03/18/2007

A Brief History of Caviar

A Brief History of Caviar

Sturgeon, the fish that produce caviar, have roamed the seas and rivers since the age of the dinosaurs. These extraordinary fish have been sought-after since 1100 BC, when commercial fisherman began hunting them for caviar and smoked fillets. The delicacy was mentioned in Greek and Roman Literature. King Edward II of England claimed all sturgeon as property of the King. The French government legally defines caviar as the eggs of sturgeon. When referring to the eggs of other fish the name must precede caviar, as in Salmon caviar. The U.S. government recently declared paddlefish roe as caviar, which comes from a filter-feeding cousin of the sturgeon.

The word caviar traveled to Europe via France and Italy in the 16th century from trade with Turkey. The Turkish hayvar shares the same root with the word leading to egg in English. The original persian word (Khag-avar) literally means “roe-generator.” Biologically, caviar is the pre-fertilized eggs of fish, whereas roe defines eggs that have been fertilized and already laid.

Like salmon, sturgeon are anadromous, meaning most migrate from salt or brackish water up into fresh water rivers to spawn. One of the keys to producing excellent caviar, whether from wild caught or farmed fish, is knowing on which day to harvest the eggs since their peak lasts just a few days. Fishermen know where along the river migration this occurs, and farmers check surgically or with ultra sound. Fish are usually killed at the time of harvest and the fish is usually smoked before selling. However, c-section or hormones may be used in order to keep the fish alive.

The oldest traditional sturgeon fishery is the Caspian Sea, a vast body of water bordered by Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Iran. The Caspian Sea is known as the world’s largest lake and is home to seven different sturgeon species. The most famous caviar types from Iran and Russia are Beluga, Osetra, and Sevruga—common names for different sturgeon species. Much of the world’s finest caviar continues to come from the Caspian and the neighboring Black Sea. However, over-fishing and pollution have prompted CITES, the organization managing trade in endangered species, to drastically reduce and in some cases ban exports from the region. Presently, the best caviar is from Iran, where cleaner water and state regulations protect the resource. However, in January 2006 the UN has banned all exports from the Caspian, including Iran in the south.

While many associate caviar with the mystique of the Caspian, in the 19th century the United States was the world’s leading producer. The American caviar industry started when Henry Schacht, a German immigrant, opened a business catching sturgeon on the Delaware River and began selling it throughout the U.S. and exporting it to Europe. By the end of the 19th Century, America was producing 90% of the world’s caviar. 3,500 tons came from the Delaware and Hudson Rivers and, once depleted, similar amounts came from the Columbia River in Oregon.

© 2006 La Petite Pearle