The Life Of A Truffiere

Henry Terry Is The Face Of Australia’s Booming Truffle Industry, And He’s Making Sure All Foodies Can Get Their Hands On A Piece Of This Luxury Product.

- Lisa Smyth

On a sunny autumn day, we drive to the Terry family farm, at the foot of Tasmania’s Great Western Tiers, 40 minutes from Launceston, just as 27-year-old Henry Terry is jumping off a quad bike in quite a dashing fashion.“Just rounding up the cows – a few attempted a mass jailbreak,” he laughs as he breaks into a shy smile. Last year, that smile had people swooning around Australia when Terry and his 24-year-old sister, Anna, were contestants on mega-hit cooking show, My Kitchen Rules (MKR). Dubbed the ‘truffle siblings’ the attractive duo didn’t win, but they raised the profile of Australian-grown black truffles with a whole new customer base.

“Before, truffles were a mystery to most Australians – they used to think they were only for fine dining,” says Terry. “But after MKR, when people saw that truffles can be used with great success at home, they have become keen to use them in their home cooking.”

AUSTRALIAN FIRST

Despite his age, Terry is already an expert in truffles – you could even say ‘black gold’ runs in his blood. In 1999, his father, Tim, a lifelong farmer, harvested Australia’s first black truffle in the rich Tasmanian soil of their Deloraine farm. A mere 20 years later, Australia is the fourth largest producer of truffles in the world, behind Spain, France and Italy.