Blue Point
Crassostrea virginica
The classic Atlantic oyster. Crisp, briny, with mineral notes and a sharp, clean finish.
Flavor Profile
Finish
Sharp, clean, refreshing
Expert Notes
The Blue Point represents the quintessential Atlantic oyster experience. High salinity from Long Island Sound delivers a bracing brine punch, followed by mineral notes and a crisp, clean finish. Origin & Characteristics
- Species
- Crassostrea virginica
- Native to
- USA
- Grown in
- Long Island Sound, NY, Connecticut
- Size
- Medium (2.5-3.5 inches)
- Shell Color
- Gray-brown
- Meat Color
- Light gray
What Experts Say
Across 11 sources, tasters describe this oyster as:
Unique notes: pine, anise, satiny, ocean-forward
"Generally, Blue Point oysters have satiny, almost liquid meats with a high brininess and very mild flavor."
brinymildsatiny
"Our Blue Point oysters have a fresh, briny, ocean flavor with a firm texture and mild, sweet aftertaste."
brinyfreshoceanfirmmild
"Expect a distinguished flavor profile: a clean, refreshing start followed by the signature crisp saltiness—the unmistakable taste of a genuine Connecticut Blue Point Oyster."
cleanrefreshingcrispsalty
"Bold, crisp, and refreshingly briny, Blue Point Oysters deliver a clean, ocean-forward flavor with a firm, meaty texture and a slightly sweet, mineral finish."
boldcrispbrinycleanocean-forward
"They deliver the full-salt assault that made Blue Points famous in the 1820s, along with fascinating pine and anise notes most apparent in spring."
saltyfull-saltpineanise
"The oysters themselves are seeded on the bottom of Long Island Sound, both the Oyster Bay area of Long Island and the Norwalk area of Connecticut, dredged up a few years later, and have an extremely mild taste."
mild
About the Farm
Blue Island Shellfish Farms
Est. 1995Blue Island Shellfish Farms opened in 1995 and is now recognized as the only authentic producer growing oysters in the original Blue Point location in Great South Bay, Long Island.
- Cultivation Method
- bottom culture
History & Background
Blue Point oysters originated in 1815 when Humphret Avery first cultivated them near the town of Blue Point, Long Island in Great South Bay. They became famous in the early 1800s in New York City for their robust, wild flavor and became the favored delicacy of Queen Victoria. By 1824, the original wild stock was depleted, but the name persisted. A twenty-three-mile-long bed of oysters was found in Great South Bay, and any oyster from that area was sold as a Blue Point, eventually making the name generic for Long Island oysters.
Made popular in the early 1800s in New York City with their mild flavor profile. The Blue Point name has been called 'the most abused of oyster appellations' due to its widespread generic use for oysters from Connecticut, New Jersey, Virginia, and other regions far from the original Great South Bay location.
Did You Know?
- Queen Victoria favored Blue Point oysters as a delicacy
- The Gazetteer of the State of New York was referring to original Blue Points in the past tense as early as 1824
- After a century of exile, real Blue Points returned to their ancestral home in Great South Bay in the mid-2000s
- Blue Point has become so generic that you'll find 'Bluepoints' on nearly every oyster menu in Manhattan, though most are not from the original location
Sources & References
This information was compiled from 11 sources.
- Blue Point Oyster Taste — Chefs Resources
- Blue Point East Coast Oysters — Fulton Fish Market
- Blue Point Oysters - Fresh from Westport — Sherwood Island Oysters
- Fresh Blue Point Oysters — Seafoods of the World
- Blue Points - The Oyster Guide — The Oyster Guide
- Bluepoint - New York and Connecticut — The Oyster Guide
- Blue Points: The Most Bastardized Name in Seafood — Pangea Shellfish
- Blue Point Oysters — H&H Fresh Fish
- Blue Point Oysters - The Oyster Encyclopedia — Oyster Encyclopedia
- Bluepoint Oysters: Then and Now — In A Half Shell
- Everything You Need to Know About Blue Point Oysters — Farm 2 Market
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