Thrilling Truffle Hunting Experience in Beautiful Tuscany, Italy

Is truffle hunting on your bucket list? If not, it should be!

Ask anyone their “bucket list” and they’ll probably have a few entries at the ready to rattle off. Some people want to learn how to play chess. Others want to buy a house and leave the workforce between the ages of 66 and 67. At the top of our bucket list, we wanted to hunt for truffles in the rolling hills of Tuscany, Italy. Yes, a mere mushroom is worth a bucket list entry for us.

Are we overly ambitious when it comes to envisioning goals? Perhaps. But here’s how we crossed off that item and had one of the best experiences of our lives.

Table of Contents:

How We Booked

Simply Google “truffle hunting in Italy” and you’ll be bombarded with endless fungal opportunities all over the country. If you too want an unforgettable cardio-and-culinary experience, hone in your search based upon on the region of Italy you’ll be traveling to.

In November of 2022, we found ourselves staying in Florence, Tuscany, at the halfway point of a month-long European jaunt between Germany and Italy. Our food motivated agenda would have us combing through the stalls of the Piazza del Mercato Centrale and making our way to one or nine gelaterias over the course of four days in town. But we wanted to dedicate an entire day specifically for this tartufo adventure.

We ultimately booked through Airbnb Experiences about a month out from our trip. Choosing Airbnb Experiences was simply out of a personal preference for the site, liking the presented description, and sorting through dozens of positive reviews. You can also book your tour directly through Podere Poggio a Campoli’s website. Our total came to a little over $300 USD (roughly $150 a person). That included the personal shuttle, the experience, and the promise of a lunch and wine tasting.

Podere Poggio a Campoli

On a perfect autumn afternoon in Florence, we walk to our shuttle meeting place near the Porta Romana where we meet our host, Daniele. We are two of six attendees that pile into Daniele’s van before he whisks us off further into the Tuscan countryside. It isn’t long before we get to behold the rolling hills of grapes that are renowned in the region.

About a half an hour later, we pull up to the family farmstead in San Casciano Val di Pesa, Podere Poggio a Campoli, that’s been in the family for twelve generations. Here, the family hunts for truffles and makes wine and olive oil just as their family before them did. The backdrop, if you can imagine, surely is an heirloom itself. Our first view of the scenery is straight out of our fantasies, but it’s even better – it’s real.

We get to meet Daniela, Daniele’s wife, as well as the rest of the group that was picked up from other parts in the region. Thirteen of us gather around the farm table under the pergola and we are given a quick education on all things truffle. And yes, it was even more charming and romantic than you can imagine.

Traditional Truffle Hunting

Black and White Truffles

Black truffles are the summer variety of truffle and what you’re most likely to see shaved over a bed of pasta. And while you might know the telltale, polarizing taste or smell of truffle, it’s not a “one size fits all” fungus. There are many varieties and flavors! You can determine a truffle’s freshness by how firm it is. A softer, squishier truffle is not a favorable one. Much like the slim window of avocado ripeness, it’s best to eat a truffle as soon as possible.

White truffles, or “alba”, are twice as expensive and twice as coveted because they’re much rarer and more delicate than their seasonal counterparts. September through December is peak white truffle season. Italians celebrate this time of year by throwing truffle festivals across the country. San Miniato, a small Tuscan town smack dab between Florence and Pisa, has been holding the Mostra Mercato Nazionale del Tartufo Bianco festival since 1964. We didn’t get the opportunity to attend because of the timing of our trip, but consider it another entry for the ol’ bucket list.

Truffle Hunters and Competition

We learn about the environments they are found in, how the spores release an intense odor the dogs can pick up on, and the test truffle hunters now have to take in order to be granted a license. And you know that ongoing group chat you have with your friends? See, truffle hunters are just like you and us. They too have a group chat. That is, a WhatsApp thread where hunters set pricing for the local market based on supply and demand.

But it’s not all rainbows and tartufo for Italy’s hunters. In fact, it’s a drama fit for a Roman tragedy. In Italy, it is legal for truffle hunters to hunt on anyone’s land, regardless of private property, which you can imagine can cause issues. Rival groups and hunters have been known to sabotage the competition, resulting in some dubious turf wars. They’ll even go to such lengths that they’ll leave poison meatballs along the trail to bait and “off” a poor rival pup. It’s a terrible way to not only get at someone’s pocket but also rid them of their best friend.

The Lagotto Romagnolo Truffle Dogs

You can imagine our absolute delight when we find out that truffle hunting is carried out by dogs, not fabled truffle pigs. In fact, it’s actually illegal to use pigs in Italy. The Lagotto Romagnolo is the face of Italian truffle hunting, a breed that goes all the way back to the Renaissance. These curly cuties are as keen as they are adorable. Their need to learn and please makes for the perfect companion. It’s amazing to think that with all the advances we’ve made, an entire culinary industry ultimately comes down to a dog’s sense of smell for fungi.

We are forewarned that our new four-legged friends are of the sensitive variety, which… same. Should we hurt their delicate feelings, the Lagotto Romagnolo’s fragile psyche will protest any further truffle hunting for the rest of its life. That’s the kind of drama we want to feign at the next family function.

The Truffle Hunt

Getting our own Truffle Dog

After debriefing, Daniele speaks a few words of Italian followed by, “Alex” and points to one of the Lagotti dogs. He hands over the leash while Alex hands over her heart to “Billo”. The three of us get along famously off the bat. Our Italian vocabulary is limited, but we shower Billo in as many verbal affections as we can, given his previously described sensitivities.

The other Lagotti pups – “Bia” and “Ciccina” – are handed off to two other attendees. Daniele clips on his pack and the dogs know it’s go-time. Billo might be no more than 30 pounds (about 14 kilograms), but he pulls the leash with as much tenacity as a husky.

Our group files behind Daniele up the path and through the farmstead’s field of grapes, and arriving at the gated woods – the truffle hunting grounds. He explains that the truffle is found at the base of trees in the roots. With that, he lifts the latch and we are literally out of the gate.

At first, we think all our affirmations for Billo have been in vain as he isn’t as interested in the hunt as much as his counterparts are. He sniffs a tree, much to our absolute excitement… only to mark it, if you catch our drift. Have we said too much, or perhaps not enough to our tender guy? Is our Italian so repulsive that he wants nothing to do with us?

Finding Truffles in the Woods

But finally, Billo digs, and sure enough, spits out a perfect specimen of a black truffle! Daniele adds it the harvest collection and rewards our little superstar with a piece of sausage.

What follows, we’re surely convinced, is Billo’s attempt to make up for the slow start as he unearths truffle after truffle – a true underdog story! Chris gets her chance with Billo as he eagerly pulls her along an open clearing with the passion of a dozen racehorses. We can both attest that fewer things compare to the adrenaline rush that is excavating a truffle with a Lagotto. We might have, in fact, found our retirement plans, but check back in the year 2057.

Two hours and three miles into the truffle hunt, we find upwards of 20 truffles and even find a few of the ever-illustrious white truffles. Some groups in the past were only able to scrounge up maybe two or three truffles total after a few hours.

It’s at this point that Daniele has run out of sausage bites to reward the dogs with. We quickly learn the adorable Lagotti pups are as clever, or perhaps spiteful, as they are cute. When they realize we have run out of treats, they start to gobble up the truffles they find! That’s Daniele’s cue to wrap up the hunt and head back home for a proper luncheon.

Chianti Classico, Oil, and Truffle Cleaning

There’s an Italian saying that goes: “Una cena senza vino e come un giorno senza sole”. Or “a meal without wine is like a day without sunshine”. So of course, we must honor such proverbs at the Poggio a Campoli farmstead.

Touring the Wine Cellar

When we return, Daniela escorts the group under the house and into the cellar. Wine cellar, that is. Here, they process the grapes grown on family soil and turn it into the very lifeblood of the Tuscan region: Chianti Classico. For our fellow winos, it does not get any more authentic and exclusive than this.

Daniele and Daniela’s farming expertise isn’t limited to just wine either. Their fields are plentiful with olive trees, another unmistakable Italian staple! They press and infuse their virgin olive oil with several flavors synonymous with the country: basil, lemon, garlic, sage, and orange. And we know you’re already thinking it… but they also have a white and black truffle oil infusion as well. Each bottle of white truffle oil is adorned with an adorable portrait of Bia. Our handsome Billo is on every bottle of black truffle oil, too.

We are both handed a bottle of Chianti Classico to christen our lunch.

Cleaning our Truffle Treasures

Our meal consisted of three delicious courses – antipasti, pasta, and dessert.

But before we can indulge – there is more work to be done. Daniele informs us if we want to enjoy the fruits of our labor – the fungi of our Lagotti if you will – we will have to clean them. We have waited our entire lives to savor in this process so we want our hands in as much of it as possible. We’re first to the sink, the proverbial first to bat. Daniele shows us how to brush the exterior of the truffles and tells us to be extra gentle with the white truffles. No pressure, right?

Our Three Course Meal

Finally, it’s time to eat. The assortment of antipasti is a variety of bites – bruschetta, charcuterie, artichoke hearts, squash, and assorted veggies. Of course, all covered in truffle shavings. Daniele and Daniela are lovely enough to make Alex a vegetarian plate – no meat, but more veggies and cheeses. Juuust the way she likes it.

While we were out in the woods, Daniela was in the kitchen making the pasta from SCRATCH. It was garnished with tartufo shavings atop it just before serving. That being said, our dusting of truffle quickly turns into a mountain. Daniele tells us we can shave the truffles we hunted and cleaned ourselves. Even the white. A controlled frenzy ensues.

For dessert, we enjoy homemade tiramisu accompanied with a serving of “Giovannino”, their own sweet natural wine dried from San Giovese and Malvasia del Chianti grapes.

We might have been promised lunch and the prospect of truffles, but we were gifted with truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The warmth and welcome of Daniele and Daniela truly knows no bounds. The whole process has forever made us appreciate eating truffle in any capacity. There’s honestly nothing like getting to eat the very truffles you found hours prior. Here on out, the flavor alone will transport us back to that perfect afternoon beneath a Tuscan pergola, sharing a small moment in a family’s rich tradition.

What to Know Before You Go!

All in all, this experience is one we would recommend to everyone and anyone. Keep in mind, it will require a lot of walking through various terrain and elevation. Wear comfortable shoes without question, preferably a pair that can get a little dirty!

While you can book on Airbnb Experience, our hosts encourage that you book directly on their website so that the entirety of the profits go to them. Not only do they offer the truffle hunting experience, they also offer a wine and olive oil tasting as well as a separate cooking class!

Bringing Home a Piece of Tuscany

You’d also be cheating yourself out of an opportunity if you did not procure some goods to take home with you. We had been traveling Italy and Germany for a month and were maxed out on luggage weight. Opting to have our choices shipped home to us while we were away was the smartest choice.

We purchased 2 bottles of their Chianti Classico Reserve, 2 bottles of their Chianti Classico Grand Selection, a bottle of the white truffle oil, the black truffle oil, and the lemon olive oil. The total came out to $237.99 with international shipping. Some of the members of our group even bought actual truffles to take with them!

If Italy is not within your immediate travel future, you can still sample the flavors of Tuscany for yourself. Visit the Podere Poggio a Campoli website and get their wine and oils shipped directly to you. Bear in mind, they do not ship truffles because the peak freshness is a limited window.

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Watch the full adventure on Youtube