giant truffle

[Ken Gargett]

i see that they found a 4.16 lb white truffle in italy - more than twice the weight of the previous record. wow!

they have already had offers from china for it for over a million.

not a bad return for a few hours digging up the back garden.

[topdiesel]

Holy Smokes!!!

Amazing.

Thanks for sharing

[jayceskinner]

Over a million for that.

I have to get into truffle hunting. Imagine the cigar collection I could build with that.

[Jeremy Festa]

Holy dooley

[oliverdst]

It sounds more right to pay 1 million for a 2 kg truffle than 5 hundred for a 10 count Cohiba box.

[...]

I enjoy the taste in general but would such a large specimen exhibit similar flavours to a regular sized one or would it be slightly weaker?

[westg]

Insane.... but like most things I reckon the smaller would taste better....

[dangolf18]

I must get into the truffle business.

[Ken Gargett]

I enjoy the taste in general but would such a large specimen exhibit similar flavours to a regular sized one or would it be slightly weaker?

not certain and i guess the answer is that, as it is the world record, no one actually knows. but i do know that large ones are prized by aficiandos so i suspect not an issue.

my fave truffle story was that after the second world war, the town of alba (i think) decided to give out a peace prize. it was to go to the person who had done the most for peace that year and it would be the largest truffle found in the region in the first week of the season.

first winner - in 1946, i think - was prez truman. for those not aware, if you are sending a truffle or storing, do it in rice. soaks up any moisture etc. so off they sent it their prized truffle to truman with a certificate etc etc.

never heard a word in response, which they thought a bit poor form. finally, 6 months later, a note came back to the mayor of the town. it thanked him on behalf of truman for the award which the prez greatly valued blah blah etc. and also thanked them for the rice "which the prez enjoyed, but unfortunately, the potato turned out to be rotten".

[IPORTER]

Right I'm off to the garden for a dig!!!!! Love those Truffles!!!

[Mr.T]

Wow!! My uncle is a serious truffle hunter. I'll forward that to him....

[Puros Y Vino]

I was curious about whether or not I could grow these. There are some places online that sell seeds but there's no guarantee they'll take. From what I've read, they need very specific and ideal conditions. That's why I guess there's only two major (that I know of) regions in France and Italy that produce them. Did a quick google on it. Good article here.

This reminds me of my father and uncle's exploits. They were mushroom hunters. They'd head up into the forests in search of "gallinedas" ("small chickens" in Italian). They're an orange colored mushroom with with the shitake shape. Only far tastier and possibly more flavourful than porcini. My uncle dug up a monster one a few years back and made the local Italian newspaper.

[Ryan]

White tuffle must be one of the most distinctive smells I've ever experienced. I was in a restaurant in Chicago, around the end of October one year, when the chef who knew someone I was with, came out with 2 golf-ball sized truffles in a ziplock bag of rice and a couple of whole eggs. I was told that the truffles flavour the rice when stored that way and the smell even gets through the eggshell to produce truffle flavoured egg when cooked.

When he opened the bag the entire restaurant stopped. The silence spread out in a wave from the origin of the smell.

Hard to describe, pungent wet forest is as close as I can get.

He dropped thin slices over our risotto, dissolve on the tongue thin. Not enormous flavour from them but a party in the sinuses!

[Smallclub]

I must get into the truffle business.

It's becoming a dangerous business. The seasonal truffle markets in small villages of south of France are now guarded by gendarmes in full combat gear; the owners of truffières (truffle groves) must do night guard duty with guns.

[NJP]

I was curious about whether or not I could grow these. There are some places online that sell seeds but there's no guarantee they'll take. From what I've read, they need very specific and ideal conditions. That's why I guess there's only two major (that I know of) regions in France and Italy that produce them. Did a quick google on it. Good article here.

If you can get warm summers and cool winter, average soil with a high Ph that drains well your on the way. In Australia our industry inoculates the young seedlings of the Oak or Hazelnut with the Fungus. We're in the game in 2014 we will be in the park of 8 to 9 tonnes of the black truffle. The last few years we have increased by 20% each year since our start in 2000ish.

[dangolf18]

It's becoming a dangerous business. The seasonal truffle markets in small villages of south of France are now guarded by gendarmes in full combat gear; the owners of truffières (truffle groves) must do night guard duty with guns.

I visited some French friends relatives in Burgundy. They lived in a small remote town and the Uncle hunts still hunts sanglier and looks for black truffles. He doesn't sell any which is crazy. He always has about 3 pounds or so in the refrigerator. I swear I'd be able to harvest 20 pounds a week or so. At $700 a pound wholesale that'd be like $800,000 a year.

[headstand]

Interesting post. My climate may be able to support the Burgundy truffle. 75 inoculated oak trees arriving in April. Will let you know if it works in 8 to 10 years. They don't carry the high returns of the white and Black truffles, but I should be able to make a descent return at farm gate and with local restauranteurs...

[Warren]

My Nan always told me that more than a mouthful was a waste.

[Tino]

I love truffles, the aroma is incomparable. The best dinner I've had this year was an eight course white truffle menu in November. The subject of size came up during the evening in discussion with the chef; men everywhere will be relieved to hear that size is apparently not important. For truffles at any rate. The premium for the biggest truffles is all due to the rarity. Here are a few pics of the evening:

[Fosgate]

Reminds me of an interesting documentary about the truffle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjsrvrxVUuU

[Ken Gargett]

WORLD’S BIGGEST WHITE TRUFFLE TO BE SOLD

5th December, 2014 by Rupert Millar

Sotheby’s is to auction the world’s biggest white truffle in New York this weekend, immediately before its fine wine auction.

Discovered last week in Italy by Sabatino Trufffles, one of the world’s oldest truffle suppliers, the rare fungus weighs 4.16 pounds and is twice the size of the previous record holder.

The last champion truffle was sold back in 2010 and went for US$417,000. The new contending Tuber magnatum will be offered at $50,000 and all proceeds will go to a number of charitable organisations.

Immediately after the sale of the monstrous fruiting body will be the wine sale with lots from $200 to $60,000 and including an ex-cellar collection of Paul Jaboulet Aîné.

Highlights include a 34-bottle vertical of La Chapelle from 1961-2012, magnums of 1990 Chambertin from Armand Rousseau, a rare 18 double magnum vertical of Peter Michael Les Pavots 1994-2011 and also Sotheby’s “largest ever” collection of Sine Qua Non including 1994 Ace of Spades Syrah, 2000 heals over Head Syrah and 2002 Heart Chorea Syrah.