Foraging for Truffles

Truffle dealer Carlo Caporicci invites NOWNESS to accompany him and his sharp-nosed dog Rocco in search of his favored delicacies on his Umbrian estate, San Pietro a Pettine. Growing underground near the roots of oak, poplar and beech trees, the epicurean delights found in the damp microclimate and wooded lowlands by a small team of cavatori, or truffle hunters, have brought Caporicci notoriety in the global restaurant scene. “Every location has a specific climate and mineral makeup that means the truffles grow in different ways or need to be harvested at a different time,” explains Caporicci, who supplies leading restaurants including Hotel Principe di Savoia in Milan, Locanda Locatelli in London, Matias Dalgren in Stockholm, as well as the Missoni Hotel. With gold dust status, truffles are one of the most expensive edibles on the market—the largest single specimen to date of the more expensive white truffle, weighing in at 1.5kg, sold at auction for an astonishing £165,000 ($260,825) in December 2007. “There’s an absolute element of secrecy with truffle hunting,” continues Caporicci, whose family has owned the estate since the middle of the last century. “Every cavatore will keep their knowledge about where the best truffles are to be found to themselves. Every cavatore has their own interaction with their dog and their environment. Truffle hunting is a very, very intimate work.”