Tricholoma caligatum

The cap of Tricholoma caligatum is 6 to 15 centimeters across. When young it is hemispherical with an inrolled margin, opening with age to convex and flat. The surface is dry, covered with large pressed-down fibrous scales of chestnut-brown to dark brown on a paler background. The scaly brown cap gives the mushroom a stout, eye-catching look.

The hymenophore is gilled. The gills are attached to the stem or notched, crowded, whitish or cream, developing rusty-brown spots with age. The spore print is white. Pale gills with reddish spots, together with the ring on the stem, help you recognize this species.

The stem is cylindrical, dense, 4 to 12 centimeters tall. Its defining feature is a felty ring, below which the stem is covered with dark bands of scales that look like a pulled-on boot — hence the name. Above the ring the stem is pale, below it brown and scaly. There is no volva. The combination of a scaly cap, a ring and a scaly "boot" sets this species apart.

The flesh is white, thick, dense and fibrous, and barely changes color when cut. The taste is often bitterish, especially in mushrooms from under broadleaf trees; non-bitter specimens have a pleasant taste close to matsutake. Because of possible bitterness, the flesh is boiled before cooking. Its most characteristic feature is a strong spicy aroma.

The smell is strong, spicy and penetrating, reminiscent of nutmeg, cinnamon or pepper — one of the defining features of the species. It is by this characteristic spicy aroma, together with the scaly cap and the boot on the stem, that Tricholoma caligatum is easiest to recognize.