They are not chocolates...
I received some emails asking about truffles, "what are they?", "where do they grow?", "why are they so expensive?", and so forth. First of all, a disclaimer: although I enjoy them very much, and use them to build dishes around them with their magnificent aroma, I am no authority in the matter and if you want to know more you can always use Google, Wikipedia, or the like (assuming of course SOPA fails), or consult books in the matter such as Bucquet-Grenet, Sabine et al, Little Book of Truffles, Flammarion (2001); Dedulle, Annemie, Truffles: Earth's Black Diamonds, Firefly (2009) or some other of your preferred publisher. That said, some truffle trivia:
The quick rundown is that the aroma emitted by these little fungi is so potent and luscious it has captivated chefs worldwide for centuries. Up until recently they could only be found in symbiosis with certain type of trees, in certain forests, in certain climates, during certain seasons, in certain regions. In summary, they are not always available and finding them underground is not an easy task. Furthermore once harvested they quickly begin losing aroma so they must be rushed to the consumer as fast as possible. This scenario, of course, creates a supply and demand economic environment, and we all know, the more the demand, the higher the price.
Up until recently, advances in science contributed to isolating the VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds, the chemicals responsible for the aroma) and to being able to reproduce them in the lab. This is what we know as truffle oil, and for most of us in the seasons when fresh truffles are not readily available, is the only alternative if you want a truffle scented dish (unless of course if you bought a bunch of them when they were available and infused butter with them, or froze them), but of course, truffle oil is not the real deal. Many chefs in fact, criticize heavily those others who like to use the chemical stuff. In my opinion, like everything, it is a matter of personal perception and preference. Cooking is all about the enjoyment of the senses and if one person enjoys one thing, who is the other to criticize?
Fresh truffles can be found typically during two seasons and they are catalogued as such; winter and summer, being the former much more aromatic than the latter, difficult to find, and hence, more expensive; then there are black and white. The white variety (Tuber Magnatum Pico) only grows in winter, while the black variety, grows in the winter (Tuber Melanosporum Vitt) as well as in the summer (Tuber Aestivum Vitt); there is also the black autumn variety (Black Uncinatum) which is a good compromise between price and aroma and is also known as burgundy truffle.
They are mostly (and traditionally) cultivated in specific regions from France and Italy, there are more now however, as demand grew and farmers worldwide are trying to reproduce the conditions necessary for their growth, but have not been able to reproduce an equally aromatic specimen just yet.
Being a prized item, only available during a few months of the year, they can fetch quite a sum of money for the farmers, elevating the costs for chefs who want to use the real deal. Depending on size, shape, aroma and other factors, they can easily run into the hundreds of dollars for the smaller pieces, or thousands for the bigger ones.
This is why, when they are available, and you have the possibility to enjoy them, you definitely should!
