When I arrive in Italy, if they are in season or not, I can’t wait to have a meal, any meal with truffles! I eat truffle pizza, pasta with truffles, meats with shaved truffles and then I go back and eat pizza with truffles. I seem not to be able to get enough of that unique pungent flavor. Many people claim the white truffles are the most flavorful, but I like the black truffles.
So, when we saw that the Willamette Valley Vineyards in Turner, Oregon, just a few minutes from our house, was hosting a truffle dinner for the upcoming Oregon Truffle Festival I could not resist the chance to taste the Pacific North West brand of truffles.
The Oregon Truffle Festival( http://www.oregontrufflefestival.com/index.html ) was held January 24 – 26 , in Eugene, Oregon. The event was 100% sold out, so obviously there is a large following of people interested in learning about and tasting our Oregon truffles. The event included a two day truffle dog training course, a grand truffle dinner, a marketplace and truffle cooking classes, plus lots more.
Our dinner was attend by Karen Page and Andre Dornenburg, the two-time James Bear Award-winning authors, whose book What to Drink with What you Eat. They won both the International Association of Culinary Professionals’ “Book of the Year” Award and the George Duboeuf “Wine Book of the Year” award. Their other books include: The Flavor Bible and The Good Lover’s Guide to Wine The New American Chef, Dining Our, Culinary Artistry, and their first book Becoming a Chef. All of which are on my to read list!
Back to our dinner, we were greeted by eager Portland Culinary Arts students, our servers for the evening with lovely trays of assorted truffle hors d’oeuvres.
The hors d’oeuvres included Brindisi cheese ripened with Oregon white truffle, white truffle Oregon wild mushroom Risotto croquettes and Truffle beet & blue cheese farm fresh egg. They were served with 2011 Tualatin Estate Pinot Noir, and 2011 Estate Chardonnay.
The first Shaving was Dungeness Crab & Micro Herb Truffle Salad with a Coriander Monastery Mustard Vinaigrette paired with a 2012 Pinot Gris.
Oh, do not let me forget the best part of all the Bread Serving; White Truffle Columbia Valley Butter! We were told by Eric, the chef, that the white truffle off gas a very pungent smell and flavor that infuses fats with the flavor. Well, no other part of the dinner had the amazing flavor of the butter!
Our Second Shaving was Tails & Trotters Pork Osso Bucco Shallot & Navy Beans with Morel Mashed Potatoes & Pinot Noir Sauce Bordelaise. Where were the truffles? We enjoyed a 2010 Elton Pinot Noir with this course.
The Final Shaving was a Dark Chocolate White Truffle Panna Cotta with Rosemary, Juniper Creme Anglaise & Quince Jam served with 2011 Sweet Hannah.
The coffee service included a Black Truffle Creamer and White Truffle infused sugar.It was an amazing selection of food and totally enjoyable dinner but I must say, I would still prefer my truffle pizza in Italy!
I must admit, I only know the Umbrian truffles but I am told by some, the Piemonte truffles are even better, not that the Umbrian’s would agree. On our Umbrian tours we visit Bianconi’s truffle museum, cooking kitchen and distribution business, where we not only learn about truffle hunting but we often do cooking classes but always taste truffles. Depending on the tour and the season, we can go out with a truffle hunter and learn first hand how to find truffles. We return to the kitchen a prepare truffles in a variety of ways. 