[FROM THE MEDIA] Konavle, Pelješac, and the Neretva Valley are representatives of authentic cuisine. The south exudes the scent of oysters, minestrone, and fish stew.

The flesh of the small Ston oyster is of a fatty texture, soft and juicy, with a unique sweet-salty balanced taste. The flavor is therefore a combination of sweetness and fullness from the visceral part, along with a pleasant sea mineral taste dominated by a lingering iodine aroma on the palate. This is how the European Commission described the small Ston oyster – Ostrea edulis – in the Official Journal of the European Union and in all languages of the member states.

The European Commission appreciates the fact that shellfish farming tradition in the Mali Ston Bay dates back to the times of the Roman Empire (Pliny the Elder - Historiae naturalis) and the Dubrovnik Republic (Decree of the Prince of Ston from 1641). The first available archival record of the method of collecting oysters from natural beds and semi-cultivation in the Mali Ston Bay dates back to 1573.

By the 16th century, cultivation was already established and in the hands of representatives of the Dubrovnik Republic in Ston. In the Sutvid Bay near Drače, Captain Stijepo Bjelovučić founded the "First Dalmatian Rational Oyster and Clam Farm" in 1889 and significantly improved the oyster farming technology in that area.

Kamenice se mogu pripremati na stotinu načina, ali stonski ugostitelji preporučuju sljedeće: svježu kamenica na ledu, krem juhu od kamenica, pečenu, zapečenu ili pohanu kamenicu, kao i kamenice u šest umaka; i to od motara, kopra, mente, bosioka, pošiša ili dingača.Oysters can be prepared in a hundred ways, but local Ston hosts recommend the following: fresh oysters on ice, creamy oyster soup, roasted, gratin, or fried oysters, as well as oysters in six sauces; made from mussels, dill, mint, fennel, rosemary, or dingač wine. Oysters can be wrapped in bacon or prosciutto. Oyster soup is the queen of soups, refreshing and invigorating. There are also oysters with various types of pasta. However, when it comes to consuming this seafood delicacy, renowned Ston host and owner of Solana, Svetin Pejić, emphasizes that processing diminishes the qualities of the Ston oyster. Therefore, according to Pejić, it should be eaten raw, sprinkled with a few drops of lemon juice.

"With oysters, connoisseurs serve champagne or light white wine, however, black Pelješac wines of the Plavac Mali variety, Postup, Dingač, and especially Stagnum go very well with Ston oysters. Flavored wines of any kind (!) are not suitable, because in that case, the shell loses its sweetness, so in the end, you don't know what you've eaten," asserts Sveto Pejić, revealing that oysters refresh, soothe, and inspire love, as confirmed by those who have consumed them.

Read the entire article on Dubrovački vjesnik.