Ciara's Country Flavours: oyster festival

Rejoice, oyster season has arrived. Yes, I know there are some people that may have stopped reading after that sentence but if you’ve kept with me, then hear me out a moment longer. There are those in life who have discovered the taste sensation that is the oyster. There are those who simply hate them – fair enough, everybody has their own likes and dislikes in life. And then there are those that think they don’t like oysters but really they’ve never even tried them. Oyster virgins, I’m talking to you.

Such is my palate passion for oysters, I have encouraged many a novice to ‘give it a go’, only to see their face turn from nervousness to surprise and then delight, all in one swift swirl of seafood. And in that moment, the oyster is embraced.

The taste sensation of an Irish oyster is quite unique. First that rush of excitement as the oyster is shuck, an unveiling if you will. Then the excitement of adding a squeeze of lemon, a touch of tabasco or my personal favourite, some Murphy’s stout reduction, then the first hit of salt, a hint of nuttiness, an undercurrent of sweetness, a little citrus, all fusing together to produce a taste that will have you reaching for one more.

September is the mecca month for oyster-lovers, with a wealth of events taking place across the country. If you are an oyster-lover, enjoy. If curious, we can only encourage you to give some Irish native oysters a go.

Galway International Oyster & Seafood Festival

The Galway International Oyster & Seafood Festival (28 to 30 September) is not just the longest-running oyster festival, it is one of the longest-running food festivals in Ireland. Sixty four years on the go, Maria Moynihan, managing director of Milestone Inventive – which produces the Galway International Oyster & Seafood Festival – tells Irish Country Living how it has stood the test of time. “The idea first started in the Great Southern Hotel, which is now the Meyrick Hotel. It was ahead of its time really. It was all about celebrating the native oyster, but they also wanted an excuse to extend the tourism season. The first event started in Clarinbridge with some events in the city. The landing of the oysters happened there as well as the main competition.”

The main competition of course is all about shucking, with the National Oyster Opening Championships taking place on the Friday night. Since 1988, the main event has moved into Galway City centre and this year, expect to see tough competition. There will be a lively parade of competitors weaving its way through the narrow medieval streets of the city down to Nimmo’s Pier. Oyster openers from all over the world will then battle it out for the title, vying to take the baton from Estonia’s Anti Lepik who was crowned 2017 champion.

Saturday evening is the Masquerade Mardi Gras – a highlight of the festival calendar that sees masked revellers enjoying oysters and bubbles while Sunday at Galway International Oyster and Seafood Festival is Féile Bia Na Mara – Wild Atlantic Tastes – a free family day of cooking demos presented this year in conjunction with Loving Galway.

Maria says: “It’s not just locals that love it. People from across the world now make their way to Galway for this event, it’s become iconic in status, a bit of a ‘bucket list’ item. There is a great heritage associated with the festival, really special. The role comes with a huge responsibility to keep it going, to make it bigger and better every year.”

A key highlight for Maria is the Masquerade Mardi Gras ball which she says is “a real opportunity to show off the city. The idea of people parading through the city is a nice little piece of incongruity of Galway.”

The real question is though how does Maria like her oysters? Laughing she says: “I’m nothing but a purist. Naked as the day it was born.”

Shuck it off in Cork

From one shucking competition to the next, while international oyster shuckers will be making their way to Galway, we still need to find the Irish champion and that will take place at the Cork Oyster and Seafood Festival 2018 taking place in the Metropole Hotel from 21 to 23 September.

Opening night, Friday 21 September, also happens to be Cork Culture night. A Flaming Oyster Stand will be in place selling oysters outside the front door of the Metropole with Simon Lamont ‘The Lazy Chef’ from TV3 and Wrights of London cooking oysters “as you have never seen before”.

One of our favourite events across all of Oyster September is the Gourmet Food Trail taking place on the Saturday. Kick off at the centre of the action, the Metropole Hotel at 12pm with a gin reception. Then hit the streets of the rebel city visiting some of the best food venues such as Cask, The Cornstore, Rachel’s, Imperial Hotel and the Oyster Tavern, located just beside the English Market before finishing up at the Metropole for the after party at 5pm. Tickets are €75, for more information, check out corkoysterfestival.com.

The Cliff Oyster Festival

Whether you’re by the sea in Co Waterford enjoying the calmness of rural Kildare or in the heart of the city’s capital, the Cliff Oyster festival is one to enjoy all September long.

This year Cliff Townhouse will be teaming up with sister properties Cliff at Lyons in Kildare, and in Ardmore’s Cliff House Hotel in Waterford.

If you fancy sitting down and having the oysters brought to you, there will be a jazz and oyster Sunday lunch on 16 September which will start with a glass of Albariño wine and half a dozen oysters at the beautiful Oyster Bar in Dublin’s Cliff Townhouse, while head chef Sean Smith gives a short and interesting talk and demonstration with oysters. Then enjoy a three-course lunch, with live music from a jazz duo. This costs €50 per person.

Oysters and opera will take place at Cliff at Lyons with an oyster dinner, bubbly and a live outdoor opera performance for €85/person. The Cliff House Hotel in Ardmore will hold an Oyster Tour & Supper with Harty’s Oysters on Thursday 27 September. Guests will be invited to tour Harty Oyster farm in Dungarvan, tasting freshly harvested oysters and learning the history of the family business, pioneers in the cultivation of oysters in Ireland.

The group will then move on to Cliff House Hotel in Ardmore for a stunning three-course Harty Oyster Supper. Tickets are €60. For more information, visit www.clifftownhouse.ie/oysterfest.