RECORD BREAKING AUCTION IN FLORENCE: A 1.5 KG TRUFFLE SOLD TO CHINESE BILLIONAIRE STANLEY HO FOR 330,000 DOLLARS. HO OUTBID THE SON OF SHEIK ABU DHABI. CHINA DOMINATES ENTIRE AUCTION, BUYING 11 OUT OF THE 14 LOTS AVAILABLE

China cleared the bank at the truffle auction held in Tuscany and set a new world record as well. From Macao, the Chinese billionaire, Stanley Ho, made the top bid of 330,000 dollars for the prized white truffle weighing in at 1.5 kg (the largest found in the past 50 years), exceeding the previously highest bid of 221,000 dollars. The battle was fierce until the end with competing bidder Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the son of emir Abu Dhabi, who finally stopped at 320,000 dollars.
The International Truffle Auction of Tuscany (www.astatartufoditoscana.com), created by its chairman Giselle Oberti, is one of the hottest events of autumn in Tuscany and was held, this year, on December 1st at the Palazzo Medici Riccardi in Florence, and simultaneously via satellite at the restaurant “Refettorio” in London (with the renowned chef Giorgio Locatelli), and at the prestigious six star hotel “The Grand Lisboa” in Macao, owned by the top bidder himself, Stanley Ho. The live auction viewing was held in the hotel’s Italian restaurant, “Don Alfonso 1890”, run by the celebrated chef Alfonso Iaccarino, which offers not only highest level Italian cuisine, but also one of the most important wine cellars in Asia.
In all, there were 14 lots of the prized tuber that reaped a total of 453,500 dollars, donated entirely to charity: in Italy, earnings went to Telethon, the Consortium for Street Children in Britain, and Caritas Macao in China.
Bottles of wine from the most prestigious Tuscan wineries (from Antinori to Jacopo Biondi Santi, Castello Banfi, Marchesi Mazzei, Consorzio del Brunello di Montalcino, Tolaini and Bisol from the Veneto) were included in all of the lots And various accessories as well from the likes of Cavalli, Ferrè and Bulgari to name just a few. China ended up taking home almost all of the goods with the highest bids for eleven lots, leaving just two lots to London and one to Florence.
Apart from the record sized truffle, the top lot was three truffles weighing in at 270 grams and matched with a magnum of Brunello di Montalcino Castello Banfi 2001, which was taken by Macao for 23,000 euros.
The super sized truffle that was the centerpiece of the auction was the largest found in the past 50 years, and second only to a 2.5 kg truffle found in Tuscany in the 1950’s and donated to then U.S. president, Dwight Eisenhower.
Leonardo Roselli


Truffles: Climate change puts a 400 million euro business at risk.
Buying, preserving, and eating them…

After a year of drought and one of the warmest winters recorded in the past two centuries, climate changes have put truffles at risk causing prices to skyrocket. This was noted by the Italian agricultural organization Coldiretti during a record breaking truffle auction held recently in Florence, where a 1.5 kg truffle was auctioned off for 330,000 dollars. This new world record for truffle sales was reached during a year that was particularly difficult for the harvesting of the precious “tuber magnatum pico”, which registered elevated prices even for smaller less valuable pieces, selling at 3,000 – 4,000 euros per kg.
According to Coldiretti, it is a sector with a net worth estimated at 400 million euros for the specialty which can be sold fresh, preserved and transformed and which involves tens of thousands of professionals, together with man’s best friend, to supply the demand from shops, restaurants, and consumers.

Truffle hunting was practiced even in the age of the Sumerians and has turned into an economic resource for forested regions, representing important earnings for local communities, not only with the truffle itself but by turning these areas into tourist attractions as well.
The truffle – continued Coldiretti – is a mushroom that grows underground and is made up mostly of water and minerals absorbed from the earth through the roots of trees with which it lives in symbiosis. The truffle’s characteristics (color, flavor, and scent) are the direct result of the tree under which it grows, usually pines and oaks. The form, instead, depends on the type of earth: if the terrain is soft, then the truffle’s exterior is smooth, if it is compact, then it will have knobs and curves.

Truffles, well noted for their aphrodisiacal properties, are used in many dishes. Black truffles are usually used for cooking with, as well as eaten raw on pastas and salads. While white truffles, on the other hand, must be enjoyed raw, grated or sliced over fondues, pastas and salads. As for the best wine companion, white truffles go best with big reds, while black truffles are fine even with white wines.

The organoleptic qualities of the truffle are much more pronounced immediately after harvest and its aroma diminishes over time. t is best to acquire truffles from a trusted source or from markets in areas where they are harvested and during the period when they are mature. Truffles are best preserved in the refrigerator in a hermetically sealed container and individually wrapped in a paper towel or submerged in rice (which then also absorbs some of the perfume of the truffle). When the time comes to use the truffle they should be cleaned just before use with a brush and, if necessary, with a dab of cold water.

Source: elaborated data from Coldiretti