Farming the most slurpable oysters since 2015
Here’s how we do it
The team
Wolfe Neck Oyster Co. is a sister farm to Basket Island Oyster Co., which means that the same team works on both farms. It’s a lot of work, but we’re proud of the selection of oysters we get to offer. Mark Green from Peak’s Island began Wolfe Neck in 2015. He is now joined by Farm Manager Hillevi Jaegerman, as well as Assistant Manager Phoebe Walsh, and Owen Johnson, Lane Hubacz, and Emmett Huber.
The environment
We are proud of our oyster farm’s positive impact on the environment. Our oyster seed comes from a hatchery, which means we do not rely on wild oysters, leaving those delicate populations intact. Furthermore, oysters filter feed, so they require zero inputs and they help clean the bay. As they feed, an individual oyster filters on average fifty gallons of water a day. That’s a lot of water when you multiple it by a million oysters!
Wolfe Necks are grown in a cove situated between Cousins Island and Little John Island, in the middle of Little John Island preserve and Katherine Tinker preserves. The cove is a healthy and productive ecosystem. Juvenile Maine lobster, baby sculpins, and rock eels abound. In the spring we frequently see bald eagles building their nests on the islands adjacent to our farm. In the fall we see monarch butterflies migrating across the cove. Over the years we’ve even noticed an abundance of the endangered seagrass 'eelgrass' making a resurgence in the cove.
The farm
Our farm uses a combination of submerged cages and floating surface bags. Once our seed graduates from the upweller, it spends the next one to two years in our floating bags. The warmer surface water helps the oysters grow quickly. In the winter, floats are removed and the bags sit on the bottom until the threat of ice melts away. Once the oysters are almost ready for market, they are placed in submerged cages to “finish” in the complex flavors of the benthic zone. Our submerged cages are invisible from the surface, save a few toggle buoys. Less surface gear allows more room for lobstermen and boaters to fish and navigate within our site.
The oyster
Just as a wine may exhibit terroir, oysters vary in flavor, shape, and color depending on where and how they are grown. All of Maine’s cultured oysters are the same species, Crassostrea virginica, but each farm’s oysters are unique. Water temperature, cultivation method, algae, and salinity are all factors.
Wolfe Neck oyster shells are white, grey, purple and pink in color. They are tear-dropped shaped and small to medium in size. For flavor, Wolfe Neck oysters start with a brininess distinctive to the Casco Bay region and bottom cultivation. What we love about these oysters is that the brightness opens the palette and makes room for wonderful grassy and vegetal notes to follow. Wolfe Necks have been described as tasting like anjou pear, snap pea, cucumber, grassy, green, fresh and bright. The finish is that of salted butter.
For pairings we recommend wine pairings of grassy white wines like a Marlborough Sauvingnon Blanc or Vinho Verde for drinking. For beer lovers, we like to complement the grassiness of the oysters with a hazy witbier (or favorite is our home state's Allagash White). We also like herbal themed cocktails (think green chartreuse) to pair with these oysters for something stronger. To keep it simple, we like a wedge of lime and black pepper. Like most Maine oysters, however, they can stand up and represent with most any pairing and are independently delicious all by themselves!
