When it comes to wine and food, Italians never fail to impress. It’s in the blood, built on culinary traditions through time and memory. But also because of their rich produce, and their talented and creative chefs. In addition, Italy is also the nirvana of wine lovers. There is a time of year that offers the perfect culinary storm of all of the above when the finest culinary delights are glorified in an extravagant array of sumptuous dishes. That magic ingredient is the white truffle and the food festival that celebrates it is Alba International White Truffle Fair.
White truffles. To the culinary world, this mushroom is the equivalent of a flawless diamond, rare, exquisite and worthy of its exorbitant price. By definition, it is an exotic ingredient with a distinctive and pungent odor that is made more scarce by the season of harvest and limited shelf life. It is extremely hard to find, even harder to grow, and only grows in a few parts of the world. Only the most highly trained hunters can find them in the Piedmont region of Italy as well as in France and Croatia. But what it does with food is nothing short of magical.
The Alba International White Truffle Fair is a festival that takes place in the city of Alba in the Piedmontese region. The festival offers a wide range of events and experiences involving white truffles as well as excellent products, wines and culinary talents from the Langhe, Roero and Monferrato regions.
Langhe-Roero and Monferrato
Just a few hours north of Milan is the Piedmont region. The Langhe-Roero and Monferrato The area is the most fascinating to say the least with its undulating hills dotted with old stone houses, ravishing woodland, and of course, vineyards as far as the eye can see. Langhe is a region made up of countless medieval villages with names like Barolo, Barbaresco, Bra with the poetic Po river weaving through the landscape.
It is because of its stunning landscape and winemaking tradition that UNESCO designated Piedmont’s Vineyard Landscape: Langhe-Roero and Monferrato a World Heritage Site. As temperatures begin to drop in the fall, the landscape grows even more spectacular as the leaves turn a variety of colors from reds to yellows and browns. This is also the time of grape harvest, so vineyards and wineries are hustling with activity to complete the harvest at the most optimal time.
The city of Alba itself is a destination worth visiting at any time of the year. The old town area of the city has cobblestone pedestrian streets lined with gothic shops, churches and museums, and of course pubs and cafes. Alba is a town built on celebrating food, where taking time to appreciate meals with friends and family is an integral part of the lifestyle. As a backlash against McDonald’s and the fast food industry’s efforts to mass produce and market shoddy food, Slow Food Movement starting in Alba. Thankfully, the movement thrived throughout the region and has begun to take hold around the world.
Unlike the time of year when white truffles take center stage, this region is best known for its rich, delicate red wines. The region is built on the Nebbiolo grape variety used to make their Barolo wines, which ranks among the top red wines in the world. But the region is a gourmet’s Holy Grail for reasons beyond truffles and wine. The region is also famous for the production of beef Carrú, hazelnuts and a variety of gourmet egg pastas, including agnolotti, tajarin and panzerotti as well as their distinctive cheeses from artisan producers. labour.
Gianfranco Curti by Tartufi Ponzio
Around town, there are many gourmet shops dedicated to truffles such as Tartufi Ponzio located in the old town a few yards from the festival. The shop has been dealing with truffles for over 80 years and is now run by the charismatic shop owner, Gianfranco Curti. They sell a variety of truffle products from truffle chocolate and candies, oils, as well as handcrafted products from the region. Several years ago, Gianfranco brokered a record-breaking white truffle of the year weighing 896 grams which he sold to a Russian citizen for an undisclosed amount of more than $100,000. As the shelf life was less than a week, the prized catch was then packaged and sent to Russia on a chartered private jet for collection.
Magnatum Pico Tubers | Alba white truffle
Knowing truffles is loving truffles, but not all truffles are created equal. Around the world, black truffles are most popular and are used in all manner of cooking. It’s also less refined and much more flexible. But white truffles are something much more special. It is not heat resistant so it cannot be used in baking or other types of cooking techniques. For most dishes, it is mandatory to be shaved, usually in front of the diner, with thin layers drifting from the truffle slicer on top of simple dishes so that the taste and aroma of the white truffles remains. the star of the dish.
To understand this most complex ingredient is to unravel its mystery. Truffles are actually mushrooms or underground tubers. White truffles only grow on the roots of oak, beech and poplar trees. Truffles also grow on hazelnuts that are proliferating throughout the Piedmont region. White truffles cannot be preserved and once out of the ground have a shelf life of seven to ten days. Of course, they are judged on the basis of weight but in addition to color, spiciness of aroma, shape, size and other distinguishing factors. Because of its rarity, Tartufo Bianco is also one of the most expensive ingredients with prices ranging from $6,000 – $10,000 per pound and for dessert cakes, worth every penny.
The truffle season lasts from September 21 to the end of January. Additionally, they are out of season and are illegal to harvest. Around the Piedmont, truffle hunters and their highly trained canines set out into their favorite woods in search of this white gold. Dogs known as “tabui” are trained from small puppies and see hunting as a game and a way to win the love of their owners. Truffles lie a few inches below the topsoil and are best discovered after rain. The dog picked up the smell and started digging until its owner took over and discovered the treasure.
For those wanting to learn more about the truffle industry and to better understand what to look for in an ideal truffle, classes are held during the festival, where the curious can find understand more. The participants learned to rate the smell, color as well as the internal flesh that varied in color from white to pink and brown.
Fiera Internazionale Tartufo Bianco d’Alba | Alba International White Truffle Fair
Indeed, an ingredient like this deserves to be celebrated and that’s just what happened over 100 years before the Truffle Fair started. It started as a competition to recognize truffles and truffle hunters and later expanded to include other regional produce.
The centerpiece of the truffle fair is in the heart of Alba’s old city, where a truffle market, educational classes on truffles and cooking demonstrations with celebrity chefs take place. Throughout the festival and around the area are experiential tours and exclusive dining events developed to satisfy the palates of visiting locals and foodies.
Just as the wine industry has experts, connoisseurs and people who control the standards of the finest wines, so does the truffle industry. “Mercato Mondiale del Tartufo Bianco d’Alba” (Alba White Truffle Market) is a working market where truffle hunters carry their precious catch and sell thousands of freshly picked truffles to brokers or directly to consumers. There, a distinctive pungent musk wafts through the air as market-goers search for the right truffles for dinner at home with friends. Traders are an interesting type of person while some are quite eccentric while others look more like the lady next door. There was a bit of haggling but most prices were set. With an inspection, sniffing for pungent odors, and offering a final price, the deal is done and money is exchanged. All truffles sold at the fair are tested and guaranteed by an authorized body of experts.
Although the truffle market is the focal point, visitors around the square are buzzing about the tents and stalls that sell a variety of products from the region such as al Tartufo olive oil, porcini mushrooms and hazelnuts, and cheeses , pasta, and of course, the region’s main export, wine.
And the fair is not just for observation. Wine glasses are provided and patrons go from stall to stall to sample locally produced wines and talk to winemakers. Most of these are family wineries passed down through generations. More about Piedmont’s wines and wineries in an upcoming feature.
Smelling, sipping and tasting is sure to create an appetite, and there are plenty of food vendors selling traditional meals with the addition of truffles. Beef tartare, scrambled eggs, avocado tajarin, tagliolini and risotto are topped with shredded truffles for a substantial extra charge.
There are a number of accessible and affordable events that take place during the festival but there are also some very chichi and exclusive events. Such a culinary event celebrates truffles and combines haute cuisine with culture. Have the appropriate title The Extraordinary Dinner, the evening was hosted by Krug Maison de Champagne and featured their celebrity chef and ambassador, Giuseppe Iannotti.
Chef Giuseppe Iannotti
The evening takes place at the Teatro Sociale Giorgio Busca, a beautiful and historic theater in the heart of Alba. The evening begins with a tour of the 19th-century theater, followed by a presentation and a toast of Krug champagne before dinner. The star of the dinner was of course truffles with dishes by Michelin-starred celebrity chef Giuseppe Iannotti, who has served the likes of Bill Clinton, the Queen of England and Barack Obama.
The festival mainly happens on weekends, so you’ll want to stay at least ten days or more in the area. More on things to do as well as where to stay in an upcoming article.
There’s something special about the Piedmont region that you won’t find anywhere else in the world. On the quaint road from Paris to Rome, it’s a mix of cultures where wine and food culture are at their peak. Alba White Truffle Festival It’s the perfect time of year to discover all that a gourmet’s paradise has to offer while savoring this rare and spicy delicacy to witness all it has to do with food and people love it.
