Table of Contents
BEST IELTS Academic Reading Test 511
IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST 511 – PASSAGE – 1
IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST – 511
READING PASSAGE – 1
Diamonds of the Kitchen
We are in the Perigord province of France, in a damp forest, and a father, Jean-Claude, and his son lead their pet pig on a leash through the oak trees. Suddenly, the pig stops and buries its nose in the leafy ground, snorting loudly. Yes, the animal has found one.
The pig is immediately and unceremiously hauled away before it can eat the discovery, which is one of the reasons dogs are sometimes preferred for this task. The son falls to his knees and begins carefully excavating the ground. He pulls out a small black lumpy mass. It smells of soil and mushrooms, and is about five centimetres in diameter. This is a relatively large specimen, and everyone is happy, except the pig.
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This part of France is known for its cuisine-wines, vegetables, and bread, but, historically, it is most famous for these edible pieces of fungi, known as truffles. They are also known as ‘diamonds of the kitchen’, with their pungent earthly scent gracing the tables of the best restaurants in Europe, and eaten with relish by those who can afford them.
Yet, with such a high price tag and (in the case of the white variety) particularly powerful flavour, truffles are not eaten in bulk. They are a rare delicacy, generally served raw, cut into very thin slices to adorn the top of hot pasta or cold salad dishes. Slices may also be inserted into certain meats and cheeses to add a particularly unique flavour.
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Although truffles come in various types, usually known by their colour (white, black, and burgundy) and can fruit throughout the year, they are certainly not common. They grow only among the roots of specific tree species, with whom they form a beneficial partnership, known in nature as a symbiosis.
The truffles assist the trees in the uptake of inorganic compounds, such as nitrate and phosphate, while gaining shade, shelter, and moisture from the trees’ root systems. In the case of the black truffle, that tree can only be an oak. Even then, truffles, particularly large ones, are difficult to find, and consequently, as a product they sell for hundreds to thousands of dollars per pound, making them a very costly treat indeed.
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The larger the truffle, the more expensive it becomes-and the largest of all have set some record prices. When an Italian, Luciano Savini, and his dog Rocco, discovered a 1.5 kilogram truffle-one of the biggest found in decades-it was immediately announced around the world, and auctioned internationally to the highest bidder.
That bidder was the billionaire casino owner, Stanley Ho, from Macau. He paid a staggering US$330,000 for this single lump of fungus. Obviously liking the taste, he paid the same amount again three years later for another pair of white truffles, one of them weighing nearly a kilogram. No wonder then that modern chefs no longer peel truffles, instead preferring to carefully brush them with the skin on. No part of this most precious object can be wasted.
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Obviously then, growing truffles commercially would seem a viable operation, but their domestication had long frustrated both farmers and businessman. Among local peasants it was common wisdom that truffles grew among the roots of certain trees, and in the early 1800s, one French entrepreneur, upon hearing this, sowed acorns from oaktrees whose root systems were known to have truffles. But such trees grow particularly slowly, and many years had to pass before truffles could be found.
Eventually though, patience paid off, and truffles were finally able to be harvested in commercial quantities. Everything thus seemed set for a thriving new industry, but it was not to be. Two world wars, domestic turmoil, industrialisation, and the consequent drift of agricultural labour to the big cities, all saw the decline of the commercial truffle growers, apart from which, the locals were happy to keep the prices high by discouraging such ventures.
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It is only in recent decades that interest in this industry has grown again, with mass production starting in many countries where truffles are not native, among them being the United States, New Zealand, Australia, and Chile. Even in France, the traditional home of the wild truffle, 80% of truffles eaten originate now from specially planted fields. But to Jean-Claude and his son, such products do not taste the same, and take away all the history and tradition.
Jean-Claude holds up the wild truffle, passing it to his son. Both of them inhale the sharp earthy aroma with evident satisfaction. One suspects that, for these two men, the best aspect of truffles is the finding of them.
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Questions 1 to 4
Write True, False, or Not Given, according to the information given in the reading passage.
1. Dogs are better at finding truffles.
2. Perigord is well-known for its truffles.
3. Black truffles have a stronger flavour.
4. A symbiosis is helpful to both participants.
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Questions 5 to 8
Answer the questions using no more than THREE words.
5. What trees do black truffles associate with?
6. Why are truffles so expensive?
7. After how many years did Stanley Ho buy truffles?
8. Whose knowledge did the first successful truffle-grower use?
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Questions 9 to 11
Which THREE factors (A-F) resulted in the fall of truffle production in France?
Write down three letters.
A. Unhelpful country people
B. Commercial activities
C. Industrial unrest
D. Fewer available workers
E. International conflicts
F. Domestic politics
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Questions 12 and 13
Complete the sentences with no more than THREE words.
12. In many countries, truffles are now
13. Jean-Claude believes the domestication of truffles ignores
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ANSWERS
1. NOT GIVEN
2. TRUE
3. FALSE
4. TRUE
5. OAK (TREES)/OAKS
6. DIFFICULT TO FIND
7. THREE
8. LOCAL PEASANTS
9. A/D/E
10. A/D/E
11. A/D/E
12. MASS PRODUCED
13. HISTORY AND TRADITION
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