Truffle Hunting Slovenia

They’re incredibly intoxicating, exceptionally tasty, super healthy, very expensive, and ridiculously hard to find. We’re talking about truffles, of course! Synonymous with luxury and fine dining, truffles are nature’s wonderful little secrets. These miraculous mushrooms were praised by the Romans for their alluring aroma and aphrodisiac properties. Unaspiringly, Italy is still the largest producer of truffles in Europe. Today, truffles are one of the most precious ingredients in the culinary world. Literally. A pound of white truffles can set you back $2,000 and beyond. Why? Because not only are they delicious, they’re extremely difficult to locate and only grow near the roots of certain trees and in a particular type of soil. Luckily, Slovenia is also home to these diamonds of gastronomy.

Besides the term for this famous fungi, Slovenia and neighbouring Croatia share something else that was coined in Roman times – the name for the beautiful peninsula called Istria. Situated near the Adriatic, the forests of Istria’s idyllic countryside are hunting grounds for both white truffles (in winter) and black truffles (in summer). That’s right, you have to hunt them. Truffles are virtually impossible to cultivate, as they grow wherever they please. Back in the day, pigs were used to search for truffles, but they had a nasty habit of eating them as quickly as they found them. That’s why specially trained dogs are employed by professional truffle hunters who know exactly where to look.

Now you can join one of these experts and their canine companion on a Truffle Hunting expedition in the wonderful forests of Istria. Our guide’s dogs are trained from puppyhood to hunt for this elusive mushroom and witnessing their skills at work is truly amazing. Along the way, you will learn an astonishing amount about the world’s most prized mushroom and the lush forests in which it resides. Come and learn the truffle-sniffing trade and hunt until you find the grand prize.

Let the hunt begin!