Premium partnership between the young company Trüffelhang.at and the world-famous Zigante Tartufi.

Trueffelhang and Zigante Tartufi - We live truffles

Since July 2020, Trüffelhang.at has been able to offer not only high-quality truffle products with the Istrian premium line from Zigante Tartufi, but also fresh truffles such as the mild summer truffle, the nutty Burgundy truffle, the cocoa-earthy Perigord truffle and the white truffle with a garlic-camembert flavor.

>>> Buy truffles and truffle products in the Zigante truffle shop >>>

Most modern production facility in Istria

The Croatian truffle producer grows the truffles on its own large plantations and processes the fresh truffles from the region with high-quality equipment. The wild Alba truffles are found and dug up by hand by licensed truffle hunters with their trained truffle hounds.
Zigante Tartufi's production hall and office building was officially opened in 2008 by Croatian President Stjepan Mesic.

 

Since then, the first truffle producer in Croatia has been processing truffles from the region with advanced technology and to high quality standards. The truffle products are subject to strict quality checks and are packaged on site and shipped worldwide.

In addition, our partner offers Istrian specialties that do not contain truffles such as virgin olive oil, or wines from the region. In addition, the Zigante range consists of jams, which do not contain any flavorings or artificial colors, sometimes with whole fruits. Acacia honey with nuts is another example of the "Zigante Delice" line.

 

Restaurant Zigante - truffle cuisine at the highest level

In addition to the production facility, Zigante Tartufi also owns a Zigante restaurant in Livade, Croatia, with the Istrian specialties just mentioned and of course with wonderful truffle dishes. And for guests who come from far away, the Zigante Hotel can relax and sleep in. It is also possible to book a guided truffle hunt at the Zigante restaurant, which is happily carried out with the truffle hunters and their dogs on their own truffle plantations. Of course, those interested can also visit Zigante`s vineyards.

Zigante shops

There are now six Zigante shops in Croatia where an extensive range of delicacies is directly available.

History of Zigante Tartufi

The start of the Zigante Tartufi company was not easy. The Yugoslav war closed the borders and reduced the production of goods. Then the young Giancarlo decided to concentrate entirely on the truffles.

When times improved a little, he bought his first processing machines in 1996 through his tool factory. With that, Giancarlo started truffle production in his parents' house with his family. In 1998 the first Istrian truffle products appeared on the market. People loved the products and word quickly got around that the Zigante family offered delicious, extraordinary foods.

But when Giancarlo Zigante found the world's largest alba truffle, which was immortalized in the Guinness Book of Records, it brought him world fame. Giancarlo could have sold his "Millennium Truffle" at auction for good money, instead he invited around 100 guests to a gala dinner, during which the record truffle was pompously distributed to all those present as the main course. With this event, the clever Giancarlo wanted to win Istria as a tourist magnet for truffle lovers.

Since then, the entrepreneur has been organizing events for charitable purposes. On the one hand, organizations in need are supported and, on the other hand, it improves the popularity of the Istrian truffle.

Truffles are a popular natural product because chemical sprays or artificial fertilizers cannot be used on any truffle plantation. The truffle mycelium is sensitive and would die off from chemistry. Truffles are rare in the wild, the delicious taste of fresh truffles can be addicting. Addicted in the sense of a love-again taste explosion.

Here is not meant addiction as a disease ;-)
The truffle bulbs can only be harvested by hand, as heavy harvesting machines would destroy the tender truffle mycelium. And because the truffles grow underground, a trained truffle dog is required to locate the precious tubers underground.

 

Zigante Truffle Days in Livade 

Istrian world markets - Today Zigante Tartufi has the most modern truffle processing and packaging plant in Europe and is involved in countless events all over the world. Every year in the hometown of Livade there is also a marathon truffle fair called Zigangte Truffle Days in Livade, which takes place on nine weekends in a row in autumn.

Zigante Tartufi has been able to maintain the high quality standard for more than 20 years. But that only works with permanent hard, responsible work to consistently set market trends. It is necessary to introduce clear rules and state laws as well as to have a respectful cooperation with experienced truffle farmers and experts.