Summer Cep vs Bitter Bolete
Boletus reticulatus compared with Tylopilus felleus — how to tell them apart in the field.
How to Tell Them Apart
Very pale, often cracked cap surface (looks 'crazed' like old pottery). White pores aging to yellow-green. White stem reticulation. No bitterness. Fruits earlier in summer than the Bitter Bolete.
Side-by-Side Identification
| Trait | Summer Cep | Bitter Bolete |
|---|---|---|
| Cap | 5-20 cm across. Convex, expanding to broadly convex with age. Color is pale brown to medium brown, sometimes with a grayish or olive tint. Surface is distinctly dry and velvety or suede-like (not sticky), often appearing matte or slightly cracked in dry weather. Flesh is white and does not change color when cut. | 5–15 cm across. Convex, becoming broadly convex with age. Pale tan to pinkish-brown or grayish-brown. Surface is smooth and dry, occasionally slightly tacky in wet weather. Very similar in color to young porcini. |
| Gills | No gills. Like all boletes, the underside has a sponge-like layer of tubes ending in small round pores. Pores are white when young, becoming yellowish to olive-yellow with age. Do not bruise blue. | No gills — this is a bolete with pores. Pore surface starts white in young specimens, then turns distinctly pink with age. This is the key field mark — porcini pores go yellow-green, never pink. Pores bruise brownish. |
| Stem | 6-15 cm tall, 3-6 cm thick. Swollen, club-shaped, especially when young. Pale brown to whitish. Covered with a prominent, fine white reticulation (net-like raised pattern) that typically extends over most of the stem surface. Solid and firm throughout. | 6–12 cm tall, thick and bulbous, often swollen in the middle. Cream to pale brown. Covered with a prominent dark brown net pattern (reticulation) — similar to porcini BUT the net is dark brown on a lighter background, whereas porcini reticulation is pale white on a whitish stem, especially near the cap. |
| Spore print | Olive-brown. | Pinkish-brown to rosy brown — notably different from the olive-brown print of true porcini. |
| Odor | Pleasant, nutty, with a rich mushroomy quality. Stronger when dried. | Mild and pleasant when fresh — not helpful for identification. |
| Habitat | Mycorrhizal with hardwoods, especially oaks, beeches, and chestnuts. Prefers warm, well-drained soils in thermophilic (heat-loving) woodland. Common in Mediterranean oak forests, parkland, and along forest edges. Often found in the same locations year after year. | Mycorrhizal with both conifers (hemlock, pine, spruce) and hardwoods (oak, beech). Found in the same forests and often growing within meters of true porcini. Prefers acidic, well-drained soils. Often found near stumps or along forest paths. |
| Season | May through September, peaking in June and July. Fruits earlier in the year than Boletus edulis, earning its common name. Warm rains in late spring trigger the first flushes. | Summer through autumn — June to October in most of the Northern Hemisphere. Peak in August and September. |
Found one of these in the wild? Don't rely on memory — identify it from a photo with Orangutany and check it against both species before you touch it.