Originally, the Wagyu beef comes from the Kobe region in Japan and is there known as Kobe beef. This name is protected and may not be used outside of this region.
The name Wagyu has no special meaning. "Wa" means Japanese and "Gyu" means cattle, freely translated "Japanese beef".After Emperor Mejj (1867-1912) opened Japan to the west and set aside the religious ban on eating meat and drinking milk, began the cattle breeting in Japan. The Wagyu, not related to the Japanese thoroughbred Mishima, was already introduced to Japan in the second Century AD, from the mainland. These animals were kept, as pure workcows.
After the First World War, the Japanese government launched a new breeding program, which began primarily to increase milk and meat quality. It is the ambition, the very best properties consisted to unite in a few races. The resulting black Wagyu is probably the most famous. The story is that Wagyu cattle are fed with beer and massaged daily with sake. Therefore, neither hormones nor antibiotics are on the menu. Feeding is still unique to achieve the typical intense marbling of fat. It provides the excellent taste, extreme tenderness and juiciness. Wagyu meat also possesses a high content of unsaturated fatty acids. The meat is not only good but also very healthy.
