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White truffle on the Guinness book of World Record
JLBG Says: In 2004, the half kilo truffle was the biggest but in the Zigante shop of Livade is on exhibit a bronze molding of a 1,310 g white truffle that was found in Livade on November 2nd 1999. It has been recorded in the Guinness book of World Record as the record truffle found in...
Fritaja tastes better than bronze truffle !
JLBG Says: Bronze record white truffle is great but does not taste ! Let us go back to real truffle for taste. Here, a cook is preparing a "Fritaja", scrambled eggs added with thinly cut truffles tastes better than a bronze truffle!Bronze record white truffle is great but does not...
JLBG Says: Look on this close-up how the fritaja looks like. The white truffle is not really white but pale grayish-brownish. The slices of truffle appear as darker than the scrambled eggs. There is plenty of truffle in that delicious tartufata. Really worth the travel !
JLBG Says: Here a Television crew interviews and films Carlo Zigante for the News. I would not be surprised if that happened every weekend during the month of October as he owns the only company that trade and process white truffle in Istria.
The scent of the white truffle!
JLBG Says: On this picture, Carlo Zigante smells deeply the strong flavor of the big one ! When one knows how strong is the scent of a miserable 10 g white truffle, one cannot imagine how a 500 g truffle may scent!
JLBG Says: The record truffle, shown here, was "only" a little more than 500 grams ! It was bought on auction by Carlo Zigante, here in the middle of the picture. The price of the white truffle depends of the market. During the Truffle days, it ranged from 12 kuna (2 euros) per gram...
JLBG Says: 2004 has not been a good year for the white truffle. There has not been enough rain when the truffles were supposed to grow. 1999 had been a very good year in Istria but since then, each year, the crop has been rather mean.
White truffles to look at! Don't touch!
JLBG Says: On most tables, the truffles are kept under a glass cover that allows seeing them but keeps the scent. For those who have never smelled the white truffle, it is very special and strong. Some find it has a garlic scent but the flavor is much richer and complex.
JLBG Says: In another part of the showroom, several tables present truffles for sale. If you click on the picture, you will see the name of the merchant written over the table, behind Zdenka (VT Nikaenen) preparing herself to take a picture. The first who began to purchase, trade and...
JLBG Says: Experts are busy looking at the white truffles, smelling them on every side, checking their firmness, evaluating their size, their color and noting everything on the "exam" sheet. The evaluation of each expert will be summed up to point out the single truffle winner and the...
Zigante restaurant and Enoteka: Don't Miss The White Truffle!
JLBG Says: Mali menu sa bijelim tartufom 292,50 kuna: Ovci sir sa bijelim tartufomBis "Istria tradicionale" sa bijelim tartufimaSladoled sa tartufimaMali menu sa crnim tartufom 142,50 kuna: Ovci sir sa bijelim tartufomKeek simfonijaKrostula modernaVeliki mix menu 422.50 kunaOvci sir sa...
White truffle hunt, the deception
JLBG Says: However, that does not interest the dog anymore ! Mario carry on digging and finally found a pin’s head truffle that should weight less than a gram ! He had told us that this year was very bad for truffle. He was right and that was the only truffle we found with him....
JLBG Says: The dog seems to have identified a truffle at the foot of an oak. He begins digging with its paws and Mario is watching it so that it will not eat it! Istrian dogs used for truffle hunting are called “breks”. They have been trained since they were 2 month. They are...
White truffle hunt, the trees.
JLBG Says: His two dogs were running here and there, searching for the scent of truffle, though it can be growing 20-50 cm under the soil surface. The orders to the dogs were not in Croat but in Istriot dialect. For example, “Ven qua” to have the dog coming back. The woods are thick,...
JLBG Says: Mario, the owner of the Agroturizam apartment we had rented in Spinovci had accepted to bring us into the Motovun woods, close to Livade, along the river Mirna for a demonstration of white truffle hunting. Arriving in the Motovun woods, we could hear dozen of dogs yelping...
White truffel hunt, the scent.
JLBG Says: Mario kneels on the ground in order to help the dog. He digs the soil with his shovel and takes some earth in the palm of his hand to smell it. It is really smelling like white truffle ! There should actually be something to unearth !
White truffle hunt, the shovel.
JLBG Says: Hang to his back, Mario holds his tool, a small homemade iron shovel with a wooden handle. Once the dog has spotted the scent of a truffle, it will be used to dig delicately the soil, trying not to wound the tubercle.
JLBG Says: This mill on show on the central square of Livade is not for white truffle grinding but for olive oil processing. It is a traditional mill with a base carved in a single stone with two single stone wheels that turn, crushing the olives to express their oil.
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Livade/Levade, white truffle city
Livade is a very small city in the plain of the Mirna river valley. It is 1 km north from the main road from Buje to Buzet while Motovun is 2 km south. Since year 2000, the company "Livade tartufi...
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From left to right: KristaB, Nykaenen, Frona, JLBG's friend, JLBG, JLBG's wife, while me Croisbeauty is taking the picture
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