Here is a vast coastline deeply cut by three great estuaries, the Gironde, the Seurdre and the Charente...You can see several small islands floating on the water like a string of pearls, the largest of which is the Oleron island, lying like a flagship pointing its prow to the open sea ; or a patchwork of shoals of wild oysters, that here are called "crassat" and which are regularly uncovered when the tide goes out, from Port-des-Barques off Ronce-les-Bains ; or two dangerous channels, Antioche in the North and Maumusson in the South, where the sea violently mixes its salty waters with those coming from inland... Thus, spread over six thousands hectares, the Marennes-Oleron gulf can be compared to a giant creature whose breath and movements stir out emotions, before it becomes more familiar to us . The whole coastline is rocked twice a day by the breath of tides which move in harmony with the lunar calendar and the changing weather. These tides are called "malines" here which suggests their sometimes violent nature.

You can almost feel the rhythm of the animals, plants and mineral, carried here and there by restless and turbulent water. This habitat lies within a labyrinth of small rivers, straits, and gulfs, which feed the oyster beds by a delicate balance of brine and fresh water exchanges, and is drained by many channels, locks and streams. It is deep into this environment, on the undetermined border of water and land, of rivers and ocean, that a unique oyster was born. What was a wild oyster when the Earth was young became a perfectly domesticated creature some 2000 years ago, and day after day an amazing and beautiful landscape has formed, specifically for the oysters to grow. It gave birth to a complexity of knowledge, a culture and of course a major economic activity, for all of those who live with it and thanks to it.

Because here, nature mixes and gathers ingredients in order to create something that exists nowhere else.

Learn more about the region, its specific gastronomy and products ! visit our partners' web site at www.franceartdevivre.com