“The thing about Westholme is that when you try it, you’d know that you’re eating a top class beef,” a head chef of a fine-dining restaurant recently told me.
That statement piqued my curiosity about Westholme. Specifically, what is the lineage of its cattle? And how is the Westholme cattle being farmed?
I found my answers after some probing.
Westholme calves are born to the most highly credentialed Wagyu studs to leave Japan. To wit, three Japan-born, Hongen-registered champion sires are the founding patriarchs of the entire Westholme herd in Australia. These fullblood bulls are matched with grass-fed native Mitchell cows, a pedigree created by Westholme, to produce the F1 Wagyu (first cross of a Wagyu fullblood bull with another breed) that is Westholme.
From six months of age, the Westholme calves graze on native Australian Mitchell grass in vast open ranges averagely four times the size of Singapore. Once they reach an ideal weight, at about two to two-and-a-half years old, the cattle are transferred to a feedlot where they are fed a proprietary blend of grains for 330 days. Finishing the cattle on a grains-exclusive diet is said to be key in developing the intramuscular marbling that Japanese Wagyu is known for.
“I find the Wagyu from Westholme Wagyu to be well-marbled, toothsome and flavoursome,” says de Souza, Executive Chef of Culina Bistro. A native of Australia, the chef has 13 years of experience working with Westholme Wagyu in both Down Under and in Como resorts globally.
According to de Souza, Westholme Wagyu’s marbling is “evenly distributed whilst still being relatively lean” with a “more pronounced beefiness” as compared to the Japanese Wagyu. The latter, in comparison, has a “tremendous amount of intramuscular marbling.”
As part of the 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐦e 𝐱 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐁𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨 𝐓𝐑𝐈-𝐖𝐀𝐆𝐘𝐔 campaign taking place from 𝟏𝐬𝐭 – 𝟑𝟎𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏, you’ll get to savour different cuts of Westholme Wagyu prepared by de Souza in three different ways at Culina Bistro.
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Hand to heart, my tasting of the TRI-WAGYU menu was first rate. Tasting notes below:
𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐲𝐮 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐟 𝐓𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐞 $𝟑𝟐+
Clean-tasting with a surprisingly springy – rather than grainy – bite, the Westholme beef tongue is first slow-cooked in an aromatic court bouillon, then finished on the Josper grill and slathered with a heady anchovy crème garnished with sour onions, pumpkin seeds and caper salsa verde. Even if you’re not a beef tongue lover, the cut’s clean flavour matched with the umami of the sauce and the lightness of its texture will win you over from the first bite.
𝐏𝐨𝐭-𝐀𝐮-𝐅𝐞𝐮 𝐝𝐞 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐦𝐞 $𝟑𝟖+
Killing three birds with one stone, de Souza has fashioned this celebrated French beef stew dish to showcase three Westholme cuts – oxtail, short rib and tri-tip. Slow-braised in beef stock with a medley of vegetables (carrots, potatoes, brussel sprouts) until the meats are fork-tender, the beef cuts could be savoured neat (they taste surprisingly sweet and beefy) or dipped in a garlicky, lemon-scented persillade. Beef that has been boiled for long hours tend to be devoid of flavours, but these Westholme cuts, the tri-tip in particular, were exceptionally beefy.
𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐨̂𝐭𝐞 𝐝𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐞𝐮𝐟 $𝟐𝟓𝟎+ (𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲)
Chef de Souza has created this Côte de Boeuf to be a meal in itself. Comprising a gigantic chunk of Westholme bone-in rib eye MBS 4-5 slow-cooked to medium rare on the rotisserie, the roasted beef is sliced into thick juicy cuts that are luscious as they are tender, and served with sides of garden salad, creamed spinach, truffle fries (with real chopped truffles) as well as horseradish cream and bordelaise sauce. Available on weekends only, this serving feeds three to four pax.
15 Dempsey Road, Singapore 249 675; +65-674 7338; culina.sg
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