Tough and tasteless. That was my first experience with grass-fed beef. My bad: I overcooked it.

Grass-fed beef is far leaner than typical grain-based beef and requires a lighter touch on the grill. Cooking techniques can be refined but it sure helps to start with the right ingredients.

It turns out that raising an animal on grass that tastes good and is full of flavor requires a certain amount of time and attention. There is a crucial link between diet and flavor.

Grass-fed meats as defined by the American Grassfed Association are “food products from animals that have eaten nothing but their mother’s milk and fresh grass or grass-type hay from birth to harvest—all their lives.”

Meaning?  Success depends on the skills and instincts of the farmer.

Just as an heirloom tomato can taste different from farm to farm, grass-fed animals, beef in this case, depend both on breeding and on the quality of the grass they eat.

Grass can be made up of alfalfa and clover, which is high in sugar content, or it can be full of weeds with little taste. Better grasses also add to the beef’s nutritional value. Grass-fed beef has plenty of iron, B vitamins and zinc. Grass-fed is also higher in beneficial omega-3 fats and conjugated linoleic acids, which reduce the risk of heart disease.

Then you need a breed that can be healthy in adverse conditions and can handle winters as well as summer weather.

Jen Dustin (below) and her husband, Phil Leahy, of Leahy Farm in Lee, Mass are raising Milking Devons that were first introduced to this country by the Pilgrims—talk about preserving a heritage breed. These cattle grow well on grass, are supremely adapted to living outside 365 days of the year and do not depend on grain.

Allen and Robin Cockerline of Whippoorwill Farm, dairy farmers for 24 years, now raise cattle for meat. They have created crossbreeds of Devon, Hereford and Angus.  Allen, a member of the American Grassfed Association, sticks to the group’s principles. His beef, even a traditionally tough cut like London Broil, is a pleasure to eat, full of flavor and tender.