Pleasure in a Half Shell: Our Love Affair with the Oyster

The oyster is a food item of sexuality and sensuality, and for good reason too. The whole affair of opening and eating it, not to mention how the glorious muscle looks and tastes, it screams sex and it's all about the woman. Is it any wonder Casanova ate 50 oysters for breakfast?

Look at the shell. It looks like a flamenco dress with its frilled edges – albeit in muted ocean colours. Then there's the opening of it. It takes some effort and you can't force it, otherwise you break the shell, or worse, cut yourself on its sharp edges. You have to be gentle and controlled before it gives in to your advances.

Once your in the glistening, delicate muscle shimmers – promising an unforgettable experience. You can't touch the muscle with your bare fingers otherwise the oyster goes milky. You need to scoop it out with a spoon, slurp it directly into your mouth, or if you must handle it, put on some latex gloves.

Then there's the eating. Most men and women simply gulp it down, but they're missing the whole point. In order to fully enjoy this delicate, slightly salty bivalve you need to really eat it and allow the juices run across your tongue.

So what makes this little muscle so exceptional? The Romans believed as did the Greeks that oysters improve your sexual drive indeed the word "aphrodisiac" comes from the story of Aphrodite rising from the sea to give birth to a child from a shell.

And much like sex, oysters are very good for your health. (Though eating a bad one will leave you in a bad way. Ahem.)

Let's look at the science first. According to a recent study by American and Italian researchers oysters are very high in zinc and two unusual amino acids - D-aspartic acid (D-Asp) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) which increase the production of testosterone in males and progesterone in females, both key hormones for sex drive and fertility.

They also help your immune system, help prevent acne and make your bones stronger. But even if you are not convinced by the science, you can still enjoy the taste of the sea and that wonderful silky texture.

This little bivalve also helped build America. When Dutch travellers first landed in what is now Manhattan in the 17th century the shores were covered with large oyster beds, and as New York grew these beds fed the masses. So much so that by the 19th the beds were all but depleted. Pictures of the great oyster salons from that time and into the 20th century show piles of oyster shells dumped outside as an advertisement. The highest pile, the best oysters.

Under the Manhattan Bridge 1937

So where does the oyster sit in food culture today?

Well it definitely is considered a luxury item now, something that you have when you're out rather than make for yourself at home. It is mostly served raw in the half shell rather than cooked, as was the norm back in the day.

Oysters are often paired with a drink. Of course Guinness springs to mind, the iron flavour of the black stuff really exaggerating the high levels of zinc, making the diners tongue tingle. Another common association is the dandy from a twenties movie drinking champagne from a shoe, in between every mouthful of the sea.

Well these might be the best known but they certainly are not the best.

I recommend pairing your oysters with Manzanilla sherry which has notes of lemon and a wonderful ozone character that really bring the oyster to life.

If you're a whisky drinker then it has to be Dalwhinnie. If it’s a cocktail you’re after then a dry martini or a Caesar (just add a drop of clam juice). If you’re going for beer then it has to be a dry stout like Guinness, or if you are in the mood for something new try a great stout from the new Belfast brewers, Boundary Beer. Sublime.

Of course oysters go beautifully with wine too. If you're a red drinker you need to look to Chinion for crisp clean Cabernet francs, but mostly whites are the way to go.

Some rules of thumb, choose lower alcohol wines between 11 and 12 percent, as excessive alcohol in wine overrides the oyster’s flavours. One big exception to this rule: absinthe, which pairs brilliantly and it's 50 percent and up. No oaky overpowering flavour but more importantly wood contains tannins, which make the oyster feel and taste hard. My own favorites would be Muscadet, Picpoul de Pinet, Chablis, Riesling, Gurner Veltneir and last but not least Prosecco.

Oysters open up a whole world of choices and thankfully each one is filled with pleasure, best enjoyed with someone close to your heart.

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