Free Republic

Wild boar is a popular locally delicacy in the Czech Republic but fans of the meat have an unusual problem on their hands this winter - the boars are radioactive. The boars became contaminated by one of their most popular food sources - false truffles. A cold and snowy winter is forcing them to feed on false truffles, an underground mushroom common in the Sumava mountain region between the Czech Republic, Austria, and Germany - where wild boars roam free.

The region around Florence is renowned for its food. Ian Henderson discovers why as he joins the hunt for one of its most famous delicacies.I'm enjoying a breakfast of scrambled eggs with delicate shavings of ridiculously expensive white truffle. According to experts, it’s the perfect way to bring out the unmistakable but indefinable flavour. I’m at a perfectly dressed table on the terrace of the luxuriously relaxed Villa La Massa hotel overlooking the River Arno, a few miles outside Florence. Below a kingfisher has just shot across the water, a brighter blue than the pale Tuscan sky. Ahead are the...

A Michelin-starred chef has unveiled the world's most expensive cheese sandwich - which carries a whopping price tag of £110. The delicacy was created by celebrity chef Martin Blunos, who hand-crafted the luxury snack using cheddar blended with expensive white truffles.

The French have fought a losing battle with the vineyards of California and suffered the indignity of having their elegant pommes frites renamed "Freedom Fries". Now they face a new challenge from America over their most highly-prized and aromatic delicacy. Just a few miles from the birthplace of frontier pioneer Davy Crockett, mushroom expert Tom Michaels has unlocked the secret of commercial production of the famous Périgord black truffle. In a breakthrough that could one day make an American-grown Périgord truffle as ubiquitous worldwide as the Big Mac, Mr Michaels has produced his first crop of the pungent nodules in...

Australian truffle growers put French in the shadeBy Nick Squires in Sydney (Filed: 03/06/2004) Not content with taking on the French at winemaking, Australia is muscling in on another hallowed Gallic tradition, truffle growing. The Australians claim that their truffles are bigger, juicier and tastier than those produced in France, just as their cabernet sauvignons and shirazes are touted as richer and smoother. Since the first tentative attempts to grow the prized black truffle in Tasmania in the 1990s, truffle orchards have been established in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia. They have been planted in areas which most...

Ex-servant dismisses Charles incident allegation A former royal valet has stated allegations that the Prince of Wales was seen in a compromising incident with one of his servants cannot be true.Simon Solari, who worked closely with both Prince Charles and Princess Diana for 15 years, said the ex-servant who made the claims would not have had the opportunity to witness the alleged events."The incident at the centre of these allegations about the Prince of Wales simply could not have happened," he has told London's Evening Standard newspaper. "I have never spoken publicly about my service before but I feel...