Oysters the order of the day as connoisseurs flock from afar
22 MayThe battle for the Bluff oyster gets under way for the 2017 season
01 MarchBig crowds and tight squeezes at the 2016 Bluff Oyster and Food Festival
21 MayBluff oysters in the blood of many Southlanders
05 MarchTransport World to open pop up oyster bar for start of oyster season
01 MarchOyster-lovers get prepared
26 FebruaryBarnes Wild Bluff Oysters to feature in NZ Post TV ad
19 AugustBluff oyster quota achieved after stormy season
10 AugustBluff oyster fleet on home stretch
02 JulyBluff Oyster Fest 2015 - Results
26 MayOyster Fest a huge success
25 MayOyster openers prepare to compete
21 MayOyster season on track despite poor weather
01 MayVIDEO: Surveying the fishery
19 MarchChanging times
05 MarchVIDEO: ONE NEWS - Opening of Bluff Oyster Season
01 MarchVIDEO: 3 News - Oyster lovers rejoice as season begins
01 MarchOyster lovers get their orders in
27 FebruaryNew look for Barnes Wild Bluff Oysters
19 February03 March / Nicci McDougall and Fairfax / The Southland Times
For a lot of people it’s been a long, hard wait, but finally the Bluff oyster season is here.
Oystermen set sail early on Saturday morning, hauling in thousands of the sought-after delicacy, with the first boat back in port before 8am.
Some of the first oysters were sent to Christchurch Casino on Saturday morning, while an Auckland restaurant also took an early delivery.
One of the first to get his hands on the salty treats in Invercargill was former Southlander Wray Horton, who bought oysters on Saturday and again yesterday, enjoying them cooked and raw.
There was nothing better than a Bluff oyster, closely followed by some fresh blue cod, he said. He lived in Brisbane and pined for Bluff oysters while in Australia. Coincidentally the start of the season happened to be the same weekend he was home for a family 150th anniversary, he said. Barnes Oysters Shop manager Dania Todd said when she started selling oysters at 1pm on Saturday she heard one comment often: “It’s been hard to wait so long.”
Customer Brian Haldane, buying some fresh oysters yesterday, said for about 40 years he had bought oysters at the beginning of the season for a Sunday cook-up. Bluff Oyster Management company spokesman and Barnes Oysters manager Graeme Wright said the first day of the season had been hectic and demand was strong. Saturday’s weather was marginal but the catch was good, with the 11 boats bringing in about 144,000 oysters, 12 thousand dozen.
Mr Wright’s shop sold more 24,000 oysters on Saturday and at times the shop was jam-packed, he said. The first of the season’s oysters were a mixed bag in terms of quality, but he sampled a couple on Saturday morning and said they “certainly tasted lovely. Very nice”. Early indications were that the stock was healthy and predicted a repeat of the “fantastic” 2013 season when 13.2 million oysters were harvested.
Pre-season sampling carried out in conjunction with Niwa (National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) and the Ministry for Primary Industries was looking promising. Prices at Barnes Oysters were the same as last year, with the factory’s retail shop in Invercargill charging $23 a dozen. The season ends on August 31.
