I’ve never had MR, but am considering a try. I have been ordering Flannery for well over a decade and am very happy, so I’m cautious about taking a leap. I’m interested in the roasts which I will cut to my own sizing for steaks - so ribeyes and clubs (NY strips).
MR is supposedly Wagyu, which theoretically should make is much more marbled than Bryan’s Prime. However, I did read a comment about MR being a bit tougher than expected, which seemed surprising with a Wagyu product.
Interested in all comments, both good and bad. Thanks!
MR is wagyu but I don’t put much stock in that designation. It only meant something when it applied to Kobe. That said I think what MR does is tasty. Very tender. But not Kobe A5 by any means which isn’t saying that’s what it should be. That’s a different product.
I completely get that. I pretty much understand the lack of lack of significance of claims of Wagyu here in the US. But, if you’re going to slap that moniker on your product, I expect it to be true Prime+ even if I have no delusion of it being anything close to Japanese Wagyu.
Frankly, for a traditional American style steak, I prefer what many of the American “Wagyu” producers deliver. Real A5 is a different meal for me. On the other hand, I’ve run into some producers selling a claimed Wagyu product that I would consider on the low side of Prime, which is unfortunate. There’s a wide variability in that Wagyu label and that was one of the things I was trying to suss out regarding Morgan Ranch.
Japanese Wagyu is actually four different breeds of cattle, also certain protocols for raising them. Kobe is a regional designation, like an appellation.
American Wagyu is mostly a cross between one of the Japanese breeds and Angus. It’s not as fatty and I agree that it’s a different meat/meal than Kobe A5, and suits my preferences more except for special occasions.
Another beef people may want to check out is Piemontese beef. It has low fat content (horrors) but has great flavor and is very tender because of a genetic mutation.
IIRC when importing of the Japaneese Wagyu cattle was allowed for a short while the Morgan’s were able to get some of the Waygu cattle. As Al Osterheld says most American Waygu is cross bred with Angus. IIRC the Morgan Ranch is almost pure bred Waygu (95+% Waygu).
As to the Flannery vs. Morgan comparison. They are a bit different. I find the Morgan ranch to have more fat and a bit more tenderness (I’m comparing mostly to the Flannery California Reserve, not the Midwestern). We really like the Morgan Ranch burger meat. Haven’t tried a Morngan Ranch Filet yet (their filets are pretty pricey) but I’ve got one just waiting for a good time to grill (wife needs to be around or I’d cook it up this weekend).
On the ordering side Flannery has far more different sizes you can order cut in (for Morgan ranch New Yorks are available in 12 ounce, ribeyes in 14 ounce, … where as Flannery has serveral different sizes of New York and Ribeye’s. Also each site has some different cuts that the other does not (no Hangar steaks or ribcaps from Morgan Ranch) and Flannery does have pork and lamb which Morgan Ranch does not.
Overall we still order from both but have shifted some of our purchases to Morgan Ranch since we first started purchasing during Berserkerday a couple years ago. Been purchasing from Bryan when he still had the storefront at the Corte Madera Town Center.
We prefer the Morgan Ranch because it doesn’t have that “nutty dry aged flavor” and aroma that Flannery does. We’re in the minority I know. I can’t explain it, but we’re different
My kids and wife all prefer less aged flavors and less fat for steak-we just buy filet mignon or faux-filet like the Morgan ranch sirloin filet/snake river farms sirloin. For burgers though a bit of funk is welcomed! Just had delicious Flannery berserker blend burgers.
I took the plunge and bought a MR boneless ribeye roast and cut it into ribeye steaks. My verdict is that it is good, but falls in that category of being good prime in terms of marbling. I would say very similar to Flannery. Nothing crazy in that area that you sometimes get with American “Wagyu”. The flavor was as expected - very good.
In terms of value, at $35/lb. I think it’s reasonably priced, but not great value in the sense of getting more than you expected for the price. I think I can find similar quality for less than that price, but it wouldn’t be a massive savings.
Overall, I probably prefer Flannery, but I don’t think you can go wrong with MR. I would gladly order it again and likely will at some point in the future.
Sorry I saw this thread so late or I would have jumped in when it was still timely. I’ve tried both and agree with Dan and Ethan; that is I don’t care for the “nutty dry-aged flavor” that Flannery has. Others do and that’s great. But not for me.
I find that MR’s flavor day in and day out is better than any other beef I’ve tried. I’ve had their ribeyes, strips, tri-tips, bone in ribeye and recently the brisket and just think it’s worth it. The marbling and tenderness is better than prime and not at all (as everyone agrees) A5. One other note; MR ships frozen and while that made me nervous early on, I’ve cooked some beef after 6 months or more in the freezer and never had a problem.
Anyone have any thoughts on Costco Prime? I used to buy that as my go-to steak, but have found the price high recently. But more importantly, I find their flavor to be pretty bland to almost non-existent. Prefer to pay the premium to MR and enjoy the taste.
I too prefer non aged steaks but I do enjoy the larger cuts that Flannery offers. I just include in my order that I don’t want aged and they are more than happy to accommodate.
@Michael_Levin - Agree in general about Costco’s beef. Just doesn’t measure up in terms of flavor. Their Wagyu can still be good. However, there is tremendous variability in terms of marbling across all their products IMO. Just because it has a label saying Prime or Wagyu doesn’t mean it lives up to the name. I use the Bryan Flannery technique of using my own eyes and judgement and only find truly great beef occasionally in the Wagyu section. Found some strips yesterday that were incredible, but it may be another year before I find something like that again.
@Chris_S_p_i_k_e_s, sounds like we’ve had the same experience. Prime at Costco varies dramatically. You have to be prepared to walk away. Usually there are enough Wagyus to pick whatever level of marbling you can stomach.
