Alba | Truffle Hunting

Acclaimed by the Romans to have aphrodisiac qualities, truffles are found in mountainous areas of Italy and sought after in the autumn truffle season when hunters and their hounds head out at all hours of the day and night after their piece of white gold.

Their unique flavour – a pretty pricey flavour at that – was selling for around €2000 euros per kilo this year (this was a really bad truffle season unfortunately), we are talking about the white truffle from Alba – the most prestigious of funghi that is collected mostly in Piedmont in a spectacular area known as the Langhe & Roero.

Join our truffle hunter for this unique hunting experience. Head deep into the forest with hounds and torches (and an interpreter to translate from the thick Piedmont dialect spoken into English) and learn to identify the tree and plant species, microclimate and terroir where they grow led by the expert hounds.

Be prepared that this is not a social gathering: trifulau, as the truffle hunters are called locally,  have an amazing nose and orienteering qualities but they are not know to be the friendliest of souls and they will defend the hand drawn maps and squiggles and notes in their little black book with their lives!

Any white truffle you find during the hike will be kept by the hunter although they are sometimes a little more generous in sharing the black truffles found with guests.

After your two hour truffle hunt sit down to tajarin a tagliatelle like ribbon pasta, only thinner and bright yellow due to the large percentage of egg yolk in the pastry with generous truffle shavings and a glass of award winning Barolo indigenous to the area.