Lorette C. Luzajic
World’s Rarest Truffles to Your Door
By Lorette C. Luzajic
Is anything worth its weight in gold besides gold itself?
Maybe. Deep within the world’s enchanted forests are rare edible treasures prized by gastronomists, epicures, and gourmets everywhere.
Well, not everywhere. The taste for truffle is an acquired one, like sushi or blue cheese. Those who loathe them cannot be paid to eat them. Those who love them can and do pay exorbitant prices for fleeting ecstasy. The rare mushroom’s taste is pungent, but varies with every single batch. The flavours and aromas are nuanced fingerprints, dependent on the fungus’s host tree- oak, hazel, beech, poplar.
The truffles depend on exacting climatic conditions and symbiosis with roots of nearby plants. Temperatures must never veer too much in one direction, and soil must be well drained and shaded. Mediterranean woods yield most of our truffles, popular exports from Italy. But the most supreme specimens of all come from Istria, the Mirna River Valley’s Motovun Forest in Croatia. For centuries, this otherworldly land has brought the best and most expensive truffles to tables of kings and queens and other connoisseurs who could afford them.
And just as you may recall from folklore and fairy tales, the truffles have been hunted through the ages- and today- by specially trained dogs or pigs who root them out for their owner, the tartufai. Some of the Motovun Forest’s treasure hunters hid their treasure maps to prevent others from discovering valuable caches, and some were traditionally buried with their secrets.
The Motovun Forest, in the northwest corner of Croatia, encircled by the clear blue Adriatic Sea, is truly the stuff of those fairy tales. Artists, writers, royalty, and lovers like James Joyce, Casanova, Jules Verne and more were spellbound by the place where time is frozen. Dante wrote his Divine Comedy here. Popes, saints, and hermits made pilgrimages. Istria, the crossroads of ancient culture and commerce, was ruled at one time or another by Ancient Greeks, Franks, Ancient Romans, Goths, Histrians, Venetians, Lombardies, Ostrogoths, Byzantines, the Napoleonic Army, the Austro-Hungarian empire, and the Slavs. Ruins of Kazun homes, 7000 years old, still dot the hills. In the towns, you’ll encounter 2000 of history- a Roman amphitheatre, villas, Byzantine basilicas covered in gold, medieval towers, triumphal arches, Baroque and Gothic palaces…this is the world where the most divine of all truffles grow.
Truffles come in black and white, and both are considered to be jewels of gastronomy- black and white diamonds, respectively. But the white truffle is the brightest star of haute cuisine, and the most valuable, simply because it cannot be cultivated by human hands. It grows only by its own volition. Chefs of haute cuisine, or those fortunate enough to indulge at home, know that simple pleasures are the most profound. A modest pasta, egg, meat, fish, or rice dish lets thin truffle slivers take centre stage.
Less is certainly more with the deeply pungent truffle - but how much dough are we talking about? Well, the average among us is unlikely going to be able to stop by the supermarket to pick up truffles for dinner. In 2007, one of the largest tartufo biancos, or white truffles- ever found, sold for over $300 000 dollars. It weighed 1.5 kilograms, found in Italy. Prior to that, Guinness Book of World Records lists an Istrian find, weighing over 1.3 kilos. Luckily for 100 people, the finder decided not to sell his treasure, and instead made a feast literally fit for kings.
Today, truffles are becoming even more rare than they were, yielding roughly half of what they used to, driving prices up even more. Thanks to the changing climate, more floods, storms, and torrential rains are destroying the conditions truffles prefer the world over. Doubly precious than they used to be, prices vary from around $1000 to $1500 a pound.
Good thing a little goes a long way. The heavenly aroma- which detractors and the uninitiated find fetid- is very strong, giving a lot of presence to a little bit of t mushroom. And good thing you don’t have to buy them by the pound, because the chefs of exclusive cuisine do that for you, then prepare mouthwatering bliss that you’ll never forget. The truffle is just not the kind of luxury meant for the home kitchen.
Until now.
Enter Vedran from Istra Romance, who makes it happen. With Tartufino from Istria and Italy, he imports impossible indulgences. Now you can share this aphrodisiac with your beloved, give an exquisitely rare gift for weddings and anniversaries, or simply pursue your love of beauty and food with friends in your very own home. Tartufino imports bring the treasures of Istria straight to your door, infused in extra virgin olive oil, honey, or butter.
While no one would deny that fresh is best, it’s also a fleeting gamble and rare possibility. Now you can drizzle onto asparagus or pasta the taste that transports you into old stone castles- or orgasm- anytime you want. Highlights of the Tartufino collection include preserved whole black or white truffles, pure acacia honey with white truffles, and white truffle infused extra virgin olive oil. You might be adventurous and try the truffle anchovies or polenta. The truffle salsa is just gorgeous.
Go on and treat yourself to an historical experience. Taste beauty and royal pleasure, whether it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience for you, or a gourmet staple you keep locked in the family vault with your other jewels.
www.istraromance.com
646-662-5521
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