The Abridged version:
- Lean cattle long tied to Italy’s Piedmont region are now being raised outside Red Bluff.
- Fassona beef is popping up on restaurant menus across the Sacramento region and Bay Area.
- Chefs serve the beef raw or slow-cook it, as is traditionally done in northern Italy, rather than grilling it.
A distinct northern Italian cattle breed, raised outside Red Bluff, is landing on Sacramento and Bay Area restaurant tables — often served raw.
Fassona, the ranch’s name as well as the Piedmontese cattle breed it raises, is different than most American beef. In a world where marbling and richness rule, Fassona produces lean meat with a fine grain, prized more for tenderness and texture than fat. That difference shapes how the beef is used, favoring simple preparations like tartare or slow simmering rather than high-heat cooking.
Diego Barison, an agronomist who grew up on a farm in Piedmont and now farms in Tehama County, brought Fassona beef to Northern California. He established the herd by breeding cattle using semen and embryos imported from Italy, creating a full-blood Piedmontese program rather than relying on crossbreeds.
“There’s a lot of confusion around Piedmontese beef,” Barison said. “People call anything Piedmontese even if it’s just a crossbreed. Fassona is about preserving the original breed and the way it’s meant to be eaten.”
Raising the cattle follows a seasonal rhythm. The herd moves between Red Bluff and higher-elevation summer pasture near Mount Shasta, a pattern that mirrors how Fassona cattle have long been raised in northern Italy.
Darrell Corti, owner of Sacramento specialty grocery Corti Brothers, has supported Fassona from the start. He situates the beef within a much older European approach that values texture over fat as a marker of quality.
In Piedmont, Corti noted, Fassona is traditionally used for carne cruda, bollito misto (a traditional dish of mixed boiled meats) and other preparations that emphasize flavor without relying on richness.
“Americans want to put everything on a grill,” Corti said. “That doesn’t work with this meat. You have to cook it gently or not much at all. In Piedmont, this beef isn’t used the way we use beef here.”
Fassona shows up on menus in straightforward preparations that suit lean beef. At Magpie Cafe in Midtown Sacramento, it appears as a beef tartare dressed with pickles, mustard, herbs, onion and fresh horseradish served with toast. The bright pink meat echoed familiar flavors, with the crunch of pickles and the sharpness of onion recalling an In-N-Out Burger-style profile, just stripped down and raw. Grilled bread added more texture, while freshly grated horseradish brought a sinus-clearing heat.
Chef Marcello Fasulo also works the beef into rotating preparations at Osteria Fasulo in Davis, including guancia con polenta, a slow-cooked cheek paired with soft cornmeal, and tajarin al sugo di Fassona, thin egg pasta coated in a rich beef ragù.
Ed Roehr, who co-founded Magpie Cafe with his wife, Janel Inouye, first encountered Fassona through Darrell Corti. They talked about it over at lunch, Corti connected him with Barison, and Fassona has been on Magpie’s menu for more than a year.
“The product is what we like at Magpie. It’s local and it’s got an heirloom kind of a pedigree,” Roehr said. “We couldn’t resist.”
Beyond Sacramento and Davis, Fassona has started appearing on menus throughout Northern California. It shows up at Amore Mio in Placerville and at several Bay Area restaurants, including Belotti, Donato & Co. and Passione Emporio in Berkeley, along with Hot Italian in San Rafael. Across kitchens, the common thread is Italian cooking that understands how to work with lean beef, whether served raw, simmered or folded into sauce.
At Terra Madre Americas, Sacramento’s landmark Slow Food expo in September, Barison served Fassona samples as a tartare. Diners moved quickly from hesitation to repeat visits, with many returning multiple times after their first taste.
“We wanted people to try it as it is, and it was a success,” Barison said.
Magpie will host a six-course dinner built around Fassona on Jan. 27, with Corti and winemakers from across North America taking part. The menu is expected to include Piedmontese preparations like battuta al coltello (hand-chopped beef tartare), tagliolini pasta al ragù and possibly bollito misto. More details will be shared through Magpie and Fassona’s websites as the date approaches.
Barison doesn’t see Fassona’s meat as a replacement for American beef culture, but an addition, one that prioritizes breed, muscle structure and a naturally lean profile over heavy marbling. In Northern California, that perspective has moved from concept to practice, with Fassona now part of the regional food landscape.
Keyla Vasconcellos is a Sacramento-based freelance journalist.