Food enthusiasts gush about the fragrant, musky truffle, but what is the real story behind these little guys--and why are they so damn expensive? Bene answers all your questions.
What do truffles taste like?
Truffles taste like garlic but are stronger, earthier and muskier; the fungi's fragrance has famously been likened to the scent of sex. (In fact, the servants of Louis XV purportedly mashed truffles with sugar to create aphrodisiac syrup.)
How expensive are truffles?
There are three main types: black summer truffles, black winter truffles and white truffles. The white truffle--nicknamed "the diamond of Italy"--is harder to find, more aromatic, more flavorful and, therefore, more expensive. Its price ranges from $1,000 to $2,000 per pound, whereas black truffles are a relative steal at around $250 per pound.
What is the most expensive truffle ever sold?
A world-record was set in 2006: A truffle weighing 3.3 pounds sold at the Alba Truffle Fair for a whopping $160,000 to a Hong Kong property tycoon. Not bad for an underground fungus.
Why the high price?
"Truffles are valuable because they're very rare and hard to find," says Paulo Lima, director of gastronomic trends at the Appennino Funghi e Tartufi, one of the world's largest truffle firms. "You must find truffles that grow spontaneously, since cultivated truffles rarely have the same fragrant aroma or taste." Truffles take six to ten years to develop naturally underground, feeding off a host tree, usually oak or hazelnut. The conditions must be perfect--enough rain, enough cloud cover, four distinct seasons. "Once truffle spores get established, they will always return to the same spot," says Lima. "These truffle patches are like safes; they are highly guarded by truffle researchers."
Who are these mysterious truffle researchers?
Truffle researchers were called "truffle hunters" until a few years ago, when Italian authorities decided "researcher" sounded friendlier. Truffle researchers, or trifulau, have been known to paint their faces black, wear camouflage and hunt under cover of night. They train dogs to track the scent of truffles (pigs can also sniff out truffles, but are now being phased out because they often eat the truffles and destroy trees and roots in the process).
"I go out from 2:00 to 6:00 AM," says Aldo Pongibue, who has been digging up truffles for twenty-seven years. "At night, it's calm, and there is less perfume in the air, so my dogs can pick up the scent better." Then he pauses: "And the other hunters can't see me or my truffle grounds. My secret stays safe."
Why do food snobs always sing the praises of Alba white truffles?
Towards the end of the 1700s, savvy truffle hunters in Alba, in Piedmont, protected their turf by establishing the world's first truffle market. They branded their product "white Alba truffles," so that consumers would believe that they differed from other white truffles. Today, the Alba Truffle Fair remains the most well-known in Italy.
But the truth is, the "white Alba truffle" is genetically identical to those found in Emilio-Romagna. According to all the experts we spoke to, which include scholars, chefs, distributors and truffle hunters themselves, the famous Alba truffle is just that--famous, but not necessarily better.
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