- VERA EARL -
PREMIUM BEEF
YOU WILL TASTE THE DIFFERENCe
- THE CATTLE -
GRASS-RAISED. GRAIN-FINISHED.
All of the cattle in our Premium Beef program are born, raised, fed, and compassionately cared for on one of our ranches. We strive to raise efficient, high-marbling cattle that not only thrive on our Arizona ranches but provide the best-tasting beef. On the Vera Earl and 4 Spear Ranch, we raise Black Baldies, which are the product of Hereford cows and Black Angus bulls. These replacement heifers move to the Empire Ranch and are bred to either Charolais or Black Angus bulls.
The calves are born and raised in the grasslands of the Sonoita Valley until they are weaned, at about 7 months. At weaning, they are brought to the main Vera Earl and put on a corn and hay-based ration, made with local ingredients that are all sourced from within 200 miles of the ranch. The cattle are fed in open, 10-acre pastures until they reach their finishing weight of 1,200 to 1,400 lbs.
What is in a ration?
It all starts with the recipe. Our ration is formulated by a livestock nutritionist, ensuring the cattle receive optimal nutrition while in the grow yard. Each ingredient, as well as the ration as a whole, are evaluated multiple times a year, testing for things such as protein, mineral and vitamin levels.
Mixed fresh every morning, every ration is a mix of corn, dried distillers grain, corn stalks, seasonal hay and molasses. All of the ingredients are locally sourced from Southern Arizona, within a 200 mile radius of the ranch.
The rations do not contain any animal by-products, ionophores, or hormones. Every ingredient is all-natural and local.
Traceability & Transparency
Every animal that goes into the Vera Earl Premium Beef program is certified for Global Animal Partnership guidelines, All-Natural (never-ever program), Non-Hormone Treated, and Age & Source Verified.
Each steer or heifer receives an Electronic Identification Device, also known as an EID Tag, that is scanned into our record keeping system. These tags allow us to track all vaccinations, movements, and treatments of our cattle. All of the cattle in our program are guaranteed to never receive hormones or antibiotics. In the rare case that an animal becomes sick and needs treatment we record it using their EID tag, and they are removed from the program. This guarantees you receive the exact product you were promised on your family’s dinner table.
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- Superior Flavor -
Better Beef. But Why?
Where and how the cattle are raised is only part of the reason our beef provides a superior dining experience. As always, the cattle are born, bred, fed and finished on the ranch, never leaving until we take them to be harvested at a local, USDA inspected processor, where they will hang for a total of 21 days. This is where the magic happens…
Dry Aging. What is it and why is it important?
Dry-aged beef is a time-honored process that enhances the natural flavor and tenderness of beef through controlled aging in a temperature- and humidity-regulated environment. During this process, moisture slowly evaporates from the meat, concentrating its rich, beefy flavor, while natural enzymes break down muscle fibers for a more tender texture. Unlike wet-aged beef — which is sealed in plastic and aged in its own juices — dry-aged beef develops a deeper, more complex flavor profile with nutty, buttery notes that simply can’t be replicated any other way.
At Vera Earl Premium Beef, we take this process a step further by dry-aging the entire carcass, not just select subprimals. This means that every cut — from our high-end steaks to our chuck roasts to our ground beef — benefits from the same careful aging process. The result is beef that’s consistently tender, flavorful, and true to the craft and quality we stand for.
