Truffle confusion in black and white

Left: China truffles - Right: Périgord truffles

For gourmets, the word truffle has a seductive sound. But behind the designation there are quite different and flavourful varieties. There are several culinary interesting "black truffles" and "white truffles" with very different names. Laymen can hardly tell them apart. 

Ultimately, only the Latin names serve as a precise distinction.

Black truffles

Tuber melanosporum 

Périgord truffle

First category, mainly from Spain, France, Italy, Australia.

Best taste when heated

Kg 800 -2000 €

Périgord truffle

Tuber aestivum

Summer truffle, Burgundy truffle, autumn truffle

Second category, found throughout Europe. Light inside in summer, darker in autumn.

Kg 400 - 600 €

Summer truffle
Autumn or Burgundy Truffle

Tuber brumale

Winter truffle

Truffles of the second category, notably from France and Italy. 

Kg 100 - 400 €

Winter truffle

Tuber mesentericum

Tar truffle, Bagnoli truffle

Truffles of the second category, mainly from France and Italy, also in Switzerland.

Tar truffle

Tuber indicum

China truffle

Third category,mainly from China.

Tasteless, white inside at first, later turns black. Therefore easily confused with Tuber melanosporum.

Should no longer be called black truffle in Germany, according to the Food Commission.

Kg 80 - 200 €

Chinese truffle

"White" truffles

Tuber magnatum

White truffle, Alba truffle, Piedmont truffle

First category,mainly from Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Hungary. Individual finds also in France and Switzerland.

Best raw - the aroma dissipates when heated.

Kg 2000 - 6000 €

White truffles

Tuber borchii

Spring truffle, Bianchetti

Second category.Sometimes fraudulently grated over pasta as "Tuber magnatum".

Kg 500 - 1000 €

Bianchetti

Tuber oligospermum

Low spore truffle, white spring truffle

Third category, from North Africa, especially Morocco. Sometimes fraudulently hoisted over pasta as "Tuber magnatum".

Kg 100 - 300 €

White spring truffles

Choiromyces meandriformis

White truffle, meandering truffle, 

Third category, from Germany and Eastern Europe.

Meandering truffle

Terfezia - Tirmania - Kalaharituber

Desert truffle, sand truffle, lion truffle, Kalahari truffle

Third category, from North Africa, Near East.

Light yellowish-brownish "truffles", already known in ancient times.

Desert truffle

Sources: Flammer R. & T., Reil, P. (2013). Trüffeln. Leitfaden zur Analyse der im Handel vorkommenden Arten .

Leitsätze der Deutschen Lebensmittelkommission. Speisepilze. (New version 2020).

All photos of the individual species on this page by Peter Reil.