last time i checked, none of flannery beef is grass finished. i think his steaks taste awesome.
an interesting book on the topic is defending beef by nicollete niman.
Paul,
The best Flannery steak I’ve eaten was a grass fed, whole side dry aged Wagyu strip at a dinner at Umamicatessen in 2012. It was awesome.
Let’s get dinner soon.
I just received my first order from the folks at White Oak Pastures, located in Bluffton, GA. They are a terrific operation - 6 generations, 152 years - raising grass fed and free range livestock, as well as produce, and aiming for negative environmental impact by cycling use of land and other techniques. They are zero waste, with the usual waste products going into things like candles, soap, pet chew toys etc. They co-pasture their animals so as to promote natural behaviors, rather than fostering mono-species environments.
In addition to the usual muscle meats, they offer many organ options beyond just liver, and even do a ground blend that includes organs for those of us who practice nose-to-tail and want extra mineral sources.
Though not all products are always available (lamb and goat mostly in the spring, organ meats only available on cycle), their website has a function to get alerts when those are back in stock.
My every interaction with them so far as been excellent, truly top notch customer service. Prices are pretty reasonable for what you’re getting, and they charge a flat $9.95 on orders over $100 for ground shipping. They will only let perishables go 3 days in transit, so any further away than that and you must upgrade to express. Most products ship frozen, though I’m currently inquiring about fresh.
The proof will, of course, be in the taste - I’ll report back! I’m pretty excited to try. Since being on keto, I’ve been particularly concerned about the fact that I’m eating more beef than usual - concerned environmentally, not health-wise - so looking for fully grass fed with the highest sustainability standards. These folks seem pretty amazing. Check them out.
I’ve been looking at buying from Alderspring Ranch, a family-run 100% pasture-fed (and no antibiotic or hormone) operation in a mountain valley in Idaho. It’s always been the shipping that has caused me to hesitate ordering meat online. But, they ship flash-frozen and I now have a nearby package receiving service, so should be fine.
-Al
Sarah – thanks for the tip on White Oaks. I look forward to hearing how you like the quality, but I like the philosophy and practices that you outline.
Al – we just got our first shipment from Alderspring. Only tried the NY strip steaks so far, which were quite good. I can’t say that they were better than Flannery, but they are not less good! The comparison is hard as we are in a new house, so a new stove, and a new grill, etc. So not perhaps a fair comparison (in other words, we are still working out how to best cook steaks in the new place!).
Aldersprings does recyle their packaging – you send it back at their expense, and they give you a $5 credit on the next shipment. They seem to do a lot of things similar to what Sarah recounts for White Oaks, though I now want to look again to see how thorough their regimen is.
Let us know what you think of the Aldersprings. I am intrigued by White Oaks as we really prefer lamb to beef.
Hi Ron - I had the “Paleo Blend” ground meat for breakfast this AM and it was very good. It’s 40% chuck/brisket, 20% liver, 20% heart, 10% spleen, and 10% kidney. The smell was very clean, though clearly organ-y, as was the flavor. The steaks I received look terrific. I’ll let you know how they show when we sample. I hesitate ever to compare any grass fed beef to Flannery, most of which is not grass fed, since they are such different products. When I want a steak indulgence, or treat, or for company, I’ll still always reach for Flannery. For our family on a regular basis, I want grass fed.
I wasn’t able to order any lamb this time, as it wasn’t available. You can, however, special order from them - there is a small surcharge for each species - and then you can obviously get whatever that animal contains, even if it’s generally out of stock. We have terrific local sources for lamb (Lancaster Country, PA has some of the best lamb in the country), so I probably won’t sample White Oak lamb until it’s readily available in spring.
Someone upthread mentioned Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. This thread caught my eye because I’m midway through the book, which is one of the more engaging and thought-provoking books I’ve come across in quite some time. Everyone should read it–particularly those who enjoy food and wine, regardless of your views on environmentalism, vegetarianism, etc., which isn’t really the subject of the book. I have no idea what took me so long to pick it up.
Pollan’s book certainly has piqued my interest in identifying genuinely sustainable, artisan, family run farms from which to buy meat and produce. A good bit of wine appreciation–especially in somewhere like Burgundy–is appreciation for the artisan craft of winemaking, which often is a small, artisan, family affair. I’d like to find the same thing in food and Sarah’s White Oaks seems like the type of thing that would fit the bill.
Ryan – you should look at the book, Franklin Steak. They do a deep dive on beef, and recommend a number of sources, including many in Texas. It is not as well-researched or argued as Pollan’s book though, so I would not look at it is a substitute for what you are reading!
Aldersprings does recyle their packaging – you send it back at their expense, and they give you a $5 credit on the next shipment. They seem to do a lot of things similar to what Sarah recounts for White Oaks, though I now want to look again to see how thorough their regimen is.
They are similar in that they both follow what has come to be called regenerative agriculture (no tilling, fertilizing, cycling through pastures to use manure rather than chemical fertilizer, diverse native grasses). Those practices promote healthier soil, water retention, and ability to draw carbon out of the atmosphere. White Oak claims to be roughly carbon neutral based on a study that was done regarding their operation. Aldersprings thinks they are carbon negative, based on calculations they have done. Those calculations are admittedly difficult and imprecise, and scientists don’t agree with some of the details, namely that regenerative agriculture does promote carbon retention in the soils, but it doesn’t continue to absorb the same amount of additional carbon year after year.
Not sure about other details. Alderspring uses draft horses for some of the work rather than tractors. As mentioned, no grain, no fertilizer other than manure the cows and horses leave behind, no antibiotics in the beef sold online or in retail outlets. They sometimes use antibiotics, eg to save a sick calf, but they keep track of it and sell it off as half or quarter carcasses to locals who are told the distinction from their certified organic beef. Other big differences are that Aldersprings is in a high mountain valley in Idaho and the cattle spend part of the year essentially free range, and that the current family (a couple of generations) started the ranch. Those differences don’t dramatically affect the environmental impact, however. From what I’ve read, I think the two operations are pretty similar in terms of what they are doing and trying to accomplish.
There is quite a lot of info on the Alderspring website, both in faqs and an extensive blog. The latter is a bit folksy, and a bit repetitive on the glories of regenerative agriculture and the ranching life (I resonate with those points of view, however). The ranch where I grew up was about 150 miles north in a similar mountain valley (albeit one that was and has become more developed).
-Al
I have now had the White Oak “Paleo Blend” ground beef twice for breakfast, and we did two of the strips tonight. The blend, despite all the organ components, had a very clean smell, and was quite delicious, though funky. It’s a great way to get a ton of healthy organ meat in if you don’t want to buy, cook, and consume liver/heart/kidney. I wouldn’t make a burger out of it, but with some spices and mixed with some vegetables, it was very good.
The strips were also good. They are naturally quite lean, and were trimmed that way as well, so we cooked them pretty rare. I would prefer a little more fat ideally. Maybe I’ll ask them if all their cuts are trimmed like this. The steak’s texture was divine, perfect at rare, with a good beefy flavor. These were not aged, so missing the complexity that I love in a dry aged steak (White Oak does do aged steaks, they just weren’t available this time), but I can hardly fault them for being what they are rather than something else. Overall, a very good choice for grass fed beef on taste alone, with the philosophical concerns being a huge added bonus. They sound quite similar to the farm Al mentions.
Sounds delicious Sarah - thanks for the update. How did you cook them?
Very simple - salted early in the day and left uncovered, then seared in a super hot cast iron skillet on the stove top with a little butter at the end, after removing the pan from heat, and a solid rest time. Taking them only to rare, I didn’t think reserve sear was necessary, and we didn’t feel like starting the wood burner. Neither of us can stand the texture of sous vide steak. Even given some variation in thickness, they turned out just right for me, no grey rim to speak of. Crust could have been a little better. They were so lean, I probably should have use a little bacon or duck fat in the pan throughout.
Don’t be so quick. If you eat grass fed, nose-to-tail, cow will give you nearly all the nutrients you need. Throw in some eggs and some salmon roe, and you’re golden! Or nearly so. I’m not suggesting that you should, but there are people who argue for it pretty convincingly.
Count me not slightly convinced!
Keep eating corn fed beef. Should help the ole ticker. 
We had a skirt steak and a NY strip from Aldersprings. The skirt was fantastic. Lovely flavor and texture. Simply done on the grill. All that one could want in a skirt steak. The strip I unfortunately over cooked – I think I kept it too long in the oven for the reverse sear. I think next time I will do straight on the grill – or use my thermopen in the oven! Even though it was overcooked, we could tell it was a great piece of meat. Very tender, and still some nice flavors (those that had not been cooked out!).
So we are fans now of grass fed – at least as done by Aldersprings. We have others, including a brisket which I am excited to try. It might be a while before we get to them, but when we do I will report back.
Glad that worked out for you, Ron. Sounds like a first class outfit with a great product. Grass fed is the way to go, as far as I’m concerned, except occasional indulgences.
Thanks for posting this Sarah. After reading much of their site, I ordered some 21 day aged steaks. I’ll report back when I cook them.
This is an Australian Grass Fed steak purchased from Shop-Rite. Some salt, pepper and garlic salt. Sous Vide @ 125 for about 4 hours. Then seared in Goat’s butter.
Lovely, I am in your camp on temperatures.