It was nice to be featured recently in a new book about truffles – “Truffle Hound” – by award-winning author Rowan Jacobson. Rowan came to visit us in Wiltshire and it was a pleasure to show him a window into our world, as well as sharing with him some of our wider knowledge about the product and the industry. We’re always slightly suspicious of TV, journalists and authors as so much of what’s written about truffles ends up being a disaster. However in this case we were right to trust him; Rowan is a sound and serious guy who, after two years of painstaking research, has produced what in our opinion is probably the best ever book about truffles. It’s beautifully written and a joy to read, no doubt very enjoyable even for those that have very little interest in truffles. It’s also deeply informative and, unlike so much of what’s been written about the subject before, factually correct from start to end.

The book covers the darker side of truffles: the commercialism and stale truffles of the Alba fair, the massive industry based around synthetic truffle oil, and the systematic fraud on a vast scale by one of the big truffle companies in Italy. However, it also sheds a light on a far more wonderful world of truffles – one that is infinitely more exciting: the passionate people hunting and working with truffles all around the world, the truth about where truffles really come from and the mysterious, magical world of this fantastic fungus. Above all the book manages to put into words better than anyone has done before a feeling of just why truffles are so special, so exciting, so wonderful and unique. We strongly recommend Truffle Hound to all those with an interest in truffles, or just a love of great food writing. It’s available now from most good independent bookstores and online at Amazon etc.