THERE was a pause, like a faint tremor of silence, with the first spoonful of poached egg. Talk was suspended in midair to give the dish due attention. But then this is what happens when egg, simply cooked with cream and parmigiano-reggiano, is crowned with shavings of trifola d’Alba.
The third edition of the White Truffle Dinner was well under way at I’m Angus. Held November last year, it was again a sell-out affair, notwithstanding the hefty dinner tariff. And with the same menu, too—beef tartare with extra virgin olive oil, poached egg, handmade Piemontese ravioli, veal steak in Barolo sauce—topped of course with the white truffle of Alba. I’d been to the previous dinners (and seen the same familiar faces), but the sense of wonder never faded. The snapping of photos when the trayful of truffles make their appearance; the waft of mushroom-y, slightly garlicky, wet-earth pungency that descends on the dining room; the first forkful of beef tartare with shaved truffle. Eating fresh truffles is, perhaps, one of the most stupendous of dining experiences.
The dinner has been held every three years since 2010, thanks to the bond of friendship between its proponents, Fiorenzo Dogliani, the truffle purveyor whose family owns the Beni di Batasiolo winery; and Werner Berger, the importer of Mr. Dogliani’s wines through his company, Werdenberg International and the Säntis Delicatessen stores. We were lucky to get almost a kilo, Mr. Berger said—and the going rate now is almost €6,000 per kilo.
In Italy the use of pigs in truffle hunting had been prohibited since 1985. The female pig has the innate ability to sniff out a truffle (and eat it, too) because it contains a compound similar to that found in boar saliva. Imagine a hog intensely attracted to the exotic aroma, digging feverishly at the ground. If not restrained quickly enough, the hog gets to eat truffle, but, worse still, it can damage the root system that supports the truffle. Hence the prohibition, as the pigs can jeopardize truffle production. I remember Mr. Dogliani saying that they only use dogs to hunt truffles. No ordinary hounds these, but specially trained to sniff out the prized fungi. (I was told that in Rodi, a village in Piemonte, there is a training school for truffle-sniffing dogs.)
Truffles have a symbiotic relationship with trees and there is talk of truffle cultivation. But Tuber magnatum, the white Alba truffle, so far has defied all efforts to “domesticate” it, and is found only in the wild under the base of oak, hazel, poplar and beech trees—only from October to December. To grow, rain should be plentiful. In 2017 there was a drought in Piemonte, so there were less truffles, explained Davide Vacchioti, a mainstay of the white truffle dinners and the distributor of Mr. Dogliani’s wines in Asia. Nevertheless, the specimens shipped over by Mr. Dogliani were magnificent: the largest was like a medium-sized spud and the smallest, slightly bigger than a golf ball.
Where there is trifola d’Alba, Barolo and Barbaresco can’t be far behind. The great red wines of Piemonte are classic pairing for the region’s beloved truffle. But as in the previous dinners, Mr. Dogliani showcased Barolo, the flagship wines of Beni di Batasiolo, his family’s winery. The Dogliani family has been making wine since 1888 and now own 140 hectares of land in the acclaimed Barolo winegrowing areas of La Morra, Barolo, Monforte d’Alba and Serralunga d’Alba. From their vineyards in these areas, Beni di Batasiolo makes five Barolos: Bussia Vigneto Bofani, Boscareto, Cerequio, Brunate and Briccolina. The Briccolina and the Boscareto made it to dinner.
The Barolo Vigneto La Corda della Briccolina 2009 and the Barolo Vigneto Boscareto 2006 were poured, just when the trayful of fresh Alba truffles made its appearance. This was the moment everyone was waiting for—the Barolo and truffle pairing, when the truffles would be shaved over each guest’s plate of the main course. Out came the mobile phones (again) for selfies with the truffles. Out came Mr. Dogliani and Mr. Berger (again), each holding a good-sized truffle with a gloved hand, while the other held a tagliatartufi, the truffle shaver. They made the rounds of the tables, assisted after a while by other tagliatartufi wielders, stopping no more than a couple of minutes at each plate, enough time to shave off about 10 grams of truffle, the customary serving portion. The Alba truffle is only served fresh, shaved over a finished dish—the better to savor its extraordinary aroma.
La Corda della Briccolina and Boscareto are vineyards in Serralunga d’Alba. The Barolos named after them share the same intense aromas and remarkable structure. But still, no two wines are alike. The style of winemaking and the distinct features of the vineyard make for the nuances that distinguish one wine from the other. I found the Barolo Briccolina muscular yet supple; the Boscareto had more intense, earthy aromas. At the table, there was lively discussion and different opinions about the two Barolos. But there was total agreement to the one undisputed fact: that the pairing of Barolo and the white Alba truffle is a match made in heaven.
VINOFILE
- Beni di Batasiolo also owns and operates the five-star Il Boscareto Resort and Spa. Surrounded by vineyards in Serralunga d’Alba, the resort is home to La Rei, a one-star Michelin restaurant. Rooms have views of the prized vineyards and an indoor pool (conducive to swimming even in the winter) opens up to the outdoors in the summer. The full-service spa offers treatments in the Ayurvedic tradition.
- The wines of Beni di Batasiolo are available at all Säntis Delicatessen branches: Barolo Vigneto La Corda della Briccolina 2009, Barolo Vigneto Boscareto 2006, Prosecco Treviso Sette Cascine, Gavi di Gavi Granée 2015, Chardonnay Morino Langhe 2014, Barbera d’Alba Sovrana 2013, Brachetto d’Acqui Spumante.