Truffle Regions: Where the World’s Best Truffles Come From

Truffles only grow where the soil, climate and trees are exactly right. That is why a few regions have become famous for them – and why the name of a place is often part of a truffle’s reputation. Here is a tour of the world’s most important truffle regions.

Italy

Italy is home to almost every prized truffle species, and truffle hunting is part of local life from Piedmont in the north to the south of the country.

Piedmont – Alba, Langhe, Roero and Monferrato

The hills around Alba are the home of the white truffle (Tuber magnatum). Every autumn the town hosts the International White Truffle Fair, which attracts chefs and food lovers from around the world. The region’s vineyards also produce Barolo and Barbaresco, so truffles and great wine go hand in hand here.

Umbria – Norcia, Spoleto, Gubbio and Pietralunga

Umbria is the heartland of the black winter truffle, especially around Norcia, Spoleto and the Valnerina valley. The north of the region – around Gubbio, Città di Castello and Pietralunga in the Upper Tiber Valley – is also known for white truffles. Pietralunga is home to Tartufi Jimmy, the family truffle company founded in 1980 whose products we stock in Malta.

Marche – Acqualagna

The small town of Acqualagna calls itself a truffle capital, and it holds truffle fairs through the year: white truffle in autumn, black truffle in winter and summer truffle in the warmer months.

Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna, Molise and Abruzzo

Tuscany produces white, black and summer truffles around San Miniato, the Crete Senesi, the Mugello and the Casentino forests. Emilia-Romagna is known for white truffles and bianchetto, with lively truffle fairs in hill towns such as Sant’Agata Feltria. Further south, the forests of Molise and Abruzzo are important – and often underrated – sources of white, black and summer truffles.

France – Périgord and Provence

France made the black winter truffle famous, and its best-known name is still the Périgord truffle. Winter truffle markets in towns such as Périgueux are a centuries-old tradition. Today much of France’s harvest comes from Provence, especially the Vaucluse, as well as from Quercy, where the market at Lalbenque is famous.

Spain – Teruel

Spain is now the world’s largest producer of black winter truffles. In 2022 it harvested around 120 tonnes – about four times Italy’s output – and roughly 80% of that came from the province of Teruel in Aragon, where the village of Sarrión is surrounded by around 8,000 hectares of truffle plantations. Irrigated orchards of oak trees inoculated with truffle spores have turned this dry, poor land into the heart of the black truffle world.

Croatia – Istria

The Istrian peninsula, and especially the Motovun forest in the Mirna valley, is famous for both white and black truffles. Hilltop towns such as Motovun and Buzet celebrate truffles with festivals every autumn.

Australia – the southern hemisphere season

Australia’s first farmed black truffle was harvested in Tasmania in 1999. Today the Southern Forests region of Western Australia, around Manjimup and Pemberton, is the leading black truffle producer in the southern hemisphere. Because the seasons are reversed, Australian black winter truffles are harvested from about June to September – which means fresh black truffles are available in Malta during our summer too.

Other truffle countries

White truffles are also found in Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia and other parts of south-eastern Europe. Black truffles are grown in plantations in many countries, including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Chile and the United States. Cheaper Asian truffles such as Tuber indicum look similar to black winter truffles but have much less aroma – so always buy from a supplier you trust.

Truffles from the best regions, delivered in Malta

Truffles & Co imports fresh truffles from Italy, France and Australia and follows the seasons of each region. Browse our fresh truffles, or explore Italian specialities such as truffle sauce, truffle honey and truffle oil. To learn which truffle comes from which region, see our guide to the types of truffles.

Buy truffles in Malta. Truffles & Co delivers fresh truffles and truffle products across Malta and Gozo. Chefs, restaurants and hotels can call 00356 99022541 or email info@trufflesandco.com for availability and larger quantities.