Carrie Oliver Rating: Gateway Beef™

I first spoke with Will Harris of White Oak Pastures over a year ago so it was my lucky day when my equivalent of a tooth fairy found one of Will’s grass-fed steaks at Whole Foods Market in Atlanta and brought it to me for a tasting. A few days later a rancher from another growing region said, grass-fed beef from Georgia was good?! Yes, this approachable, tasty steak is a great choice for folks who are skeptical about grass-fed beef.

Tasting Notes:

This grass-fed steak had a some chew Texture, a reserved to straight forward Personality, and left a medium Impression. It was simultaneously a bit sweet, citrusy, and earthy with wisps of iron and romano cheese. The fat (this was a Rib-Eye steak) was unctuous and tasted like butter.

Meet The Farmers

A well-known voice in the grass-fed beef industry, Will Harris is known to say, “I love my herd like you love your dog or cat,” and “If you’re going to be a cow, this is the place to be a cow.” A fifth generation farmer, Will’s family has been on this farm for nearly 150 years and he hopes his converting it to a pastured, grass-fed diversified livestock system means they’ll be there another 150. To keep stress low and quality high, Harris built his own on-farm USDA inspected slaughter facility, one of just a handful in America.
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White Oak Pastures beef is certified grass-fed by the American Grass-Fed Association and humane by Animal Welfare Approved. 

Where to Buy It: Grass-fed beef from White Oak Pastures is available online by the individual piece, gift baskets, or by the side, and in a large number of retailers including over 200 Publix stores, select Whole Foods Markets in Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Florida, and natural food stores along the eastern seaboard.

Tasting Overview:

Taster:	Carrie Oliver
Date Tasted:	July 2010
Cut Tasted:	Rib-Eye Steak
Diet/Feed:	Grass Fed
Cooking Method:	Gas Grill
How Served:	Rare
Seasoning:	Kosher Salt
Previous Cut Tasted:	None
Previous Date Tasted:	None
Previous Taster:	None

Steak Shots:

A number of people have asked that we include images of the steaks pre- and post-cooking. Please forgive the photography, this is our first try. This steak was adorned with kosher salt alone prior to cooking. The images don’t due full justice to the appearance but they still make me hungry for more. We do not seek to achieve a thick, hard crust or pretty grill marks.

Before:

After:

Detailed Husbandry Practices:

Breed:	Angus Based Herd
Growing Region:	Deep South, Georgia
Farm/Ranch:	White Oak Pastures, 144 Year Old Diversified Livestock Farm
Farmers/Ranchers:lllllllll	Will Harris
Diet/Feed:	Certified Grass-Fed
Raising Protocols:	Warm season Perennials and cool season Annuals.
Finishing Protocols:	See above.
% Time on Pasture:	100% of the life of the animal is on pasture.
Age at Slaughter:	20-22 months
Slaughterhouse:	White Oak Pastures
Butcher:	White Oak Pastures
Aging Technique:	Wet-Aged
Aging Time:	Variable
Packaging:	Depends on retail outlet
Never Use Antibiotics Ever:	-
Use Vet Approved Spot Treatment Antibiotics:	Removed from program if treated
Never Use Sub-therapeutic or Feed Antibiotics	✓
Never Use Added Growth Hormones:	✓
Never Use Ionophores:	✓
No Animal, Fish, Fowl By-Products in Feed	✓
100% Vegetarian Feed (100% pasture and ranch grown hay)	✓ (We graze the cattle on our own pastures and make our own hay. That is all they get.)
Practice Rotational Grazing	✓
Practice Managed Intensive Rotational Grazing	-
USDA Natural	✓
USDA Naturally Raised New Voluntary Certification	-
Third Party Certified Organic	Farm: Yes. Beef: No.
Third Party Certified Humane	Animal Welfare Approved
Other Third Party Certification	Certified Grass-Fed, American Grass-Fed Association; Whole Foods Markets Global Animal Partnership Step 4.
Other	Also raise chickens, turkeys, and sheep.

Tagged as: Artisan Beef, Georgia, grass-fed steak, White Oak Pastures, Will Harris