British Travel Journal | Autumn/Winter 2022

lack
AUTUMN
MAGIC
Following a renaissance of foraging and wild foods, our native
truffles are on the path from a little-known curiosity to an exciting
ingredient, sought after by top chefs around the country. From
truffle-hunting experiences in the woods of Sussex and Wiltshire
to mouth-watering dishes served in snug country pubs, the
English truffle season has a truly intoxicating aroma
Text by Karolina Wiercigroch
Grab the dogs!” Melissa shouts and starts sprinting. She
navigates between rows of thin beeches, their rusty leaves
shimmering in the low October sun, and is the first one to
reach the spot where two very excited Cocker Spaniels are
sniffing the ground. They’re ready to dig but, this time, Melissa is faster.
She gently shifts the dogs away and starts breaking the damp ground.
Soon, she’s presenting a handful of round, plum-sized balls, coal-black and
warty. Their scent is lightly floral, sweet and nutty, with earthy undertones
of raw beetroot. Truffles. Not in the hills of Piedmont, not in the Périgord
region of southwest France. Melissa Waddingham has been hunting for
these delicacies in the grounds of Sussex for the last 15 years.
The world’s most celebrated fungi, white truffles — tuber magnatum
— often associated with the Italian town of Alba, are found in the
limestone-rich soils all the way between Italy and the Black Sea, with
some exceptional ones hunted in the forests of Croatian Istria, Southern
Hungary and Serbia. Black winter truffles – tuber melanosporum –
sometimes called after the French region of Périgord, are native to
eastern Spain, southern France and northern and central Italy. Today,
most of black winters are farmed in truffle orchards worldwide, and
34 BritishTravelJournal.com