Are Danish oysters really the best in the world?

To all those who love the purity of the oyster, its immunity from any type of condiment or use other than letting it slip into the mouth absorbing the moods of the sea before letting it slide and making it one with your body, in Denmark every year it is demonstrated how, however, even the erotic mollusk can be versatile and enjoyable if used in a recipe.

It happens during the Danish Oyster Festival, an annual event organized by Povl Lønberg Rasmussen, a delightful man of Danish gastronomy, who has now become an oyster hymn that turns the spotlight on the subject, making you discover the richness of the world of juicy local bivalve molluscs.

Destination the cold and fascinating island of Rømø bathed by the Wadden Sea, on the peninsula of Jutland, located in the west of Denmark and immersed in the largest park in Europe (Unesco heritage) which includes the waters between the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.

This is where the fleshy oysters considered one are born and live great delicacy by connoisseurs. They were once completely monopolized by the king and used exclusively for royal tables, even threatening those who tried to take them with capital punishment.

When Danish chefs claim these oysters are the best in the world, is due to the climate and living conditions: the colder the water, the slower the growth of the animal, the more concentrated the flavor of the meat. Here they live in a combination of fresh water from the fjord and an inflow from the North Sea; this creates flowing waters, rich in nutrients, with the freshness of Atlantic salt water and protected from invasive species and disease.

The low salt content in the water also allows for a particularly characteristic taste reminiscent of hazelnut, not overly dominated by the salty and iodized flavors of open sea oysters.

Victor Monchamp, a great expert on the subject at the head of the Oyster Grand Prix, a competition within the festival where oysters from all over the world are compared and judged, says: “the Danish wild oyster is a gift of nature, despite its invasive character which threatens other species. Depending on the season, its flavor varies from simple to slightly salty, up to an intense and complex sum of flavors as in this autumn period when they are mineral, fleshy it’s a lot rich in umami, which is why they can be particularly combined with Asian herbs and spices. They cannot be compared to French fine oysters, fed in select parks until they reach the desired consistency, but here we have the unique opportunity to savor the raw nature, and nature does things well “.

All can be combined with dark beers or brandy but above all with an exceptional champagne from The Five Daughters, the small maison in the hands of a woman, Yvonne Seier Christensen, which since 2017 has been making its wines very gastronomic and clearly in line with oysters such as Blanc de Blancs zero dosage. Incisive and profound produced with only grand cru grapes, of great presence in the mouth but always harmonious to best enhance not only the purity of the Chardonnay but the iodized profile of the oysters, especially the Danish ones.

For those wishing to try them, in this portion of Denmark it is also possible to arm yourself with rubber boots, bucket, knife and collect them freely while living your own oyster safari from October to February (72,000 tons of these shellfish are available in the Wedden Sea) when the tides recede during the day and leave part of the “dry” coast (just get to Billund International Airport which is less than 100 kilometers from Rømø).

But let’s find out in the gallery how some of the Danish and Northern European chefs who came to the Danish Oyster Festival enhance these oysters!