The new Virginia Oyster Trail has officially been launched, offering visitors a way to enjoy the US state’s seven different oyster regions, as well as experience the unique culture of watermen in the Chesapeake Bay.
The trail, launched earlier this month by Governor Terry McAuliffe and the Virginia Tourism Corporation, will connect travellers to Virginia oyster purveyors, raw bars and restaurants, and the watermen culture throughout Coastal Virginia, the Northern Neck, Middle Peninsula and Virginia’s Eastern Shore.
Rita McClenny, President and CEO of Virginia Tourism Corporation explained “The Virginia Oyster Trail will allow travellers to experience the state in a new way by pairing oysters with other Virginia products and learning more about the area they come from.”
Oysters take on the flavour of the waters in which they are harvested and the salinity levels of the Chesapeake Bay and its major tributaries are ideal for sustaining great tasting oysters. Some of the creeks on the Virginia Eastern Shore are no more than a mile apart. Yet the oysters from each region take on different nuances in flavour, texture and appearance. Visitors to Virginia can explore the seven different regions, each with different coastal habitats, and the flavours of Virginia oysters range from salty to buttery to sweet.
Virginia’s seven different oyster regions produce the largest quantity of fresh wild-caught and farm-raised oysters in the United States.
The trail will take visitors to the distinctive river and bay towns throughout the Chesapeake Bay area, including Cape Charles and Irvington.
For more information on the Virginia Oyster Trail, visit virginiaoystertrail.com or for more details on Capital Region USA, visit www.CapitalRegionUSA.co.uk .