Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I recently had the pleasure of visiting the Wine and Truffle Co. located at Hazel Hill Estate, near Manjimup, in my electorate of Forrest. Just over 10 years ago 25 Australian investors had a vision to establish the largest mainland truffiere in the Southern Hemisphere. Their aim was to produce French black truffles, a rare and expensive gourmet delicacy. To complement the truffles they also wanted to produce a range of fine premium wines.

The location was selected because the climatic and soil factors are similar to the truffle-producing areas in France and New Zealand. The 15-acre Hazel Hill Estate property is very picturesque, undulating and surrounded by karri and jarrah forests. Thirty acres is devoted to the vineyard but the greater portion of the property is covered by 13,000 hazel and oak trees that have been inoculated with black truffles spores, making it the largest mainland truffiere in Australia. These trees have continued to mature under the guidance, nurturing and monitoring of the company’s expert mycologists.

In July 2003 the very first and highly valued truffle was discovered by truffle dogs. It was a single massive 163-gram truffle, which caused great excitement. The annual harvests have increased each year and, although a warm, dry August cut short this year’s truffle season, the company’s 2008 harvest came in at a record black-gold crop in excess of 600 kilograms. My congratulations go to the owners of the Wine and Truffle Co. at Hazel Hill Estate for an excellent crop result. The retail price for the black truffle is $3,000 per kilogram. This equates to a $1.8 million harvest for the rare fungus crop and is a fine return for the vision, the risk, the investment, the nurturing and the hard work that the owners have put into their venture.

Truffles are uniquely flavoured, edible fungi, usually classed with the mushroom family. They have a pungently scented aroma described as the ancient flavours of the forest. Think of a musty, garlicky, nutty flavour that can overwhelm the senses, and that is what they taste like. The cultivation of truffles requires a lot of scientific knowledge, skill and investment. Because truffles grow underground on the roots of inoculated trees, they are difficult to find. Trained dogs and dog handlers are needed. When truffles are found, the truffle hunters have to actually get down on their hands and knees in cold, wet mud and dig them out with their bare hands. Truffles are found anywhere from five to 30 centimetres below the ground within a metre of the base of hazelnut or oak trees.

The Wine and Truffle Co. has six trained dogs that search for the elusive truffle, and that gives the hunters the option of covering the 40 kilometres along the truffle tree rows in less than seven days. If a truffle is ready to pick, it is guaranteed not to be missed by the dogs. Truffles are roundish, brown and dirty when they come out of the ground. That is why the name ‘truffle’ has been borrowed to describe small, fancy chocolate-and-nut balls covered with cocoa powder—delicious but not to be confused with the real truffle.

The Manjimup truffles are sold to restaurants worldwide. Some of the international buyers include Japan, the USA, Hong Kong, Singapore, Italy, France and Indonesia. The venture has been so successful because the harvests in France have been declining due to urbanisation, climate change and pollution. In 1998 France’s truffle production was only eight tonnes.

Truffles being added to the food bowl of the south-west has certainly set the Manjimup area up for tourism activity as it has broadened the appeal of the region for wine and food lovers. Truffles are used to transform very simple dishes into gourmet delights. Although considered a luxury item, the taste and aroma of truffles is so intense that only a small quantity is needed to produce exquisite meals. The black truffle is used predominantly in the cooking process of dishes such as pasta, risotto, soups, stews, sauces, even mashed potato, eggs, souffles, chicken and wild game. The best way to enjoy a fresh truffle is to shave it over risotto, pasta, fish, eggs, meat, soups or salads.

I wish the Wine and Truffle Co. all the best for the export sales of their 2008 harvest and also wish them every success for next year’s harvest. They hope to harvest more than 1,000 kilograms of black truffle then. The photo of the dog that found their first truffle is on their wall. He is a very important part of that truffle company. I congratulate them all.