The culture of white truffle in Alba

The knowledge of the Langa

Friday 23rd September at noon, in the Sala Giunta of Piedmont Regional Council in Piazza Castello, a discussion was held about “the culture of white truffle in Alba: a World Heritage.”

Truffles are one of the most precious gastronomic Italian heritages, born out of the combination of biodiversity and ethnic diversity in the local areas where it is found. Able to resist the process of domestication used with other vegetable species and mushrooms, for centuries it has held intact the charm of history and myths regarding the time of night it is hunted. A rich cultural heritage developed around truffle, tied to the harvest and the consummation of this mysterious food of the woods.

There are many kinds of truffle in Italy, making it a unique Italian gastronomic profile. To add value to this richness, The Granaries of Memory have an important archive that brings together the stories of truffle hunters and gastronomes, as a result of the research promoted by the National Association “Città del tartufo”, the national centre for truffle research; the Cassa di Riparmio di Cuneo Foundation, with the University of Gastronomic Sciences. To support the UNESCO candidacy The Granaries of Memory have developed a short documentary that summarises the principal cultural traits around this precious food of the night.

The conference will dwell deeper into the most celebrated kind of Italian truffle, the white truffle of Alba, exploring its historical, anthropological, ritual and mythical traits that make this fungus, which is still considered a nocturnal mystery, a suitable candidate for the World Heritage title.

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