Truffle Hunting in Umbria
| Title: | Truffle Hunting in Umbria | |||||||
| Category: | Cultural Experiences on Our Norcia Vacations | |||||||
| Author: | Daniele Pintaudi | Updated: | Jan 30, 2019 | Views: | 4,925 | |||
| Tags: | truffle hunting in Umbria truffle umbria truffle hunting norcia truffle hunting tour | |||||||
Truffles are one of those things most people either love or hate. But when you love them, you LOVE them. They are extremely rare and expensive. The art of finding truffles is certainly a big part of their draw since they are not simply grown.
In Italy, truffles are found by "Truffle Hunters", who specially train dogs to sniff them out underground. These hunters will take their dogs to a field in the woods and let them loose. The dog will then run around, sniffing as he goes. When he senses a truffle, he will suddenly stop and begin to dig. The hunter races to the dog and digs a little more in that spot to reveal the truffle the dog found.
Many people have heard that pigs are used to find truffles. This is mostly the case of a time gone by, although some people still use pigs in France. Trained Truffle Hunting Dogs have been found to be far more reliable because they won't actually eat the truffles they find.
Truffles are not found just anywhere, and even when they are found, certain areas are known for the best quality truffles. Norcia is world famous for their "Tartufo Nero Pregiato", or "Prestigious Black Truffle", and Norcia truffles are among the most highly valued in the world.
On all of our weeks based in Norcia, we spend a morning or afternoon truffle hunting. But our truffle hunt is as much about the hunt as it is about who we hunt with. We will take a light hike into the woods with the truffle hunter, and his dog.