The white truffle (Tuber magnatum Pico) — also called the Alba truffle — is regarded as the royal family of truffles. It is exceptionally rare and can be harvested only between October and January. The main source is Piedmont in northern Italy, in particular the area around the town of Alba, where the finest specimens are found.
Appearance and aroma
The Alba truffle has a characteristically white to pale brown outer skin which can occasionally show pink-marbled veins. The flesh is light cream with fine white veins. In aroma it combines garlic, ripe cheese, honey and something tasting of earth and musk at the same time — a profile that can neither be named nor synthetically reproduced.
Why it cannot be cultivated
Every attempt to cultivate the white truffle has failed dismally. The symbiosis between Tuber magnatum and its host trees — oak, poplar, lime, hazel — is so sensitive to soil and climate variation that no reliable plantation can be established. What reaches the market was found in the wild.
In the kitchen
The white Alba truffle must never be heated. Its volatile aromatic profile is measured in seconds: two minutes in a pan, and everything that defines it has escaped. Classically it is shaved razor-thin over finished, lukewarm dishes — tagliolini in butter, a soft fried egg, a risotto bianco, a Fassona carpaccio. Four to six grams per portion are entirely sufficient.
- Botanical
- Tuber magnatum
- Season
- October – January
- Region
- Piedmont · Istria
- Market price
- CHF 3,000 – 6,000/kg
A market peculiarity
Even more than with other species, the price of the white truffle fluctuates strongly — within a season, even from one day to the next. Dry summers depress yields; wet autumns let them explode. Buyers ask for the daily price, the harvest date and proof of provenance. More on this under Truffle prices and Alba truffle market.