Stingray
Crassostrea virginica
The quintessential Chesapeake Bay oyster from Mobjack Bay, Virginia. Perfectly balanced between sweet and salty with a clean, crisp finish. Distinctive white shell with black markings.
Flavor Profile
Finish
Clean, crisp, with subtle earthy notes
Expert Notes
The Stingray is the quintessential Chesapeake Bay oyster, offering perfect balance between salt and sweet. Grown by Travis and Ryan Croxton in off-bottom cages in Mobjack Bay where the York River meets the Chesapeake, these oysters benefit from mid-salinity waters (19 ppt) with minimal freshwater influence. Plump and meaty, harvested at about one year old, they deliver enough salt to make you thirsty but not desperate, with a sweet finish and subtle earthy notes that evoke the Tidewater region. The distinctive shells feature white coloring with black markings, as if iron filings were mixed with the calcium carbonate. Origin & Characteristics
- Species
- Crassostrea virginica
- Native to
- USA
- Grown in
- Mobjack Bay, Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Ware Neck, Virginia
- Size
- Medium (3-4 inches)
- Shell Color
- White with black markings
- Meat Color
- Plump, light gray to cream
Perfect Pairings
What Experts Say
Across 7 sources, tasters describe this oyster as:
Unique notes: soy sauce, umami, plump
"The Stingray is a quintessential Chesapeake oyster, plump, sweet, and lightly salty. It's the most balanced of the three Croxton oysters, not too salty, not too sweet, just right. It has 19 ppt salt—a bit more than its cousin, the Rappahannock River oyster, but still less than an Olde Salt or Northern virginicas."
sweetlightly saltybalancedplump
"Stingray from Mobjack Bay, Virginia - Enjoyed at Ed's Lobster Bar Annex on 8.30.11. Flavor: 4 | Salinity: 2 | Sweetness: 2 | Umami: 3 | Texture: Mildly creamy, slightly plump. Soy sauce flavors, very [...]"
mildly creamyslightly plumpsoy sauceumami
"Drawn from the Chesapeake Bay's median salt range, Stingrays are the quintessential Chesapeake Bay oyster: sweet and mildly briny with a clean, crisp finish."
sweetmildly brinycleancrisp
"Lower Bay Western Shore - Location: Mobjack Bay region and the mouth of the York River. Flavor Profile: A mild saltiness that transitions smoothly into a sweet, clean finish. Oyster Types: Stingray Oysters, Goodwin Island Oysters, York River Oysters, Dandylicious, Eagle Flats, Forbidden Oysters, Mobjack Bay, Yorksters"
mild saltinesssweetclean finish
"Tasting Notes - Saltiness: Moderate, Buttery/Creamy: Barely Perceptible, Sweetness: Barely Perceptible. Comments: Mild saltiness moving to a sweet finish."
moderate saltinesssweet finishbarely butterybarely creamy
"Where They Are Found: Mobjack Bay region and the mouth of the York River. Flavor: Mild saltiness moving to a sweet finish. Common Types: Stingray Oysters, Goodwin Island Oysters, York River Oysters."
mild saltinesssweet finish
About the Farm
Rappahannock River Oysters (Travis and Ryan Croxton)
Est. 1899Founded in 1899 by a young James Croxton, Rappahannock River Oysters has gone from serving local dinner tables to supplying some of the world's best restaurants. The Stingray is grown by Travis and Ryan Croxton at Ware Neck in a bay that opens wide to the Chesapeake.
- Cultivation Method
- bottom culture
History & Background
The Stingray oyster is grown at Ware Neck in Mobjack Bay, which opens wide to the Chesapeake Bay and has little freshwater river influence, resulting in its distinctive balanced flavor profile.
Named after the Bay oyster's chief predator, the stingray. The Stingray represents the quintessential Chesapeake Bay oyster experience, grown in the Lower Bay Western Shore region.
Did You Know?
- Named after the stingray, which is the Chesapeake Bay oyster's chief predator
- Features distinctive white shells with black markings, as if iron filings had been mixed in with the calcium carbonate
- Harvested at a standard size of three to four inches and about a year of age
- Has a salinity of 19 ppt, placing it in the Chesapeake Bay's median salt range
Sources & References
This information was compiled from 7 sources.
- Stingray - Chesapeake — The Oyster Guide
- Rappahannock River Stingray Oysters - 100 count — Goldbelly
- A Week in the Life of an Oysterholic — In a Half Shell
- Oyster Regions — Virginia Oyster Trail
- Stingray Oysters — Chef's Resources
- Oyster Primer — Metropolitan Meat, Seafood & Poultry
- Everything You Need to Know About Virginia Oysters — Virginia.org
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Learn More
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