products in the retail market.
The prestigious RQFWS, which is made up of seven competitions, will now turn its attention to the nation’s finest cheeses, dairy products and ice creams, with the cream of the crop to be crowned on May 26.
MAJOR AWARD WINNERS:
THE JOHN KILROY CHA CHA CHAR GRAND CHAMPION BRANDED BEEF OF SHOW (Australia’s best steak)
Stockyard - Class 5 Cat. No. 32 - Stockyard Wagyu Kiwami
SUPER BUTCHER CHAMPION MSA GRADED BRANDED BEEF OF SHOW
JBS Australia - Class 1 Cat. No. 7 - JBS Riverina Angus
SUPER BUTCHER CHAMPION BRANDED LAMB OF SHOW (Australia’s Best Lamb)
Woodward Foods Australia - Class 7 Cat. No. 52 - HRW Tasmanian Lamb
BEEF AWARD WINNERS
Class 1 - Lendlease Grain Fed Class
Gold: JBS Australia for its JBS Riverina Angus
Silver: Thomas Foods International for its Thomas Foods Signature Clare Valley Grain Fed
Bronze: JBS Australia for its JBS Thousand Guineas Shorthorn
Class 2 - Lendlease Grass Fed Class
Gold: JBS Australia for its Great Southern Pinnacle
Silver: JBS Australia for its King Island Premium Beef
Bronze: JBS Australia for its JBS Swift Premium
Class 3 - Super Butcher Wagyu Class AUS-MEAT Marble Score 1 to 5
Gold: Andrews Meat Industries for its Tajima Wagyu
Silver: Stanbroke for its Diamantina
Class 4 - Super Butcher Wagyu Class AUS-MEAT Marble Score 6+
Gold: Stockyard for its Stockyard Wagyu Black
Silver: Andrews Meat Industries for its Tajima Wagyu
Class 5 - Super Butcher Open Class
Gold: Stockyard for its Stockyard Wagyu Kiwami
Silver: JBS Australia for its JBS Royal
Bronze: JBS Australia for its Red Gum Creek Beef
LAMB AWARD WINNERS
Class 6 - Meat & Livestock Australia Branded Lamb Class 20kg or Less
Gold: Country Fresh Nationwide for its Supreme MSA Lamb
Silver: Country Fresh Nationwide for its Thomas Farms
Bronze: Woodward Foods Australia for its HRW Tasmanian Lamb
Class 7 - Super Butcher Branded Lamb Class More than 20kg
Gold: Woodward Foods Australia for its HRW Tasmanian Lamb
Silver: Country Fresh Nationwide for its Supreme MSA Lamb
Bronze: Milly Hill for its Milly Hill
Class 8 - Super Butcher Restaurant Trade Branded Lamb Class More than 24kg
Gold: Woodward Foods Australia for its HRW Tasmanian Lamb
Silver: Woodward Foods Australia for its Woodward Foods Prime Lamb
Bronze: JBS Australia for its Great Southern Lamb
For the full results listing visit http://bit.ly/2qFHXSj