Irresistibly Delicious History
As French writer Alexandre Dumas describes our thousand year love affair with the truffle:
“The most learned men have been questioned as to the nature of this tuber, and after two thousand years of argument and discussion their answer is the same as it was on the first day: We do not know. The truffles themselves have been interrogated, and have answered simply: Eat us and praise the Lord.”
The irresistibly delicious history of truffles can be traced back to ancient times when some people believed truffles were created by the gods. According to Plutarch’s legend, truffles would be born as bolts of lightning struck the earth.
The first mention of truffles appears in the inscriptions of the neo-Sumerians regarding their Amorite enemy’s eating habits (Third Dynasty of Ur, 20th century and later in writings of Theophrastus in the fourth century BC. In classical times, their origins were a mystery that challenged many; Plutarch and others thought them to be the result of lightning, warmth and water in the soil, while Juvenal thought thunder and rain to be instrumental in their origin. Cicero deemed them children of the earth, while Dioscorides thought they were tuberous roots.[1]
For centuries, people have been puzzled by the elusiveness of the truffle, never quite understanding how to grow them. However, with today’s techniques for DNA testing, soil analysis, and inoculation , we now have the tools we need to grow truffles in a controlled environment. Through science and careful management, farmers can stave off the threat of drought and disease forces that have crippled truffle production since its peak in the early 1900′s.
While the demand for truffles remains high, the world’s largest truffle producing country, France, has seen a catastrophic decline in annual production—a fall from 1,000 tons to less than 50 tons today. Economists estimate that the market would consume up to 50 times the current global output. Susan Rice Truffle Products’ sister company, Black Diamond Truffles has stepped up to the plate to produce truffles in the United States and has the largest truffle orchard in the United States under cultivation and development in Pinehurst, North Carolina, using the latest in orchard management and sustainable farming techniques.
Susan Rice and her son, Corey Rice, have been pioneers, not only in developing this new region for truffle production but Susan has pioneered the development of new truffle products , with an American taste twist, found in her popular truffled popcorn, gently dusted with truffle sprinkles and delicious Sicilian Sea Salt, or the staple of both chef and everyday kitchens, her truffled sea salt itself, consisting of Mediterranean Sea Salt mined from the shores of Sicily, partnering perfectly with the intoxicating truffles.
[1] Ramsbottom J (1953). Mushrooms & Toadstools. Collins. ISBN.
