Kobe Japan

Corelle Cherry Blossom Square 16-Piece Dinnerware Set, Service for 4 List Price: $94.99 Sale Price: $58.99 You save: $36.00 (38%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 2-3 business days

Japan - "KOBE" Mug Sale Price: $10.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Japan - "KOBE" Set of 4 Mini-Mousepad Coasters Sale Price: $8.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Back to Then List Price: $9.98 Sale Price: $6.49 You save: $3.49 (35%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Orchestral Stories List Price: $11.98 Sale Price: $4.99 You save: $6.99 (58%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Quartet for Kobe Sale Price: $41.41   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Nova: The Day the Earth Shook [VHS] Sale Price: $33.00   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Great Quakes - Kobe Japan, San Francisco, Mexico City (3 Tape Set) Sale Price: $19.95   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Disaster Mitigation: Kobe Disaster Case Study (Video) [VHS] List Price: $269.95

View of Famous Kobe Port Tower, Japan - 36"H x 24"W - Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys Sale Price: $51.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Simple Unique Rustic Distinctive Lighting - 21" Kobe Japanese Lantern Design Bamboo Pole Bedside Table Lamp Sale Price: $59.00   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Japan Kobe - Harborwalk and Red Brick Warehouse - 24"W x 16"H - Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys Sale Price: $33.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara (Pitfall / Woman in the Dunes / The Face of Another) (The Criterion Collection) List Price: $79.95 Sale Price: $42.99 You save: $36.96 (46%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Perfect Blue [UMD for PSP] Sale Price: $39.98   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

KOSE SEIKISHO Mask White 75ml/2.7oz List Price: $28.00 Sale Price: $18.99 You save: $9.01 (32%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Estee Lauder Cyber White EX Extra Brightening Moisture Lotion 6.7 fl.oz./200ml. List Price: $57.20

Jyunmai Cleansing Gel / Makeup Remover Gel 5 wt. oz. (150 g)

Mitsubishi BD-R 25gb 2x Speed LTH Type - 10 Pack - Printable with 5mm Slim Case Sale Price: $24.50   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Yakami Orchard 100 % Pure Japanese Yuzu Juice 12 oz. / 375 ml List Price: $16.99 Sale Price: $13.99 You save: $3.00 (18%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 2-3 business days

Wagyu Beef Rib Eye Steaks - Marble Grade 5/6 - 12 (14 oz) Rib Eyes Sale Price: $506.62   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Wagyu Beef New York Strip Steak - Marble Grade 8 - Whole, Cut To Order - 11 lbs cut to 1 1/2-inch steaks Sale Price: $881.74   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Roadmarker Kobe - Japan Japanese Women's Dark T-Shirt by CafePress List Price: $29.50

JAPAN - Country-series - Heather Grey or White T-shirt

I LOVE JAPAN - Country-series - White T-shirt

Kobe Japanese Metal Novelty Japan Japanese Jdm License Plate Wall Sign Tag Sale Price: $12.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Kobe Metal Novelty Japan Japanese Jdm License Plate Wall Sign Tag Sale Price: $12.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Kobe Metal Novelty Japan Japanese Jdm License Plate Wall Sign Tag Sale Price: $12.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Masamune Shirow's New Dominion Tank Police, Volume Three Sale Price: $34.28   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Kobo Wifi eReader List Price: $139.99 Sale Price: $69.99 You save: $70.00 (50%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Kobo eReader Touch Edition (Silver)

Photo Jigsaw Puzzle of Kobe, Japan - Motomachi-dori from Mary Evans Sale Price: $29.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 4-5 business days

Photo Jigsaw Puzzle of Statue of Buddha at Kobe from Mary Evans Sale Price: $29.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 4-5 business days

Kobe: Million Dollar View - Thomas McNight - 1020 Piece - Sale Price: $49.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

NBA 2K11 List Price: $39.99 Sale Price: $8.99 You save: $31.00 (78%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

NBA 2K11 List Price: $39.99 Sale Price: $12.01 You save: $27.98 (70%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

NBA 2K10 List Price: $29.99 Sale Price: $9.48 You save: $20.51 (68%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Mozambique ｂｏｙ Augusto Happy ｓｔａｙ ｉｎ ｋｏｂｅ ｊａｐａｎ！

Kobe Beef

America is a nation of beef eaters. From massive burgers oozing fat over our fingers to thick ribeye steaks lying heavy on the plate to meatballs to hotdogs to Bolognese sauces to beef stir fries, we eat beef in all its flavorful, near infinite variations. Entire restaurant chains are dedicated to beef, from Ruth Chris to Morton's Steakhouse, to the best restaurants in NYC such as Del Frisco's or Peter Luger's. Cowboys are an iconic American image, as is the independent rancher watching his herds out West, eyes always on the horizon. Beef is an American pastime, lover affair and obsession. However, nothing we have comes close to the fanaticism that the Japanese approach their Kobe beef with. What is Kobe beef, why is it so expensive, and is it worth the price? Read on, and find out.

Kobe beef comes from the mountainous Kobe region of Japan, where cattle were raised in isolated pockets for centuries, resulting in distinct breeds that developed their own unique flavor. Official Kobe beef comes from the black Tajima-ushi breed of Wagyu cattle, and are controlled by incredibly strict regulations in terms of their production, slaughter and sale if they are to qualify for the title. There are specific slaughterhouses to which they are sent, they must have a marbling ratio of level 6 or higher, and a Meat Quality Score of A or B.

What makes Kobe beef so famous (or infamous) is the incredible price at which it's sold. Prices can range to up to more than $100/lb, and is justified by the incredible scarcity of the meat. Only some three or four hundred cattle are available on the market every year, and each of those have been pampered and specially treated so as to enhance the fat marbling of their flesh. This treatment famously consists of forcing the cows to drink beer and to have their muscles massaged daily by scores of workers who knead, prod, and palp their haunches, backs and sides for extended periods of time.

Due to the terrific demand in the US for Kobe beef, the Japanese have begun to export their cattle to the USA for them to be raised there. Since for the cattle to be considered official Kobe beef they must be of the correct stock, raised according to strict principles and slaughtered in Japan, it has become economically feasible for them to be raised in the American Midwest, shipped to Japan to be killed, and then sent back to America for consumption.

Given how expensive the meat is, a new market has appeared for Wagyu cattle that are raised and slaughtered in America, treated exactly the same way as the official Kobe cattle but sold for a substantially lower price. Both steaks are high in fat content and low in meat flavor, so that portions are usually quite small. Is it worth paying the absurdly high sum for the official Kobe Beef? No. If you are intent on procuring Wagyu meat, than the American raised beef will taste almost exactly the same, and be nearly a tenth of the price.

About the Author

Philip Tucker is a Fitness Product Review specialist for Miami based Extreme Fitness Results LLC. He enjoys getting his protein from his P90X
Results and Recovery Formula
, which is especially crucial after doing his
Insanity Workout
.