How has COVID-19 affected Clear Creek Beef & how are you handling social distancing requirements?
We are glad to be able to continue to support our local communities in their beef needs while observing COVID-19 recommended guidelines.
As always, our beef is USDA certified and delivered directly to your door frozen. We are taking every care to limit unnecessary handling and to minimize person-to-person contact, including at the farmers markets. We have created an assortment of popular combination packages that are prepackaged and ready for pickup with contactless payments.
We are pleased to be able to continue to offer our high quality products to our local customers. We thank you for your support of our small local business during this time and are working hard to do our part to maintain a consistent standard for those in our employ.
As always, our beef is USDA certified and delivered directly to your door frozen. We are taking every care to limit unnecessary handling and to minimize person-to-person contact, including at the farmers markets. We have created an assortment of popular combination packages that are prepackaged and ready for pickup with contactless payments.
We are pleased to be able to continue to offer our high quality products to our local customers. We thank you for your support of our small local business during this time and are working hard to do our part to maintain a consistent standard for those in our employ.
Has COVID-19 affected processing & product availability?
12/07/2020 UPDATE: Lucky you, our inventory is fully restocked and all cuts are available!
Yes. Due to CoVid-19 constraints on processing by the USDA facility, certain specialty cuts are not always available. Beef share purchases which contain these cuts will be replaced with similar cuts (i.e. hamburger for patties, tenderloin for filet).
Yes. Due to CoVid-19 constraints on processing by the USDA facility, certain specialty cuts are not always available. Beef share purchases which contain these cuts will be replaced with similar cuts (i.e. hamburger for patties, tenderloin for filet).
Is there a waiting list for shares?
Our freezers are usually stocked, so we are again happily able to provide you with beef in your desired quantity on demand, travel conditions permitting. However, to ensure our quality beef is available for our customers who just want a single steak, our shares (especially quarter, half, and whole shares) are projected out for delivery.
Most ranchers will offer beef shares for sale once the "entire" animal is spoken for AND when the animals are ready for processing. So, if you are looking for a quarter beef, it might be a while until the other 3 quarters are sold. Then, the rancher will direct you to a processor where you'll select your cuts from a few option and get the finished beef from them. At Clear Creek Beef, we process beef when they are "ready," not when they are sold. Steers are custom finished to our specification (age, weight, marbling) and they are processed at a USDA-certified facility. After processing, they are stored in our secure walk-in freezer ready for delivery to you in accordance with the cut/pack chart located under the 'store' tab.
Most ranchers will offer beef shares for sale once the "entire" animal is spoken for AND when the animals are ready for processing. So, if you are looking for a quarter beef, it might be a while until the other 3 quarters are sold. Then, the rancher will direct you to a processor where you'll select your cuts from a few option and get the finished beef from them. At Clear Creek Beef, we process beef when they are "ready," not when they are sold. Steers are custom finished to our specification (age, weight, marbling) and they are processed at a USDA-certified facility. After processing, they are stored in our secure walk-in freezer ready for delivery to you in accordance with the cut/pack chart located under the 'store' tab.
What does grain-finished mean?
Many animals are "grass-finished," which means they spend their entire life on pasture. Our steers spend most of their lives grazing on long and short fescue grasses, meadow grasses, and clover. We take great measures to prep our fields at the start of the season and maintain ever-improving irrigation systems to maximize grass growth and minimize weed encroachment. In fact, we removed alfalfa from our grass seed staple years ago due to its short roots and inability to crowd out weeds.
Grain-finishing adds high-fiber, high-protein grains to their diet for roughly 120 days leading up to processing. This time frame is subject to change based on the frame and natural finishing of the individual animal. This provides a melt-in-your mouth buttery flavor and better marbling, which greatly influences the tenderness of your beef. Grass-finished beef, which is leaner and tends to have a gamey taste, is also available upon request.
Grain-finishing adds high-fiber, high-protein grains to their diet for roughly 120 days leading up to processing. This time frame is subject to change based on the frame and natural finishing of the individual animal. This provides a melt-in-your mouth buttery flavor and better marbling, which greatly influences the tenderness of your beef. Grass-finished beef, which is leaner and tends to have a gamey taste, is also available upon request.
What does hand-finished mean?
When we shift a steer onto grain, their individual finishing timeline begins in earnest. Our master finisher oversees the daily feeding and care of each animal, walking among them and caring for them, quite literally "hands-on". Finishing can be gauged to some level visually, but to truly determine when a steer is ready for processing, it must be touched. This requires docility and familiarity in order to accurately assess when it has reached that optimum quarter-inch marbling we aim for every time. There are decades of experience and knowledge invested into each beef we bring to our customers.
This is what we mean when we say "craft beef". This is what we mean when we say "artisan".
This is what we mean when we say "craft beef". This is what we mean when we say "artisan".