Good Food truffle feast makes a great Impression

It was a winter's night to remember for Good Food readers and members of the National Gallery of Australia at a special evening of art, truffles and fine wine in Canberra.

To celebrate its exclusive Monet: Impression Sunrise exhibition, the National Gallery partnered with Good Food and the Canberra Region Truffle Festival to give 220 guests an opportunity to experience some of Claude Monet's rarely seen works.

This was followed by a feast designed by chef Ben Willis, whose Canberra restaurant Aubergine has two hats in the Good Food Guide, paired with wines from the region.

On arrival, guests from Sydney and Canberra enjoyed a glass of Perrier-Jouet champagne and truffle-infused canapes, before a four-course menu including a starter of truffled egg and white chocolate and truffle delice for dessert.

Truffle farmer Damian Robinson, president of the festival that celebrates fresh black truffles grown in the Canberra region, supplied the $5000 worth of truffles for Willis to use his menu.

During the dinner, Willis and Robinson were interviewed by Trudi Jenkins, Good Food's publishing director, about growing truffles and which ingredients they work best with.

National Gallery of Australia Director Nick Mitzevich gave audiences an insight into Monet – the man and his work – before an exclusive after-hours tour of the exhibition.

"We were thrilled to share this wonderful experience with our loyal National Gallery members and readers of Good Food, one of our valued partners," Mitzevich said.

"Winter in Canberra is an experience to behold – Monet, truffles and beautiful wines were an amazing way to experience this special season."

Art lovers who missed the dinner can still see Monet's famous Impression, Sunrise before the exhibition closes on September 1. They can make it an extra special experience by enjoying high tea at Monet's Tea Salon.

Once the painting leaves Canberra, Monet fans will have to fly to Paris to see it again – the painting that inspired the impressionist movement almost never leaves its home at the Musee Marmottan Monet in the French capital.