Virginia City folks know how to celebrate. Saturday they'll double the fun with the 18th annual Mountain Oyster Fry and the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade.
For the uninitiated, mountain oysters have little in common with their ocean-living namesake " except maybe their color and shape. The ingredient is normally sheep testicles, for which punsters have a bottomless pit of names, including cowboy caviar and barnyard bollocks.
This year, the cookoff contestants will use veal because the lamb versions are getting harder to come by because of changes in lamb ranching, according to Karen Woodmansee with the Virginia City Chamber of Commerce.
The mountain oyster contestants, known as "gonadologists," entice the tastebuds of judges and guests with a variety of recipe styles. In the past, they've adapted Mexican, barbecue and Asian recipes. As of Wednesday, 10 gonadologists had registered, including many regular contestants for the cookoff.
The grills, fryers and stew pots heat up at 10 a.m. in the parking lot of the Bucket of Blood Saloon on C Street. Tasting begins at noon for $1 per taste. Winners in several categories will be announced between 2 and 3 p.m.
"Last year I did try my first mountain oyster and it wasn't too bad," said Cory Wood, office manager for the Virginia City Convention & Tourism Authority. "This year I'm going to be more adventurous and try several different kinds."
Traditionalists can find real oysters for sale, too. The Washoe Club offers the ocean delicacy every year during the Mountain Oyster Fry.
A .44-caliber black-powder pistol will be raffled to raise funds for the Virginia City Fourth of July fireworks. The pistol, purchased by the chamber for the raffle, is a replica of an 1851 Navy Colt.
In addition to the cookoff, and continuing into the night, Virginia City will celebrate all things Irish.
The St. Patrick's Day Parade marches through downtown on C Street starting at noon, beginning at the Fourth Ward School. The Miriam Blanchette School of Irish Dance will serve as grand marshals of the parade and the award-winning bagpipe band, the Sierra Highlanders Pipe Band, also will participate.
After the parade, the Sierra Highlanders can be found on the streets of Virginia City stopping in the saloons to keep the Irish celebration going through the day and well into the night.
- Sally J. Taylor can be reached at stay
lor@nevadaappeal.com.