Truffles and the warm, satisfying scent of winter

The first decent truffles appear in stores at the end of June, but the best show up in July, selling at about $2500 a kilogram. It is just as well that 10 grams to 20 grams is a usable quantity for some dishes.

Since the first black truffles were harvested in Tasmania in 1999 from trees whose roots had been inoculated with spores, the Australian crop has become a great, if unpredictable, success.

There are many varieties of truffles, most without much flavour. But the French black truffle, Tuber melanosporum, is the prized one for cultivation. The even more expensive Italian white truffle, Tuber magnum pico, whose flavour is even more valued, has never been cultivated, and is found only in the wild. There is a European summer truffle, Tuber aestivum, which is not regarded highly by connoisseurs.

A truffle is judged on its mysterious and variable aroma. For chef Mathew Macartney at Chateau Yering, truffles vary from earthy and mushroom to mineral. Others may perceive a slightly horsey note. The magic of a truffle lies in the way it intensifies the flavours around it, rather like the other expensive ingredient, saffron. It can also add a depth and complexity to the flavours in a dish.

Australia is the biggest truffle producer outside Europe, and Western Australia produces the lion's share. Last year, the state yielded about 3 tonnes of Australia's total of 4.5 tonnes. Most of the crop was exported, as it is highly regarded in Europe, Asia and the US. One advantage for the Australian industry is that it can provide winter truffles in the northern summer.

However, truffle grower and distributor Daryl Neilson, vice-president of the Victorian chapter of the Australian Truffle Growers Association, is cautious about volumes. "The figures are fluffy," he says. They are dependent on self-reporting, rather than a verifiable and quantifiable harvest.

Will this be a good year? Yarra Valley truffle grower Stuart Dunbar, preparing for his third crop, says the summer rains were welcome and the first cold weather is a good sign. He says the rule of thumb is that five frosts are needed to trigger ripening.

Dunbar is one of many small growers in Victoria. Neilson says there are about 50 trufferies (or truffle orchards) and less than half are producing. He says only a handful are producing commercial quantities.

So, what is a commercial quantity? "More than you can eat yourself," Neilson says. His prediction for the coming crop is matter-of-fact: "We won't know until the end of the season how good it's been."

Australian truffles are a better bet than truffles in Europe, truffle teacher and barrister Sara Hinchey says, because there is less chance truffles have been adulterated, or inferior product infused with truffle oil.

Even so, she says there is a great variation among truffles, and the best indicator of quality is intensity of the aroma.

Hinchey's company is called the Truffle Hound, a reference to the dogs that sniff out the underground tubers. In northern Italy, Dalmatians seem to be the preferred breed, but any trainable dog with a good nose and a liking for rewards is acceptable. Dunbar has an American bulldog, and I've seen spaniels, Australian sheepdogs and, in France, a golden retriever called Farrah. Pigs are no longer favoured because they actually like truffles, and it can be dangerous wrestling a truffle from a large animal. Dogs prefer edible rewards other than truffles.

Hinchey began her classes and workshops two years ago, aware that truffles were too valuable to ruin in cooking. The classes are run at Princes Hill Secondary College and begin this month, when truffles are at their best.

She began by experimenting in her own kitchen after she was sent a 200-gram truffle from Tasmania. She had ordered two, and was going to give one as a gift, but the large single truffle enabled her to learn hands-on about cooking and storing the tubers.

"Even five grams can make a big difference to a dish," she says. "But simple is best."

Her recommendations are to shave truffle over scrambled eggs or fresh pasta. Avoid using too high a heat, because the aromas disappear at 80 degrees.

Truffle events

Madame Truffles family dinner with St Ali and Andrew Gale: July 27; St Ali South, 12-18 Yarra Place, South Melbourne, 9686 2990.

Truffle butter making with Pepe Saya at St Ali South: August 9; free; tickets from Madame Truffles (20 Yarra Place, South Melbourne), in-store only. Contact: truffles@madametruffles.com.au