Hunting for truffles
with Anna Terry

Let digging for aromatic black truffles on a crisp winter day ignite your senses.

The rich, fertile soils and cool climate of Tasmania’s north west make it a veritable food bowl. During the Off Season, while many crops lie dormant, Anna Terry and her dogs hunt for hidden treasure in the frosty earth among 5000-odd trees on the Truffle Farm.

As a second-generation truffle farmer, Anna has been truffling for as long as she can remember. Despite this (or perhaps because of it) she still can’t get enough of them.

The unusual fungi scent of a freshly dug winter truffle is difficult to describe.

“It’s a really hard thing to put into words,” says Anna, owner-operator of the farm just outside of Deloraine.

When you are unearthing one in the dirt, you pick up this sweetness in the soil… It's very pungent. It's very intense.

The Truffle Farm harvests in both summer and winter, and runs truffle-hunting tours from December through to September. In the cooler months, Anna treats guests to an authentic experience that closely mirrors her own life on the farm.

I think what's special about winter in Tasmania that's different to anywhere else in Australia is that our seasons are so true.

On a group truffle hunt and brunch tour, you’ll forage and hunt for truffles among the farm’s frosty groves of trees. Post-foraging sesh, relax with a cup of billy tea and watch on as your morning’s work is transformed into a delicious truffle-infused breakfast.

Growing truffles is no easy feat. These enigmatic fungi develop beneath trees inoculated with truffle spores and the conditions need to be just right. It takes years for a tree to produce truffles – and there are no guarantees.

“They are so particular in the type of soil they like, the pH, aeration, climate, sunlight, water – all those stars need to align,” Anna says. “So it really is quite a miracle when they happen.”

Alongside their delicate flavours favoured by chefs and foodies, the scarcity and the manual labour that goes into growing and finding truffles elevates them to luxury status.

And then there are the dogs. Truffles are completely hidden beneath the surface and are dug up by hand, using specially trained canines to sniff them out.

“Without the dogs, we actually can't find the truffles,” Anna says. “They’re pets, as well as work dogs, as well as colleagues… It's a pretty special bond.”

So what is it that sets Tasmanian truffles apart?

A lot of chefs believe that the Tasmanian truffle has a sweetness to it that truffles across the rest of the country don't.

Anna puts this intensity of flavour down to slow growth and cool climate. Tasmania sits on a similar latitude to Provence, France, in the northern hemisphere – an area also renowned for growing beautiful truffles.

When asked about her favourite truffle-inspired recipes, Anna has three staunch favourites: truffle scrambled eggs, truffle mashed potato and truffle pasta.

“When I smell truffles, I just feel at home,” she says. “It's my calm, it's my happy place.”

Bite into one of Anna's truffle-infused masterpieces by the crackling fire and you’ll quickly understand why.

For more tantalising winter experiences, check out these nearby offers.