Oysters

[edenman]

I don't know if it is an Atlantic oyster thing or just bad luck, but everything I had was extremely iodine-y and salty. There was none of the delicate sweetness that I usually like. And I agree with Don, but they were all way too large, nearly two-bite oysters, for most of the ones I tried. Are smaller sweeter? Or was I just unlucky?

In my relatively limited experience, the smaller ones tend to have more sweetness (I'm assuming this is because of a simple "more sweet things coming in and less mass to distribute it over"), and the Pacific ones tend to be sweeter (colder water?). I may have just made the Pacific thing up. Anybody make it to the riot this year and have any comments?

[MeMc]

In my relatively limited experience, the smaller ones tend to have more sweetness (I'm assuming this is because of a simple "more sweet things coming in and less mass to distribute it over"), and the Pacific ones tend to be sweeter (colder water?). I may have just made the Pacific thing up. Anybody make it to the riot this year and have any comments?

Rowan Jacobsen's book on oysters has a terrific rundown on them. His blog does, too:www.oysterguide.com

[Waitman]

Man, I hate those wussy little left coast girlie-man oysters with their frilly shells and invisible flavor. Get something a man can eat, something with flavor and brine: Wellfleets or Belons (the further from Puget Sound, the better) or whatever the Rappahannock Oyster guys are pulling out of the Lower Bay. That's some eating that doesn't have to be done with pinkies extended.

[Heather]

Belons? They're a different species, aren't they?

Wellfleets are superb and tend to be large and very briny. I had VA oysters for lunch today at Nicaro that were delicious.

[Waitman]

Belons? They're a different species, aren't they?

Wellfleets are superb and tend to be large and very briny. I had VA oysters for lunch today at Nicaro that were delicious.

They're all oysters to me, man. Clams -- now that's a different species, because you have to open them with a different kind of knife.

[xcanuck]

In my relatively limited experience, the smaller ones tend to have more sweetness (I'm assuming this is because of a simple "more sweet things coming in and less mass to distribute it over"), and the Pacific ones tend to be sweeter (colder water?). I may have just made the Pacific thing up. Anybody make it to the riot this year and have any comments?

I'll endure Waitman's ridicule (as always ) and say that we enjoyed the smaller ones at the Riot both this year and last. Though we did get some pacific coast oysters (mostly BC and Wash) that were about medium size and tasted wonderfully briny. We set up shop beside one of those and I must've slurped about 18 from that one stand alone. Fantastic. Too bad you couldn't say the same for the wine.

The really huge ones? Ugh. No flavour to speak of and they always seemed to have the most shell particles in them. Yuck.

[Mrs. B]

Kushi, Kushi, Kushi.

[edenman]

Kushi, Kushi, Kushi.

So true.

[TedE]

Speaking of the Riot, does anybody still have the oyster map from that night? I can't find ours and I'm trying to remember the name of the variety they had from Alaska (the only one there I believe). I found them really good, and I don't usually gravitate towards the big and meaty ones. This one seemed to have an East Coast texture with a Pacific flavor, or at least that's how I remembered it.

EDIT: I should mention Canoe Lagoon is the name that comes up most often when I search for Alaskan oysters, but that doesn't ring a bell to me. It could have been the wine, though. No, it probably was the wine.

My first experience with a Belon was at BlackSalt shortly after they opened. It was revelatory, the best oyster I've ever had. Sadly, the few occasions that I've had them since (Riot included) haven't lived up. I mean they've been good, but that first one was gooooooodddddd.

Had some Nabob Bay at Hank's last night; really liked those.

[southdenverhoo]

Man, I hate those wussy little left coast girlie-man oysters with their frilly shells and invisible flavor. Get something a man can eat, something with flavor and brine: Wellfleets or Belons (the further from Puget Sound, the better) or whatever the Rappahannock Oyster guys are pulling out of the Lower Bay. That's some eating that doesn't have to be done with pinkies extended.

LOL, reminds me of my first dozen Kumamotos, I was (and am) just an ol redneck from the Virginia Piedmont so there was a distinct "Is that all there is?" vibe to the whole (pretty expensive even then) moment. I guess I was expecting a Chincoteague only more so, you know? As in, these are so world famous and all, they must be more intense/plumper/brinier than I'm used to, they must be like Chincoteague squared. Or even, to the nth power, was my sort of expectation level. The epitome of oysterhood.

Not so much. My date suggested the fault was mine, a certain lack of delicacy to my palate, and of course it was my fault...

I did have another dozen or two. Towards the end of the third dozen I began to appreciate their subtler and sweeter charms, though lord save me I think I still resented their puniness, a little. This did not impress her too much either, some girls think a guy who will slurp down 36 oysters across a 2-top from them on date #2 lacks the requisite savoir-faire, or something, to be granted a date #3...I'm married to a midwestern girl now, they don't mind a hearty appetite.

[Waitman]

There's a fine line between delicate and tasteless.

As for the "smaller is better" idea -- I understand the texture problem, but some of the best oysters I ever ate were pulled from the warm waters around Greece; you practically had to eat them with a knife and fork.

[Cizuka Seki]

FYI -- We have BELON oysters from Maine on the half shell tonight and I believe we'll have them tomorrow night as well.  They're very beautiful -- almost shaped like a scallop shell.  They taste metallic and tannic and quite unlike any oyster I've ever had; they're also rare.  We serve them like we do with our other oysters -- yuzu juice and a little momiji oroshi.  $3/oyster, in this particular case.

[DonRocks]

In a recent unscientific comparison of Senart's and Hank's: Senart's happy hour oysters are cheaper ($1 vs $1.25) but Senart's were so mild as to be flavorless. Hanks gave a selection of 3 kinds (to Senart's 1) and were pretty good. Pay the extra .25 for Hanks.

Hmm ... one man's mild is another man's delicate - now you have me curious.

(Just to establish my personal preference, I like small and delicate; not big and briney - Pacific Northwest; not Mid-Atlantic - cold water; not warm water; Kumamoto, Malpeque, and Kusshi; not Olde Salt, Wellfleet, and Bluepoint. That said, I am fully aware that this is a personal preference, and not a value judgment, and I don't let this personal bias come across in my writing (or, I try not to)).

Hmm, on second thought, maybe I do - this is similar to warm-climate, 15% red wines vs. cool-climate, 12% red wines.

A technical question: Why are some oysters brinier than others? Is it the porosity of the outer hull that lets the saltwater into the flesh, or are some areas of water saltier than others, or both, or neither?

[Rieux]

The Atlantic is far saltier. See this article: http://sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/The-Ocean-in-Action/Science-Ideas-and-Concepts/Ocean-salinity

[The Hersch]

The Atlantic is far saltier. See this article: http://sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/The-Ocean-in-Action/Science-Ideas-and-Concepts/Ocean-salinity

But aren't a lot of east-coast oysters harvested in estuaries, where the water is brackish, which should make the oysters less salty?

[Ilaine]

Yes, Atlantic oysters are harvested in estuaries, but the closer to the ocean, the saltier the oyster.  Thus, Olde Salts, which are grown in Bogues Bay off the coast of Chincoteague, are quite salty.

[Al Dente]

They say oysters are an aphrodisiac so I had twelve. Only one worked.

[Barbara]

They say oysters are an aphrodisiac so I had twelve. Only one worked.

TMI