Hunting for truffles in Italy

• Truffle Hunting in Italy

City of Alba (Alba) situated in the heart of the Langa (Langhe) - the hilly southern part of the northwestern region of Piedmont (Piedmont) in Italy. Alba is famous all over the country and abroad for its white truffle - a noble variety of valuable species of fungi that grow underground. Truffles hiding at a depth of 5 to 20 cm near the roots of the trees.

They will emit a peculiar smell, which lasts for a limited period of time and can be detected only with the help of well-trained dogs and experienced "hunter" -gribnikov. Extraction of white truffles, which are not bred in greenhouses and grow only in the wild - in the woods, dropped recently. This stems from the climate change in Italy: recurrent drought, interspersed with heavy rains.

Season collection of fungi in Italy is in November. The white truffle is short-lived, it grows on tree roots and begins to fade as soon as it is taken from the earth. Even in the most ideal conditions, it can retain its flavor for only 10 days. Hunter Truffle 66 years Ezio Costa examines mushrooms found at the entrance to a restaurant in Monkiero in the Alba area, in the north-west of Italy.

Truffle.

Ezio Costa is looking for truffles with his dog Jolly in the woods in the vicinity Monkiero.

Mushroom pickers at dawn around Serralunga d'Alba (Serralunga d'Alba) in northwest Italy.

Ezio Costa sees found truffles.

Ezio Costa sniffing the smell of mushrooms found.

Photographers take pictures of two 950-gram truffle on the world famous white truffle auction in the town of Grinzane Cavour, in Alba

Seller shows goods to customers truffle market in Alba.

A slice of white truffle. Rome, Italy, November 19, 2013.

Alessandro Boglione (Alessandro Boglione), chef of the restaurant in the castle Grinzane Cavour, prepare a paste after the world famous white truffle auction