Tartufi Neri - Bonafide Truffle Hunters!

The region of Umbria is blessed with the perfect conditions for growing truffles of all kinds, and we were lucky enough to learn all about it. We joined our friends Tony and Chris in the small town of Citerna just close to Montone for a guided truffle hunt with a company called Tartufi Bianconi. This was one activity we had our hopes up to do since leaving Vancouver so we were really excited to get our truffle hunt on! From what little we knew of truffles, our impression was that they are very delicious, precious (=expensive), very hard to find, and that hunters use pigs or dogs to 'hunt' for them. We were partly right.

Before we embarked on the hunt we learned a few key things about Umbrian truffle hunting:

1. In Umbria, they use dogs to hunt for truffles. This is because their noses are just as good as pigs, but while both dogs and pigs can get overzealous about their 'find' so that some try to eat them, it's a lot easier to pull a dog off a tasty truffle than it is to wrestle a pig.

2. Truffles can't be cultivated, but are the result of perfect mineral and soil combinations that nurture the growth of the precious fungus underground at the base of oak and hazelnut trees.

3. There are several different types of truffles, each with their own season. We were there in time for the end of the summer black, known as the "people's truffle", because they are easier to find and more prolific compared to the other more elusive (and more expensive) winter white & winter black. In winter white and winter black truffle seasons hunting is fierce business, where good truffle spots are secret and coveted, and where some hunters even resort to poisoning each other's dogs! A kilogram of precious winter white truffle can sell for as much as $20,000!

Off we went into the woods with Cecilia, our young Italian/English translator, and Tony and Chris to join the small group and three truffle hunters and two dogs, Emma, the younger one, and Sandy, a little older and more experienced. Ten steps in and the dogs were off! Each following her own nose (they use females because their sense of smell is better for finding and protecting their pups) and her own technique, Emma and Sandy wasted no time in hunting down those little black tasty nuggets.


"Sandy Qua!"

Within a minute Emma had found her first one. Emma's technique was to sniff out the truffle, scuff away the leaves, dig down to it and lay down on top of the area to protect it. Sandy, on the other hand, would dig down to find her truffle treasure, and if her hunter was too far behind she'd seize the opportunity to swallow that funghi down! Sometimes he made it there in time to pry it out of her mouth...Mmm perfect ingredients for a Tartufi Tagliatelle con Doggy Breath.





It really was an exciting and hilarious experience with the dogs running off, the hunters following them, and those of us in the group trying to keep up, splitting off to follow one of the dogs from one precious truffle discovery to another. Our perception that truffles would be hard to find was proved so very wrong by Sandy and Emma and the fruitful soil of the Umbrian countryside. We collected upwards of 20 truffles in just shy of an hour!





Our truffle haul was delivered to the Tartufi Bianconi store and workshop in Citta Di Castello where we all met for a cooking demonstration and lunch. Gabriella was our host there and was so delightful. Warm, welcoming, informative and a darn fine chef when it came to preparing her truffle dishes. We sipped on Prosecco and watched her prepare a few tasty truffle crostinis with their truffle products ranging from white truffle butter, prepared summer black truffle and porcini mushroom sauce, fresh, sliced summer black truffle sauteed in garlic and olive oil, and winter black truffle spread. And that was just a taster to start! After that Gabriella sat us down for a 6-course lunch, each course delicately highlighting the different truffle flavours. It was unforgettable!


Gabriella in her kitchen


Bowl full of treasure...clean, fresh summer black truffles. I think the one we pried from Sandy's mouth is on the bottom left


Truffled Flan


Homemade ravioli and polenta, with truffles of course!

At the end of lunch we were all issued a certificate in our name qualifying us as bonafide truffle hunters...a nice touch. If we could have brought some truffles home we would have, but the summer black ones only stay fresh for 10 days. So we settled for a sweet consolation, leaving Tartufi Bianconi with a bag full of truffled goodies including the white truffle butter, truffle honey (so good with cheese!), and the black truffle and porcini mushroom sauce. Cozy, rainy, winter Vancouver dinners at home will be a little tastier this year!