Russula amoenolens

Pileus
Cap 4-11 cm broad, globose, becoming convex, finally plano-convex with a depressed center; margin fragile, entire to eroded, with warted striations; surface viscid when moist, smooth, yellow-brown to light brown, the disc darker; flesh thin, white, brittle; odor mild when young, unpleasant at maturity, like burnt rubber/plastic; taste, latently peppery.

Lamellae
Gills adnate, close, brittle, white, in age cream, frequently developing brown stains.

Stipe
Stipe 3-7 cm tall, 1-2.5 cm thick, brittle, equal to tapering downward, white with brownish stains especially at the base; solid when young, becoming nearly hollow at maturity; veil absent.

Spores
Spore 7-8 x 5-6 µm, subglobose to elliptical, warted, the ornamentation amyloid; spore print cream.

Habitat
Scattered to gregarious under both hardwood and conifers; in our area abundant under Monterey pine; fruiting from early fall to mid-winter.

Edibility
Inedible; the unpleasant odor and peppery taste are obvious deterrents.

Comments
Russula amoenolens is recognized by a sticky (when moist) brown cap with a tuberculate-striate margin, gills and stipe which develop brown discolorations, and an unpleasant "burnt"odor at maturity. It fruits abundantly in the early fall often with Chroogomphus vinicolor and Suillus pungens under Monterey pine. Until recently, Russula pectinatoides was the name applied locally to this mushroom.