Shagnasty beat me to the point about diamonds. I do not understand why someone would pay $160K for a truffle, the same price for a bottle of wine, and anything at all for diamonds. Why would someone pay millions for a shiny rock?
The answer, as suggested, is that these things cost so much because they are expensive.
People with the resources want to own expensive things to show that they can afford to spend that much money. The profit margin on luxury goods is always much higher than on more pedestraian goods because wealthy people are willing to spend more on things that cost more.
There are lots of good explanations as to why it costs a lot to deliver a truffle but not many as to why someone would pay so much for one.
I ate a plate of truffles (sliced like pepperoni) with a “pink sauce” once. And indeed, for costing a few hundred dollars, it tasted pretty pointless. The oddly-slick-yet-mildly-crunchy texture didn’t go a long way towards endearing me either.
I’ve tried them…I find them aromatic, like a frsh portobello mushroom. Nothing worth their price, however. it’s like the ancient Romans-they went gaga for peacock’s tongues-even though the exotic stuff doesn’t really taste any better.
I wonder if the taste variation of truffles is similar to Cilantro. I’ve never, ever been able to tolerate Cilantro, to me, it makes everything taste like dirty dishwater, yet many folks are crazy about it. http://www.ihatecilantro.com/ It seems there is some reason for it that natural selection hasn’t had the need to readily choose for or against yet.
I doubt I’ve ever knowingly consumed Truffles, but yeah, I would imagine the hype is more than the experience.
You guys must not eat a fancy restaurants. Truffles show up on menus pretty often. They have a nutty mushroomy taste. They are not that exotic or really even that expensive considering that they are used more as a seasoning rather than making up a significant portion of the dish.
If I stumbled across a truffle, underneath an oak tree, how would I recognize it?
Does it have an aroma? I certanly wouldn’t want to taste it.
I read above that it has a black, lumpy head. Is this true? Where would I go to verify one if I did find one?