"I once got a phone call saying they wanted to name me captain of the Urbanna Oyster Festival," he muses. His tour sweeps past stately waterfront homes owned by CEOs and politicians who seek solace in the area's unspoiled beauty. The two-and-a-half-hour jaunt leaves from the historic Tides Inn Marina in Irvington. Smiley's Chesapeake Gold oyster tour is a bucket list experience for bivalve lovers. Will Smiley about an encounter with Pratt. "I'll shuck no matter what! If my eyes are open and my hands are willing, I will be onstage." "I take the tank with me," she says proudly.
A cancer survivor who is on oxygen, Pratt is determined to maintain both her strength and her title. Named second in the world of shuckers, she remains one of the few women to compete in Ireland at the international level. "I've been running behind oysters for 35 years," she admits. Like her parents, Pratt formerly made a living toiling in oyster houses before she hit it big with shucking. Shucker extraordinaire and Urbanna town treasure Deborah Pratt is a celebrity at festivals and oyster roasts across the state. Gabriela Herman Taste eight regional flavors on the Virginia Oyster Trail. According to area transplant Martha Rodenburg, "Anything from the Christchurch School booth is a must." Can't-miss items include the oyster stew from Aylett Country Day School. Plenty of wine tastings and food booths grip attendees by the taste buds. Live music and a town dance encourage visitors to work up a big appetite for Saturday's gluttony. Every vehicle with a siren streaks by during the Fireman's Parade. It all kicks off with the crowning of a teenage Oyster Festival Queen and a first-grade Little Miss Spat (a "spat" is a young oyster) on Friday. Urbanna takes center stage to host the event that's been known to attract a whopping 55,000 people. In November, these simple but masterfully executed recipes bring revelers to the Urbanna Oyster Festival, the biggest bivalve bash in Virginia and one of the largest in the world. Ethiopian-born and French-trained chef Meseret Crockett wows with her raw-oyster creations, one of which is served chilled with lime juice and mint. They also get to decide how they'd like them prepared: raw, roasted, or smoked. Guests sample local wines, select a favorite bottle to imbibe, and then choose an oyster from one of the regions to pair.
Gabriela Herman Wineries offer pairings that are unique to the area. To honor the practice, Patteson and his wife, Peggy, treat patrons to such pairings at the Dog and Oyster Micro-Vineyard and Oyster Bar, located in front of their Hope and Glory Inn. Bordeaux, France, is the only region in the world besides Virginia where this organic partnership occurs. Several oyster farms share water space with local wineries, so the combinations come naturally. Those from the Tidewater region maintain a sweet profile, while the Tangier Island ones are the smallest in the Chesapeake and have a creamy finish.Ĭhefs across the state offer tastings with Virginia wine pairings for an intoxicating experience. For example, low-bay Eastern Shore oysters thrive closer to the Atlantic and taste saltier. The flavor profile changes depending on where you are. Eight different regions let patrons sample locally sourced catches from surrounding streams, tributaries, and rivers-not just the bay. Nothing tastes more like its origins than a Virginia oyster. Gabriela Herman Visit family-owned Chatham Vineyards. A few miles inland, Kilmarnock, a seasoned retirement community, has superb shopping with stores dedicated to the lifestyle of the Northern Neck (the northernmost peninsula of Virginia on the western shore of the Chesapeake). This area has been called "Mayberry Meets Manhattan" and still hosts dignitaries, many of whom came for a weekend and never left. Irvington, the state's swankiest coastal town, was once the playground of visiting Presidents. Although Chesapeake watermen (with weathered faces and tough hands from years of fishing, crabbing, and oystering) have eked out a living here for generations, the area is more blue-blooded than blue-collar in certain places. One needn't search any farther than Lancaster and Middlesex Counties, where a trio of small, rural towns-Urbanna, Irvington, and Kilmarnock-sits deep in the heart of oyster country and less than two hours away from Richmond. Gabriela Herman Cousins Ryan (left) and Travis Croxton are co-owners of Rappahannock Oyster Co.
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