A Truffle Affair
The Folly Truffles is quietly proving that Queensland can grow world-class Perigord truffles. A family-run truffière where you can join a hunt, taste the season’s best, or simply soak up the slower pace.
25/06/25
Photography: Daniel Somervaille
Words: Sam Kirby
Nose to the ground, Barry is hard at work. Winter, you see, is Barry’s time to shine.
In a grove of 450 French Oak Trees, the inquisitive Bull Arab is sniffing for a prized delicacy and one of the world’s most valuable foods, French Perigord truffle.
Truffles, a type of fungi that grow underground near the roots of specific trees, are highly prized for their intense aroma and rich, earthy flavour, making them a gourmet delicacy and fetching in excess of $3,000 per kilogram.
It’s a warm sunny day as we visit - perfect for a ‘hunt’ - but Barry is just at home in the frosty winter mornings, padding still-damp soil beneath his paws, his breath rising visibly in the cool air before him, as he punches across the paddock and into the grove.
This isn’t Tasmania or WA’s famed Manjimup truffle country - it’s Ballandean, on the Southern Downs, a place once considered far too north, and too nutrient-poor for truffles to ever take hold.
And yet... six seasons in, The Folly Truffles is now pulling in bumper truffle harvests (15kgs last year — that’s actually a lot) with even more expected as the grove continues to mature.
The Folly Truffles is a three-generation farm, run by Maple and Ben Egerton with their two children, and Ben's parents, Mike and Judy.
"It was actually Mike and Judy’s idea”, Maple explains. “It was always their dream to buy a farm and grow truffles in their retirement."
"They live and work in Toowoomba but weren't ready to retire. At the same time, Ben and I were living in Brisbane, looking for that 'tree change' and somewhere different to raise the kids. So in 2011, we decided to just ‘take the leap’ and do it all together.”
"Now, we live here and manage the farm throughout the week, the kids help out, and Mike and Judy come down on weekends; it's a full family endeavour!
And whilst this all may sound easy, as Maple explains, growing truffles is slow, uncertain work — part science, part faith, and plenty of patience.
"Everyone told us it wouldn’t work, that it just wasn’t possible to grow truffles in Queensland."
"There are so many factors — the soil has to be just right - pH balanced, well-drained, and carefully managed. The young oaks take years to establish, and even then, there are no guarantees.”
The truffles themselves form unseen below the soil, their progress invisible until Barry’s nose picks them up. (Pigs were once the go-to for truffle hunting, but dogs are gentler on the ground — and less tempted to eat the goods.)
Add in the fickle Queensland winters — truffles need cold frosts and steady winter chill to develop, followed by a slow warming to help ripen their aroma — and it’s clear why each harvest feels hard-won.
"It’s a lot of work, but we love it! And once we started getting a few harvests in, we realised just how many people wanted to come and be part of it."
"There's such an interest in truffles and the whole experience, which is why we started the truffle hunts and the food experiences and created the campground so that people could come and stay and fish and enjoy the nearby wineries. Ultimately, it’s just so that other people can enjoy and appreciate it all as much as we do."
With the family recently planting another 1,800 trees, all of which should start producing in the coming seasons, there's going to be plenty to do, and plenty of truffles to eat!
You’ll find The Folly Truffles 110min from Toowoomba - close enough for a day trip, or a full weekend of truffle hunting, good food, and local wines. Or, for something closer to home, you can also taste their harvest at HOST, Gips Restaurant, Rosalie House and Myrtille.
thefollytruffles.com.au | @thefollytruffles
