It's easy: our beef has extraordinary taste, it's healthy, and we offer it at a great value.

What makes our beef so special? Simply put, it meets Joseph Decuis' standards for quality. We have inspected the best ranches, feed lots and processors in America to ensure their practices meet our quality requirements, and we have employed these same standards. When you taste our beef at our restaurant or purchase it through our Emporium at Joseph Decuis, you can be assured that it has met our highest standards for quality.

American Kobe is considered the finest tasting beef in the world. To put its quality in perspective, the USDA has eight grades of beef; the top three grades are Select, Choice and Prime. Select and Choice are typically sold in local grocery stores, and Prime, which represents only 2% of the beef produced in America, is a rare commodity available only in fine dining restaurants and select retail distributors. American Kobe exceeds the quality of Prime.

The great taste and health benefits of American Kobe are a function of genetics, diet and care. Experts may not exactly agree on the percentages, but it is said that 60% to 70% of the quality is attributable to the pure-blooded Wagyu genetics, and 30% to 40% is attributable to a special diet and personal care. Technically, American Kobe is a cross between pure-blooded Wagyu genetics and black and/or red angus to produce very healthy cattle with exceptional marbling capability. Our cattle are raised in a natural hormone-free and stress-free environment, under the watchful eye of professionals who have a great respect and passion for this breed. After weaning, the cattle are fed a special diet to achieve slow gains and are harvested between 24-28 months, at the precise time the quality of beef reaches its peak. We finish the cattle at our local butcher shop under the careful eye of Dave Vining, proprietor and owner of this 50-year-old family-owned business. Dave dry ages the beef and then prepares it into special Joseph Decuis cuts — the same cuts that are enjoyed by our restaurant guests. Because Joseph Decuis manages the process with direct relationships with our producers and total control over our farm-raised beef, with our limited sources, we are able to offer our American Kobe well below prices from other sources. At this time, our beef is only available to discerning customers in the state of Indiana.

Today, nutritionists are espousing the positive influences of certain fat in our overall diets. At the University of Wisconsin, researchers have looked at possible carcinogenic substances in meat. To their great surprise, they discovered that certain fats found in meat contain a substance with anticancer properties. This substance is also thought to combat arteriosclerosis, the tendency of arteries to become "silted up." These effects can be attributed to CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), which is primarily found in meat and milk from ruminant animals such as cattle, sheep and goats.

Beef is also high in monounsaturated fatty acids that are known to lower LDL ("Bad") cholesterol without lowering HDL ("Good") cholesterol in humans. Research has shown that — as a result of their genetic properties — Wagyu cattle contain up to 30% more monounsaturated fatty acids than the much-praised Angus.

The latest research results from Pennsylvania State University were published December 2000 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Researchers concluded that eating monounsaturated fatty acids is better for your heart than eating special diets with lean products. The research also shows that Wagyu meat can actually help to reduce cholesterol levels.

Wagyu beef is visually striking because of its wonderful marbling, which results in a never-before-experienced succulence, sure to send your taste buds reeling. But, Wagyu fat is highly monounsaturated, which has been proven to be better for your health, and melts at normal room temperatures. The rich quality of American Kobe beef is a suitable part of a well-balanced, low-cholesterol diet.

Bottom line, the choice to enjoy Joseph Decuis Signature American Kobe is a smart choice — unbelievably delicious, healthy, and through Joseph Decuis, affordable.