World Steak Challenge winner unveiled
The winning steak was a Wagyu cross reared in Australia on Willow Tree Farm by Jack’s Creek in Australia and was entered into the competition by Albers GMBH from Dusseldorf, Germany. It was 30 months old and 450 days grain fed.
Frank Albers, owner of Albers GMBH, said: “It has been quite a journey and is the culmination of 15 years seeking steak perfection.
“The steak we entered was quite unique. Our Wagyu contains just the right amount of marbling and is very heat resistant which helps when cooking.”
Seventy steaks from 10 different countries were entered into the World Steak Challenge, with 11 going on to win Gold Medals. Seventeen Silver Medals were also awarded.
GlobalMeatNews editor Rod Addy praised the high quality of entries. “Whilst the standard of steak was by no means tough, the judging process definitely was. It was a very difficult decision, but our congratulations go to Albers for the Wagyu cross.”
Chair of the judges, award-winning Northern Ireland butcher George McCartney added: “It was a very difficult decision, but this competition is very good for the steak industry and the beef industry in general. We saw quite a lot of Angus amongst the Gold winners.”
Each steak was judged on its own merits against internationally agreed criteria. Technical testing covered two areas: raw and cooked. Judges for the technical round included master griller Fernando Larroude of the Gaucho Group; meat scientist Dr Phil Hadley; celebrated Parisian butcher Yves-Marie Le Bourdonnec; South African master butcher Alan Franck; Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) business development executive Josh Anderson; chef and food writer Kevin Ashton; and the executive chef of the renowned M restaurant Mike Reid.
All steaks that achieved the highest Gold medal scores in the technical judging progressed to the second stage of judging.
Gold medal steaks were cooked on by Steak Stones chefs for an agreed time and specification based on a home cooking environment and scored by a new panel of judges drawn from a wide range of nationalities and expertise to ensure diverse international tastes are accounted for, with the scores awarded at this stage for each steak added to the total from stage one to reach an overall score.
World's Best Steak Producer
Gold Winners
Silver Winners
For more information from the event, click here.
