TRUFFLES

- What are the different varieties of truffles?

There are 4 main varieties of truffles. First of all, the Périgord black truffle known as tuber melanosporum, a famous and highly prized truffle. It has a black color, which has small bumps resembling the shape of small diamonds, and an intense black flesh, punctuated with a white marbling.

The white Alba truffle or tuber magnatum pico is another variety of truffle, known to be the most expensive because it is a wild truffle that cannot be cultivated. It is harvested mainly in the town of Alba in Piedmont. The quality Alba truffle is recognizable by its fine, smooth, sometimes velvety skin whose light yellow color can tend towards ochre, pinkish white or even grey. It has alliaceous flavors.

The summer truffle or tuber aestivum or Saint Jean truffle, is a truffle with a light scent and notes of mushrooms and hazelnuts. Its exterior appearance is brown and the interior of the nose, tends from beige to brown. It is a seasonal truffle, perfect for summer.

The Burgundy truffle, or tuber var uncinatum, is less famous than the black truffle or the white truffle, but it has taken a place in French gastronomy in recent years. Its color is similar to that of the summer truffle, but its taste intensity is slightly more intense than that of its cousin. It is the perfect transition truffle before the arrival of the black truffle.

- When is the right time to pick truffles?

The black truffle (tuber melanosporum) and the white truffle (tuber magnatum pico) are harvested between November and March, while the summer truffle is harvested from May to August.

The Burgundy truffle is harvested from September to December.

- What is the price of a kilo of truffles?

It is impossible to give an exact price for the truffle. Indeed the price varies first of all according to the varieties of truffles, the price of a kilo being able to go from approximately 180 to 6000 euros.

The price of truffles also varies according to the arrival, and can therefore change every week. Indeed, a season where few truffles are harvested will result in a very high price. It is also impossible to predict the price of truffles in a few years, because the harvests are increasingly uncertain, in particular because of the changing climatic conditions.

- Where to find truffles in nature?

Truffles are found in the ground, at the foot of certain trees. The truffle is connected to the network of the mushroom of which it is a part by the mycelium, which is a network of underground filaments irrigating the truffle with nutrients. Truffles are found between 25 and 80 cm deep in the loosest soils. Indeed, the truffle comes from a process of mycorrhization, an anchor between the tree and the fungus.

- Which trees give truffles?

Some trees are characteristic of truffle growing. The holm oak which keeps its leaves in winter and the white oak are both truffle trees with a trivial reputation in the high places of truffle growing. However, there are more than 30 varieties of different truffle trees such as sessile oak, birch, hornbeam or even beech. The list is far from being exhaustive and it should be remembered that each variety of truffle has its preferences in terms of truffle trees. The tuber melanosporum or Périgord black truffle will prefer pedunculate oaks, holm or pubescent oaks, lime or even hazel.

- How do you know if you have truffles under an oak tree?

Truffle oaks are often isolated, with little vegetation around. Generally, the grass around the tree is burned forming a circular area, and the ground has cracked spaces.

- How to find truffles without animals?

Once the marking on the ground has been seen, there are several solutions for harvesting truffles without dogs or pigs. It is possible to observe the truffle fly, and the place where it lands around the tree. Some also learn to spot truffles by nose and eye.

- What is the price of a truffle tree?

The prices of a truffle tree is very variable. Indeed, no plant guarantees the appearance of truffles, so it is complicated to set a price, because your investment may not bring you anything. Moreover, it is necessary to wait 7 years before a truffle offers its first truffles.

- What are the benefits of truffle oil?

Truffle olive oil is good for your health because it is made from virgin olive oil, the consumption of which reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease and lowers cholesterol levels in the blood.

- When to use truffle oil?

Truffle oil is a very easy product to use. Just pour a drizzle over a hot preparation or a salad, to sublimate it and reveal its aromas.

- What is the price per kilo of a truffle?

The truffle price is very variable and can only be defined during the weeks of the relevant truffle season.

- What is the price of truffles today?

The price of the summer truffle is currently at 180 euros per kilo.

- Where do you buy truffles?

It is possible to buy truffles at trading houses such as Maison Henras, but also at the truffle markets that take place during the year.

- Where do truffles grow in France?

The truffle grows mainly in the South of France with the South-West with the famous regions of Périgord and Quercy, but also in the South-East of France which produces the majority of the truffle harvest.

- How to make a truffle?

The type of soil in which the truffle will grow properly is already very difficult to find. It is necessary to plant an oak or a variety of tree at the foot of which the truffle grows, without guarantee that in 7 years a truffle will appear.