The Crew Goes To White Stone
The largest estuary in the United States and a crown jewel of the Mid-Atlantic, the Chesapeake Bay stretches over 200 miles along the east coast and is considered one of the most important inshore ecosystems on earth.
Known for it’s world-famous blue crab fishery, the area is also home to a well-tumbled oyster. Rocking and rolling in the windswept surf of the wide open bay, White Stone Oysters are a perfect example of the old adage “you’re a product of your environment”. While being physically tested its entire life, these perfectly plump oysters possess a strong mix of salinity and sweetness from the surrounding waters just north of the Rappahannock River.
Founded in 2011, Tom Perry takes pride in not only the day-to-day operations of the farm, but in how he selected the site after looking at 9 different bodies of water. He finally settled into a location that promotes a floating oyster that keeps itself tightly closed in the exposed waters of the Chesapeake creating an extremely fit, healthy, and clean product.
We had a chance to visit Tom and the crew during a perfect morning to get up close and personal with some White Stone Oysters.
The day started the night before when we flew into Richmond, VA and met Tom for what we would later determine to be some of the best Italian seafood we’ve ever experienced. After mulling over what time to wake up we eventually settled on a 3:40am pickup and headed towards The Tides Inn where we’d pick up our friend Tori who was in town from Charleston.
The day started off getting a feel for how the guys plan strings, flip cages, and harvest those that are ready. We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect morning where a large mix of pelicans and seagulls guided us around the shallows for hours.
After a full morning of touring the cages, learning about the local lore, and stopping at the sandbar for a drink and a swim, we headed back for a bite at the dock.
We made our way back up the Virginia shoreline filled with a ton of laughs, a brand new appreciation for this part of the world, and the hope that we’ll be back soon.
Please enjoy a short photo essay from our day! And be sure to check out our friends at White Stone Oysters.
A huge thank you goes out to Tom, his entire crew, and Tori from Camelot Creative who helped us pull off such a memorable trip.
