Golden gilled bolete or Suede bolete

Cap 3-8 (up to 10) cm, hemispherical at first, then convex-flattened, flat with a depressed center when mature. Chestnut brown, reddish brown to olive-brown, with a noticeable pink or wine-red tint. The surface is dry, velvety, cracking into small patches with age. The cap margin is even, often wavy.

Cap 4-12 cm across, hemispherical in young mushrooms, later becoming convex to flat. Color olive-green, yellow-green, ocher-green, brighter when young, paling with age. The surface is velvety and dryish, slightly sticky in damp weather; in old mushrooms it often cracks, with white cracks between the polygons of skin.

The most characteristic feature — thick, distant, golden-yellow gills running down the stem. Between the gills there are cross-veins (anastomoses) that make the hymenophore net-like and gilled, as if it were “a bolete’s attempt to grow gills.” The gills may bruise blue when pressed. Spore print yellow-olive.

The hymenophore is made of tubes attached to the stem. Color bright yellow when young, turning yellow-olive with age. The pores are small and angular, and turn blue when pressed — usually, though not always. Spore print olive-brown.

Stem 3-7 cm tall, 0.5-1.5 cm thick, cylindrical or slightly thickened toward the base, solid. Same color as the cap or slightly paler — yellow-brown with a pink tint, bright yellow in the lower part. The surface is dry, finely fibrous, with no ring and no volva.

Stem 5-10 cm tall, 1-2 cm thick, cylindrical, often slightly narrowing toward the base. Color yellow-ocher with fine lengthwise reddish-brown scales forming a net — a characteristic feature of the species among the boletes. No ring.

Flesh yellowish, firm in the cap, fibrous in the stem. When cut, it gradually turns blue or blue-green, especially in the stem — a typical reaction for boletes. After a few minutes the blue fades and turns a dirty brown.

The flesh is meaty, pale yellow, rusty in the lower part of the stem. When cut, it changes little: it may turn faintly blue or flush slightly reddish. The smell is faintly mushroomy, with a note of ripe apple. The taste is mild and pleasant.

Smell faint, pleasant, mushroomy with a light fruity note. The raw flesh tastes mild, nutty and mushroomy, with no bitterness or heat.

Faint, pleasant and mushroomy, with a fruity (apple) note.