Wine-sipping cattle start B.C. culinary trend

Angus cattle in British Columbia's Okanagan region are being fed red wine with their grain, and chefs say it makes the beef taste unique.

The idea is the brainchild of Janice Ravndahl of Kelowna's Sezmu Meats. Ravndahl said the beef produced in the wine and cattle areas of the region has an enhanced flavour, the marbling is finer and the fat tastes like candy.

"You don't get any better than steak and a wine," she said.

"We just start a bit earlier."

Butfederal food inspectors apparently had a problem with giving wine to cattle. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency called Ravndahl recently and questioned her about sediment in the wine, but they didn't order her to stop.

"They said they had some concerns about wine being fed to cattle. We are not being shut down. We are being allowed to sell the product," she said. "I am trying to work with them at getting it officially approved."

CFIA spokesman Tim O'Connor said they investigated the case and concluded there is no risk to human safety. He said concerns were about animals being fed winery waste byproducts, such as dead yeast or residual yeast as a feed supplement.

Idea came from beer-swilling pigs

The idea of giving wine to cattle came to Ravndahl late last year during a TV food program that featured beer-swilling pigs. As the Okanagan is one of Canada's premier wine regions, getting local beef on the bottle seemed like a good plan.

'They moo a lot more with each other. They get really chatty.' Janice Ravndahl, cattle rancher

Ravndahl said she started with one young cow who took to the bottle immediately, quickly earning the epithet Wino.

"It definitely changes their personalities. They moo a lot more with each other. They get really chatty," she said.

Trying to find the optimal time to serve the cows their wine course was vital to getting the best beef. They've determined 60 days produces a great taste in the beef.

"At 90 days, the costs get a little out of control," she said.

The first bovine wine tasting was in April 2009 with the 21-day dry-aged beef first hitting the market in February 2010.

"We just put it in a pail and said, 'Who's going to drink it?"' she said. "Wine has a very strong aroma. They were curious about it right away."

The cattle get a litre-blend of red wines daily, but their preference is for sweeter vintages, she said.

Ravndahl said the wine appears to make the steers more docile, which enhances the texture of the meat.

"Cattle that are relaxed taste better," she said. "You don't want tense beef."

No negative health effects

John Church, a cattle researcher at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, said the wine does not appear to have any negative effects on the health of the cows.

Justin Sextena, a University of Missouri cattle nutrition professor,agreed. He said the long-standing use of brewing industry byproducts containing residual alcohol does not appear to have harmed cattle.

"From a feeding standpoint, these products seem to work well in [cattle] diets," he said.

'The animal could get a little happy on it.' Peter Van Soest, Cornell University

Peter Van Soest, a Cornell University emeritus professor of animal science, said he thinks a little wine could be beneficial to the cattle. The alcohol is easily metabolized by cows' livers, he said.

"The animal could get a little happy on it," he said.

He said a litre of wine would make a man tipsy, but would have little effect for a 227-kilogram cow.

"A litre in that size animal is not very much," he said chuckling.

Canadian chefs who've tried the beef think it's a great idea.

Quail's Gate Winery of Kelowna, was among the first to put the beef on its menu. Chef Roger Sleiman uses the beef in a tenderloin carpaccio served with a touch of truffle, arugula and Reggiano cheese.

With the beef served raw in the carpaccio, he said, it's the flavours in the fats that come through.

"We've had great reviews from our customers. At first I thought it was a gimmick," he said. "It costs a bit more but we think it's worth it."

And diners think the whole thing is a bit of a novelty.

"Drunk cows," Sleiman said laughing.