From June ’til August, the black Périgord (Tuber melanosporum) truffles grow across NSW. Known for their intense, earthy taste, these buried delicacies prefer to grow in rich soil in a cold climate, with frosts adding to the intensity of flavour.
If you’re keen to find them, you don’t need to go at it alone – NSW and the ACT offer plenty of truffle hunting tours. But if you’d rather just enjoy them, without having to rug up and pull on your gumboots, you can do that, too. The state and territory have plenty of truffle-focused dinners, too.
Ahead, we round up some of the best of those truffle hunting tours and tasting dinners. From a five-course dinner with matching wines at an estate that once harvested a truffle that weighed a whopping 10.5kg, to a truffle hunting tour at one of the first operating truffle farms in the country, these are the best truffle experiences you can have in NSW and ACT this coming winter.
Blue Mountains, NSW
Lowes Mount Truffière
Follow truffle dogs on an exhilarating hunt among the oak and hazelnut trees at Lowes Mount Truffière in Oberon, an hour’s drive west of the Blue Mountains, which hosts truffle hunts throughout the season.
Then learn about how foods rich in natural fats (think: butter, cream and eggs) unlock the truffle’s flavours as you tuck into a delicious tasting platter. You can also buy truffled products, such as truffle honey and truffle salt, to enjoy at home.
RedGround Truffle Hunts
RedGround Truffle Hunts is also in Oberon, though its truffle hunting season spans much longer – eight months, from February to October. Tours include three tastings, a presentation, a truffle hunt and a grading and weighing of food picked up.
After the tour, you can stay on-site in the property’s RedGround Cottage, which looks out at green hills and wandering wildlife and lets you see what life is like on a working truffle farm.
Orange, NSW
Borrodell Estate
Borrodell Estate near Orange, a 3.5-hour drive west of Sydney, is a pioneer in Australia’s truffle industry. The largest truffle harvested here weighed a whopping 10.5kg. The estate also sells truffle from other growers in the area. Pick up truffles or truffle products, like truffle salt, butter and honey.
The largest event on its annual calendar, and one of the most known in Orange, is its Black Tie and Gumboot Truffle Hunt and Dinner, a five-course feast featuring dishes made with freshly harvested truffled and matching wine. In 2024, the dinner will be held Saturday, June 29 with the guest chef and menu yet to be announced.
Canberra, ACT
Blue Frog Truffles
Blue Frog Truffles, in Sutton, just 20 minutes drive north of Canberra, runs truffle hunts, lunches and tastings on Sundays during truffle season, which, in 2024, starts June 23 and finishes August 11.
Hunts include the truffle harvest with dogs, industry information, tastings, washing truffles and the chance at the end to buy fresh truffles and truffle products. The hunt takes about an hour. Wear warm clothes.
Turalla Truffles
Opened in 2005, Turalla Truffles is a 30-minute drive from Canberra in town Bungendore near Lake George. From June to August, you can book a truffle hunt or truffle degustation, or simply drop by to buy truffles. In 2024, the truffle hunts will be more intimate, with a maximum of 12 people.
Tarago Truffles
Tarago Truffles is also in the Bungendore area. The truffles were planted in stages, starting in 2002. Today, it’s a small mixed farm with truffle hunts available on Saturdays from mid-June ‘til early September.
Southern Highlands
Robertson Truffles
With its cold climate and regular rainfall, the town of Robertson is another ideal truffle-growing area. Robertson Truffles is a family-owned and operated truffle farm on a 30-hectare property in the Southern Highlands, a two-hour drive south of Sydney. It’s one of the first operating truffle farms in Australia.
In 2024, the season will run June 8 ‘til August 7, with truffle hunts on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10am. The farm also hosts truffle cooking demonstrations and an end-of-season Long Table Truffle Lunch, which, this year, will be held Friday, August 9. The menu includes pasta, mains and dessert, made with truffles.
South Coast
Macenmist Black Truffles and Wine
Macenmist Black Truffles and Wine is located in the Snowy Monaro region, outside Bredbo and next to Cappanana River. Join one of its truffle hunting experiences, led by the estate’s truffle dogs Tawdiffu and SongLu.
Tours include family hunts, hunt and tasting and hunt and lunch. Held only on Saturdays and Sundays, the three-course lunch lasts four hours, with a maximum of 34 adults-only diners. All dishes feature freshly harvested truffles.
Related: The Best Places to Get a Truffle Fix in Sydney
Related: Matt Moran on the Sydney Restaurant Everyone Should Visit at Least Once
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