Oysters – the Ocean’s Version of Fine Wine

The tiny Kumamotos with a buttery flavor cultivated in the intertidal lands north of San Francisco and the super-sweet Sea Cows from the nutrient rich estuaries of Puget Sound in Washington State are two well-known favorites. And not to be left out of our oyster story, is the renaissance of the oyster industry in the Southeastern U.S. where intrepid entrepreneurs are restoring a decimated environment after drought, hurricanes and oil spills.

Oysters have been sustaining human communities for thousands of years,
these three seafood purveyors are dedicated to keeping up the tradition.

The Hama Hama Story

Olympic Peninsula in the 1890’s, he had timber in mind, not oysters. Now, over a hundred years later, Hama Hama is a fifth-generation family-run sustainable tree and shellfish farm. Their oyster beds are located at the mouth of one of the shortest, coldest, and least developed rivers in Washington State and that purity is reflected in the clean, crisp flavor of their oysters downstream. It’s been said that oysters are so plentiful in the Hood Canal you can pick them up by the handful on the beaches — “oysters out number rocks” is only a slight exaggeration. Hama Hama oysters are beach grown and accustomed to moving with the tides and shifting currents – their schedules set by the gravitational pull of the sun and moon. Over the years, Hama Hama has branched out to add different merroirs and utilized farming methods that produce oysters unique in the market and distinct from one another. Among the varieties grown here are the super briny Summerstone and the smooth-shelled, crisp Blue Pool oyster that has a cucumber after taste and a pleasant saltiness. Though they’re available year-round (like most other oysters) they are sweeter in the spring and have a brinier finish in the fall and winter.

Hama Hama sells their oysters at their farm store and oyster saloon and at pop-ups throughout the Puget Sound and Portland regions and direct to consumers and chefs across the nation. They tell me their mission is pretty simple: utilize low impact farming methods to grow world-class oysters, have fun and leave something for the next guy.

The Hog Island Story

With California’s long coastline and thriving seafood industry, it’s surprising, there are few places to grow oysters in the state. There are simply not enough bays where oysters can thrive. San Francisco Bay that grew millions of oysters in the mid-1800’s is now far too polluted.

Hog Island Oyster Company is an anomaly, tucked away in Marin County an hour north of San Francisco. In 1983 John Finger and Terry Sawyer, two young marine biologists planted oyster seed on a 5-acre lease in Tomales Bay.  They began with the aim of growing the highest quality, local oysters. Today, Hog Island leases 160 acres in the bay and sells more than a million oysters Manila clams and mussels per year.  And, they are passionate about the environment and what’s going on in the seas and water around them. Under their watch, Hog Island has grown to become one of the premier producers of certified sustainable shellfish. Their signature and most popular oysters are the Hog Island Sweetwaters. It takes about 18 months before they’re ready to eat and are farmed year-round.

Although the company now has four restaurants and 300 employees, you can still gather some friends at their original site, pack your own picnic and, shuck your own oysters alongside the bay in which they grow. The ultimate oyster lovers’ experience!

The Lost Coast Story

There’s a new breed of oystermen and women across the South East. The use of modern equipment, techniques are reinventing the traditions of the Southern oyster industry. The Lost Coast Oyster Company is a member of Oyster South an organization spearheading this revolution with over 50 oyster farmers from eight states – Maryland to Florida to Louisiana.

In 2019, most of the players in the burgeoning oyster industry in the Southeast are young newcomers may lack traditional experience but have a stake in modernizing and adapting to a changed environment. One of these entrepreneurs is The Lost Coast Oyster Company that plans to plant their first batch of seed this fall and be providing their oysters to Tampa Bay area restaurants in early summer 2020.

How are they are doing it?

Floating Bags — They employ a floating bag system to culture their oysters. This growing method allows for ultimate control and crop management.

Spat — (aka juvenile oysters) are spawned at a nursery before they are stocked at the farm.

Stock – Hundreds of thousands of fingernail-sized oyster are stocked in floating bags, providing them with an ideal environment.

Grow – With each oyster filtering upwards of 50 gallons of water per day, these little guys consume microscopic algae, causing an explosion of growth.

Sort – To eliminate crowding and provide adequate space for growth, the babies are gradually sorted into larger bags.

Tumble – Wind and wave action naturally tumble the oysters, encouraging a deep cup and firmly textured meat.

Finally, HARVEST! When the oysters reach the magical 3:2:1 size ratio, they are ready to harvest and sold to market and savored.