Real Oyster Cult – Is There a Better Name or a Better Way to Get Fresh Oysters Delivered?

I was looking for something unique for a holiday meal, and the folks at Real Oyster Cult had just the answer. They sent along a sampler box of fresh oysters, along with a pair of shucking gloves and shucking knife.

Having enjoyed oysters all the way back to my time in New England, I always thought oysters were a treat to be enjoyed at the restaurants that looked sufficiently qualified.

But with the advent of improved supply chains (meaning rapid shipping) and the easier-than-expected task of shucking, I am a believer in oysters at home.

The box arrived and the next evening we were enjoying several varieties of oysters.

Real Oyster Cult has their base of operations in Duxbury (about 40 miles south of Boston, toward Cape Cod). They curate oysters from over 70 farms across North America, and are thereby able to provide the freshest and most seasonal choices. They bring in the oysters to their headquarters, and then ship directly to customers.

In our box we enjoyed most the Sailor’s Valentine, right from Duxbury. They were the smallest of the oysters we received, but the plump bivalves were salty, sweet and had just the right amount of brine. From further north, the La St. Simon were harvested in New Brunswick, Canada. These larger oysters were bolder in taste.

Also in our collection, from the other coast, were Shigoku from Washington.

A couple of the newbies enjoyed the oysters with the fallback of cocktail sauce, horse radish and lemon, but I quickly eschewed the additional flavor and became a purist. There is something elemental about shucking and sucking: just the unique mineraly taste and squishy texture was intoxicating.

In much thre same way that one develops a taste for different wines and begins to appreciate that the environment (terroir) is critical to the flavor, so it goes with oysters.

Real Oyster Cult indicates that their oysters should stay fresh in your fridge for 10 days. The husband and wife team has a mission to fighting climate change and saving the oceans by promoting farm oysters.

For classic rock fans who may have trepidation about oysters at home, I’d say ‘don’t fear the reaper, check out Real Oyster Cult.’