[Corrected: Link issues are fixed.]

Lowcountry Spring

Ahh, springtime, when a young oyster’s thoughts turn to...food—especially in the Southeast, where the oysters have already started to fatten on rich spring plankton blooms. Southern oysters are in prime shape, yet we can’t help notice that several of the greatest southern oysters still have no reviews on OysteRater. If you’re sampling (or have sampled) Chunus from the Virginia coast, Caper’s Blades from Charleston, or Blufftons, harvested wild from the May River and shucked at South Carolina’s last shucking house, please post a few words about it. Also, we need a photo for the Bluffton page. Please snap one before dispatching your victim, and upload your photos at Oysterater.com (or email it).

In this issue:

• Hama Hama Oyster Rama
• Chatham Oysters Now Shipping Direct
• Shigokus Branch Out
• We Want Your Photos II - submit a photo
• Contest: Name That Oyster! - submit your guess
• [New] Monthly Ratings email available - sign up

Hama Hama Oyster Rama
One of the most madcap events of the oyster year goes down on May 7 when the Hama Hama Oyster Rama takes place on the beautiful banks of Hood Canal in Washington State. The Rama involves lots of food and music; U-pick clams and oysters; something called the Shuckathlon that involves sprinting, clam digging, shucking, and who knows what else; oyster & wine tastings and pairings with celebrity chefs, tours of the tide flats with local ecologists, and a few surprises.

Chatham Oysters Now Shipping Direct
Welcome news indeed: Chatham oysters, a favorite of many oyster conoscenti, just started shipping direct via FedEx. They have a spiffy new website that makes it a (sea)breeze to order. Check it out and taste one of the Cape’s masterpieces.
 
Shigokus Branch Out
Taylor Shellfish is now offering their wildly popular Shigoku oysters in three sizes: Shigokus, the little tumbled 2” cocktail oysters we know and love; Fat Bastards, the same oyster grown to a robust 3”, and Grand Crus, 4” powerhouses. We bet you can tell which is which in this photo. As supplies fill in, all three will be available coast to coast, but for now your best bet is Taylor’s oyster bars in Seattle. (Or Hong Kong, where most of the Grand Crus end up.) Stumbled across any Fat Bastards or Grand Crus yet? Tell us what you think.


 
We Want Your Photos II
OysteRater will soon launch its oyster bar guide. But there are so many new ones, and the big challenge is getting photos of them all. If you’re in an oyster bar, take a second to snap a photo (horizontal view) and login to submit a photo. Thanks!
 
Contest: Name That Oyster!
The photographer David Malosh took some amazing shots for Rowan’s forthcoming book The Essential Oyster. Here’s one below. The scale of the oyster farm; the seawall; the pointy spire in the distance—this could be only one place on earth. Be the first to tell us where and win a free box of Shigoku oysters, courtesy of Taylor Shellfish.

Enter the contest to compete and win!  (If you do not remember your password, please look for the "Lost your password?" link below the box on the login screen.)

Winner and location to be revealed next newsletter. Good luck!



(New!) Monthly Ratings email is available
Sign up to receive our new Monthly Ratings email. You'll have the latest community ratings delivered to your Inbox, just once per month.

With brine,

Rowan & Carter


p.s. How do I get OysteRater on my phone? Super simple. Instructions here. Takes ten seconds.