Also known as the “Périgord truffle“, the French black truffle is mainly produced in Provence, and in particular in the Vaucluse.
Although France produces two-thirds of the world’s truffles, Provence provides 80%! The truffle is found in the Luberon, where it is grown and harvested in private truffle fields on either side of the mountain. Follow our advice on how to find the truffle that will delight chefs and gourmets alike, how to taste it, and which wine to choose to go with it!
What are truffles?
A truffle is an underground fungus, invisible on the surface. Truffles don’t grow just anywhere; they grow at the foot of certain oak trees.
There are two types of truffle, the white summer truffle and the black winter truffle, the noblest and most sought-after.
Like other crops, truffle growing depends on the vagaries of the weather. But unlike other crops that are planted, truffles are not ‘planted’: truffle growers plant a truffle tree, which may produce truffles, years after it has been planted. It generally takes between ten and fifteen years to harvest the first fine truffles, generally less if the trees are irrigated.
When and how are truffles harvested?
“Rabasse”, the Provençal name for the truffle, is harvested from late November to March, hence the name “winter truffle”. The white summer truffle is harvested from May to August, or September if the rains have been generous. They both grow in the same truffle fields.
The search for the black truffle is called cavage. Once a job for muzzled pigs sniffing out the precious black diamonds, they have now been replaced by dogs, which are more reliable, tougher and more mobile than pigs. In the Luberon, as elsewhere in Provence, although the pigs have disappeared in search of truffles, their wild cousins, the wild boar, plough the soil in search of their favourite delicacies. Truffle growers sometimes erect electrified fences to protect themselves from these pests.
Where can you find Provence truffles?
Know-how and experience in the field have enabled these producers and restaurateurs to make their mark in the world of truffles. Don’t miss out on contacting them to unearth your best Provence truffles.
Two producers:
La truffe de Soulière in Villelaure and Provence en bouteille in Cucuron.
We can organise a demonstration of cavage in EXPERIENCES en Provence HERE
How do you taste a truffle?
That’s the most important thing 😉
Truffles can be eaten in many ways, but they cannot be cooked. Chefs like to say that 20g of truffle is enough to eat.
They give off such a penetrating fragrance that all you have to do is let them come into contact with other foods to imbue them with their flavour. We recommend storing it for several days in the fridge in a closed Tupperware-type container with eggs, so that the eggs can take on the wonderful taste of the truffle. The omelettes then seem to come from another world…
