Oyster Map & Guide

Bedeque

Oysters of all shapes and sizes are pulled from the Bedeque region. For many years Bedeque has been the principal source of oysters harvested from the wild or public fishery. During the oyster seasons, licensed individuals can fish from any waterway not under private lease. As very little of the vast bay is under lease, it remains open to public fishers. On a good day, a persistent fisher can fill six or more large wooden boxes and earn a tidy sum.

Cascumpec

The Cascumpec Bay Oyster Co. plant is located up the Trout River within the Cascumpec region. The family-run operation is focuses on farmed oysters from its own leases and those of supply partners within the Foxley River system. Locals and visitors are invited to enjoy freshly shucked oysters overlooking the picturesque river from the company’s seasonal oyster deck.

cacumpecbayoysterco.com

Retail Shipping/Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/American Distribution

cacumpecbayoysterco.com

Retail Shipping/Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/American Distribution

Flavours

**Your Journey Begins**

Using these five signposts of flavour along your PEI oyster tasting journey should allow
you to develop a ready reference to what you enjoy more in one variety over another.

Keep in mind that the most dominant flavours will have some seasonal variations
but that the more subtle mineral and sweet flavours can remain more constant
between one variety of oysters and another.

It is most important to be open-minded and try different varieties of PEI oysters in
different seasons. In this way, you’ll create the memories that define your oyster
journey.

Discovering the Flavours of PEI Oysters
Discovering the flavours of PEI, Canada’s Food Island, is an exciting journey that can last a lifetime. Consider these tasting notes as a guide on that journey.

World Famous
PEI has earned a worldwide reputation for its excellent oysters and boasts a thriving, progressive oyster fishery that spans three centuries. The esteemed quality of the Island’s oysters can be attributed to the region’s ideal growing environment and the dedicated Islanders that harvest and pack them.

Tasting Notes
Perhaps the most important insight into the world of oyster tasting is this: the flavours of an oyster are not a constant. Much like each vintage of a particular wine reveals the conditions under which the year’s grapes were grown, so too do the flavours of the oyster reveal much about its life at sea.

There are several rhythmically changing factors that drastically affect the flavours of all oysters. In this sense, any “tasting notes” you encounter on a menu or website are best appreciated as a snapshot of one oyster and one person’s palate at a certain time.

In our humble opinion, this makes for a great tasting adventure every time you sit down (or stand up!) to enjoy a platter of oysters – you never know exactly what you’ll get!

**Changing Factors**
The foremost factor affecting an oyster’s flavour is the season.

PEI is subject to mighty big seasonal changes and these directly reflect the oyster’s flavour. Remember that most oysters are harvested and then brought to market alive. As such, they will convey the water conditions from which they were plucked.

Melting snow and heavy rainfalls flood the river systems in the spring, making for oysters that are usually less salty. The same oyster that has been feeding all summer and is ready to spawn in the fall will exhibit more of the rich, earthy notes characteristic of these conditions.

Oysters that have been dormant under the thick ice of winter will have a different taste, often revealing more of their delicate mineral flavours.

Another key factor to account for is how the oysters are handled and served. It is incredibly important that oysters are properly stored and shucked. If the utmost care is not taken, the delicacy and delicious qualities of a live oyster will be greatly diminished.

Proper handling requires that the oysters be stored in a damp and cold environment. They also need to be carefully opened, avoiding any excessive destruction of the flesh or the forcing of bits of shell and dirt into the meat.

Learning to identify a properly shucked oyster will enhance your appreciation of its flavours and help you discern which restaurants are best for oyster feasting.

**Dressed or Naked**

To dress or not to dress? That’s always a point of consideration when it comes to oyster flavours and condiments.

Many people enjoy a condiment or topping on their oyster, ranging from a simple squeeze of lemon or splash of flavoured vinegar to some concoction of sauces and shavings that’s well-intentioned but often overpowering.

Even the slightest of these will greatly alter the flavour of an oyster. Often, the careful addition of a condiment will augment the flavour, lifting the taste of the mollusk from its salty enclave. We refer to this as being properly dressed.

Even with the sometimes happy effect of a dressing, it should be understood that any critical approach to oyster tasting is best done without any additions to its delicate flesh.

Oysters enjoyed unadorned are usually referred to as being neat or naked. This is the only way that most of the subtle nuances of flavour can be tasted. Plus, it’s just fun to say… “oysters are best eaten naked!”

**Swallow or Chew**

There is a longstanding belief that the proper way to eat an oyster is to swallow it whole. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Where this maxim originated is unclear, but rest assured that to do so would be akin to shooting a well-aged whisky.

In order to properly taste even the broadest flavour profiles, the oyster should be chewed a few times before swallowing. Chewing it will reveal any of the flavours that linger within the flesh beyond the easily apparent saltiness of the liquid in the shell.

**The Five Signposts of Flavour**

In your oyster forrays, you are likely to happen upon flavour descriptions that use complex and convoluted charts. These are mostly borrowed from the sophisticated wine-tasting community. While they may offer some direction,
there is a much simpler formula to identify and express the essential flavours present in oysters.

There are five broad flavour categories present, to one degree or another, in all PEI oysters. These can be used as clear signposts on the journey of discovery into an oyster’s flavours. They are as follows:

**Salty:** The initial flavour and usually most apparent. The liquid or “liquor” in the shell is the principal source but there is a degree of saltines within the flesh as well. This varies greatly depending upon when the oyster is harvested.

**Earthy:** An earthy or umami flavour is the principal profile of the flesh of a PEI oyster. The slow-moving tidal rivers where the oysters grow contain a variety of microscopic particles. The oyster ingests these and takes on their flavour. The easiest flavour comparison is to that of a raw mushroom.

**Grassy:** Some of the microscopic particles ingested by the oyster are plants that contain chlorophyll and these can lend a somewhat herbaceous flavour to the oyster. These crisper tones are less common in most PEI oysters and more prevalent in the spring and summer.

**Metallic**: Oysters will ingest and retain any number of minerals in the water. These elements add greatly to the nutritional value of the food. Often subtle, these complex flavours are what most distinguish one variety of PEI oyster from another.

**Sweet:** A sweet sensation will sometimes occur in a properly chewed oyster and this is derived from the glycogens in the flesh. The sweetest part is usually the more solid adductor muscle that is attached to the shells and cut during shucking. Large PEI oysters with big adductors will often have the sweetest flavour.

Malpeque and The Narrows

Situated off of Hardy Channel within the Malpeque & The Narrows region, Leslie Hardy and Sons is a family-operated oyster company dating back to the 19th century. They farm oysters on their leases within the region and also buy oysters sourced from the public fishery. The only thing greater than the years the Hardys have been harvesting oysters is the number
of family members involved in operating this renowned company.

hardyoysters.com

Retail/American Distribution

This expansive region embraces Malpeque Bay from the Darnley Basin on the east through the Grand River and up into the Trout and Bideford River systems. The region continues northwest along the Conway Narrows.

The Narrows, as it’s known locally, is a thin waterway protected from the open waters of the Gulf by long, often-shifting dunes. The shores of Malpeque Bay are dotted with working farms while the shores of the Narrows are mostly coastal marsh and forest.

The Mi’kmaq have been harvesting oysters within this region for millennia and the First Nation of Lennox Island currently operates an oyster hatchery next to the Ellerslie Shellfish Research Station on the Bideford River.

The region is home to a number of the most established oyster processing companies on the island. Traditionally they would buy oysters harvested from public beds across the Island and then grade and pack them for distribution worldwide. Today, these same processors also source oysters from independent growers and manage extensive farms of their own..

The original. The OG. The one that started it all. The Malpqeque oyster has long been synonymous with PEI oysters and understandably so. For many generations, the region was the commercial hub of the Island’s oyster fishery. Its reputation was further solidified at a Paris exhibition in 1900, where it was declared the world’s tastiest oyster. More than a century later, it continues to be a favourite amongst oyster lovers the world over.

Many of the oysters packed in the region are sourced from elsewhere and then relayed into the private leases of processors in the region. After a nice long bath, they are pulled up, packed and sold as Malpeques. The region’s oysters come in every size and shape but all have the famous Malpeque flavour.

Five Star Shellfish is a family-operated company located at Milligan’s Wharf within the Conway Narrows. The well-established company packs a variety of oyster brands that include farmed oysters from private leases as well as select products from the public fishery. Whether fishing lobster or growing oysters, the Jeffery brothers are dedicated to offering the finest shellfish the Island has to offer.

fivestarshellfish.ca

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/Experiential Tourism/American Distribution

Located in the village of Tyne Valley, Valley Pearl Oysters specializes in select oysters from the public fishery. The company has private leases within the Malpeque & The Narrows region where they grow oysters and hold them for processing. The company’s busy oyster bar and catering service are a focal point of the community.

valleypearloysters.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking Onsite Oyster Service/Experiential Tourism/American Distribution

Burleigh Brothers Seafood is located in East Bideford within the Malpeque & The Narrows region. This long-established company harvests from private leases that date to the 19th century. They also buy extensively from fishers across the island. This multi-generational oyster family is a proud sponsor of the annual Tyne Valley Oyster Festival and boasts a number of champion oyster shucking champions.

burleigh.pe.ca

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

hardyoysters.com

Retail/American Distribution

fivestarshellfish.ca

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/Experiential Tourism/American Distribution

valleypearloysters.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking Onsite Oyster Service/Experiential Tourism/American Distribution

burleigh.pe.ca

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

hardyoysters.com

Retail/American Distribution

Murray River

The region hosts extensive mussel farming operations with a growing number of oyster farms scattered along the shores of the rivers and around the islands in the harbour. Oyster production on the leases has increased dramatically over the past few decades as growers from more established districts have expanded into the Murray River region.

There has also been increased activity from the public fishery in recent years. As the market for PEI oysters has increased and many of the traditional harvesting tracts have waned in quality, wild fishers have sought out fresh sources in Murray River.

New London

raspberrypoint.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/American Distribution

Bordered on the east by PEI National Park and sheltered from the Gulf of St. Lawrence by great sand dunes, New London has long been an important oyster harvesting region. It is a large and complex system hosting dozens of rivers and streams. The principal inflows are the Hope and Stanley Rivers from the east and the Southwest River that empties into the northern corner of the bay. They all reach deep into the scenic countryside through an extensive network of tributaries.

The New London region has occasional wild harvesting but most of the oyster production comes from private leases. Many of the oldest leases are traditional bottom leases where select oysters are set to mature. These leases can have generational pedigrees and are a source of some of the Island’s most prized specimens.

The extensive surface culturing that occurs throughout the region has developed over the last twenty years. These well-kept oyster farms employ the latest technology and allow near-maximum production.

Prince Edward Aqua Farms is located alongside the mouth of the Southwest River in the New London region. The company packs a number of oyster brands with product sourced from private leases and the public fishery. In addition to their oyster production, the company’s extensive mussel operation makes them a cornerstone of the region’s economy.

peaqua.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/American Distribution

raspberrypoint.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/American Distribution

peaqua.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/American Distribution

raspberrypoint.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/American Distribution

Orwell Cove

Rustico

atlanticaquafarms.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping /American distribution

Situated just west of the famous resort district of Cavendish, the Rustico region encompasses its namesake waterways of Rustico Bay and North Rustico Harbour. It then extends east to embrace little Brackley Bay. Thoroughly sheltered, Rustico Harbour receives the ponds and streams of the Hunter River system. The more expansive Rustico Bay is fed by a number of flows, the principal ones being the Wheatly River and Hornes Creek. The surrounding landscape of gently rolling hills is populated with busy villages, dairy farms, and cottages.

The extensive dunes along the coast create the sheltered enclaves that oysters love. While there is casual harvesting of wild oysters up the rivers, it is the recent introduction of large-scale oyster farming that typifies the fishery today. Over the last decade, a number of underused bottom leases have been converted to active surface ones. Visible from the highway, the aqua farms spread out in even rows along the shoreline and into the bays.

The Rustico region has a long history as an important oyster harvesting region. It boasts wild oyster harvesting in the rivers and farmed oyster leases in Brackley Bay. Many of the wild oysters in the rivers are the twisted and elongated standard grade and bring the least return on the market. The better-attended beds within Brackley Bay grow much more valuable specimens.

This diverse region produces a range of shell colours but a light brown hue is the most common. The steady flow of creeks and rivers into the salty bays helps give the Rustico oysters their distinctly savoury flavour.

The Brackley Bay Oyster Co. is located in the Rustico region off of MacMillan Point within its namesake bay. The company packs oysters harvested from their private leases and also sources product from the public fishery. Proud to continue the bay’s great oyster tradition, they offer an excellent seasonal retail shop and oyster bar.

brackleybayoysterco.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/ American Distribution

atlanticaquafarms.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping /American distribution

brackleybayoysterco.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/ Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/ American Distribution

atlanticaquafarms.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping /American distribution

Savage Harbour

Atlantic Shellfish has its processing plant off of Red Head Harbour in St. Peters Bay. The company packs a range of oyster brands from leases in Savage Harbour, The East Bays and Orwell Cove regions. It also sources select product from the public fishery. This dedicated team of shellfish growers have developed many innovative technologies while introducing aquaculture into the region.

atlanticshellfish.com

Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

The Savage Harbour region is the smallest appellation. Located off the North Shore, the region consists of a little bay snugly ensconced from the Gulf of St Lawrence by high sand dunes and coastal marsh. There is an active wharf on the western edge of the harbour next to a narrow channel. The surrounding landscape is a mix of pine forest and wetlands with a few farms and cottages set back from the shore.

Fresh water enters the harbour through a number of creeks. The French and MacIntyres flow in from the west and MacDougals and MacEwens drain the east. The broad marram grass-covered dunes and the stunted pines give the pale landscape a somewhat otherworldly feel.

atlanticshellfish.com

Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

atlanticshellfish.com

Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

The East Bays

Oyster production in the region occurs up the sheltered rivers as well as within the exposed bays. There is occasional wild harvesting but most of the oysters in the East Bays come from private leases. Oyster farming is relatively new to the region. Introduced to Colville Bay in the late 1990s it then spread throughout the local waterways. There is some surface growing on the rivers, but most farms use bottom and off-bottom systems. The bottom systems are the most practical in the rough open waters of the bays.

The Colville Bay Oyster Co. are considered pioneer oyster farmers in The East Bays region. The company’s leases are located within its namesake bay at the mouth of the Souris River. The company processes from its plant off Lower Rollo Bay Road. The extended family serves up oysters and lobster at The Lobster Shack in Souris during the summer season.

colvillebayoysters.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/American Distribution

eastcapeoyster.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

colvillebayoysters.com

Retail/ Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/Onsite Oyster Service/American Distribution

eastcapeoyster.com

Retail/Direct Retail Shipping/Offsite Oyster Shucking/American Distribution

The Rivers

Oyster Map & Guide

Buy PEI Oysters, or share this guided map: Share Tweet Email

Thank you to our fishers!

Buy PEI Oysters, or share this guided map:
Share Tweet Email