Lesly, Oyster Farmer from France

“I fell in love”, the perfect response when asked why he stayed, and that of French Oyster Farmer, Lesly, who first came to Cahersiveen in 2010. The plan was to leave La Rochelle, where he was studying aquaculture for a year, to learn English. But as many of us know, this part of the world has a way of holding on to you. Lesly is now part of the community here, working the land and sea, raising a family. It is the people of this town that have made the difference; “I like the people, they are very warm, very welcoming and understanding.” He works hard on this coastline to supply us with the freshest seafood. He has a deep understanding of and respect for this untamed, magnificent landscape, something we could all learn from: “I like the wild nature here, the Atlantic, the mountains, the river.

I like my work because it is facing what the Sea brings you. We have to be respectful because the Sea brings all the food for the Oysters, we just set the oyster bags with the seed, they are set up very delicately to let the Sea wash around the cages. One year we had six storms one after the other and so spent so much time resetting the cages before they were washed away….just in time for the next storm. We must be respectful of the weather and we must be nimble and able to adapt.” This spirit, that pays homage to the land, is something we strive for while developing our Skellig Six18 gin, the perfect aperitif to accompany this mouth-watering appetiser.