MIRADA BAY OYSTERS | HOOD CANAL, WA

I tasted these first, and I think I grabbed the nicest one. Large, great shape, full of meat. Definitely a high cucumber flavor with a bit of salt to go with it. I liked these quite a bit, but I think that it's mostly a palate preference. I will say that the other oysters we pulled indicated that they were not very consistent in shape (6) and the meat fill varied a little (still solid 7-8) . On one of them, we had a hard time finding the hinge to even open it. With the odd shell shapes, it was difficult to give a good score on cup and although the liquor was good, if you tilted them the wrong way, you might lose half of it. Overall, a 7. A little above average for what is expected from a West Coast.

WARREN'S COVE OYSTERS | PLYMOUTH, MA

I tried these last week and loved them, so I wanted to do a formal shucking. I may be a little over-excited about these because they are new and a little different. I love the flavor -- salty and clean. They are very pretty, mostly consistent in shape (7), and have a moderate cup (7). Their downfall is the meat content. Although there is a lot of liquor inside, the meat doesn’t do the shell justice. Overall, I give these a respectable 7.