This past Wednesday Harmony Sea Farm(North Stonington, CT) had their first harvest of mature oysters. Just by chance we found out about the harvest and ordered 3 dozen to be shared with good friends that night. The oysters are listed by Harmony Sea Farm as Riverhawks which are grown from seed in a sheltered area near Barn Island Connecticut and then taken out to open waters off of Stonington for finishing. These oysters were easy to shuck as they had a deep cup and strong hinge section. So for dinner it was oysters, salad, & bread with 3 terrific white wines. The oysters were pretty briny and of perfect size that paired beautifully with a 2014 Paumanok Chenin Blanc “Minimalist” which provided the perfect acidity. We also had a 2015 Millton Chenin Blanc as well but it did not pair as well with the oysters. This is a nice wine on it’s own but Millton’s harvest criteria and barrel fermentation creates a softer lower acidity wine with slight oak notes that doesn’t cut the oyster flavor and salinity. With the salad we had a beautiful 2014 Sauzet Bourgogne that I think is a terrific entry to white burgundy as it balances fruit, acidity, and mouthfeel. The balance seems to come from a blend of chardonnay juice from stainless steel and oak barrel fermentations. This was great start to the Thanksgiving weekend.
Oysters and Thanksgiving! Not just for the stuffing.
For those in the CT/RI border region this is the Facebook page for Harmony Sea Farm … Harmony Sea Farm- Riverhawk Oysters . They do expect to harvest to the New Year if the weather cooperates. Those farms in the salt pond areas of RI harvest all year round regardless of weather.
Love the stems Gary! 
Chris - We are appreciating them as well. You should know that I got the idea from the WB discussions during this past year. The unfortunate part of that is that I learned that you were no longer carrying the machined Gabriel-Glas wine stems.