It is found in Asia and North America, where it fruits on the ground in a mycorrhizal association with both deciduous and coniferous trees.

The species was originally described by American mycologist Charles Horton Peck in 1889 from specimens collected in Saratoga, New York.

[5] Synonyms include names resulting from generic transfers to the genera Suillus by Otto Kuntze in 1888,[3] and to Suillelus by William Alphonso Murrill in 1948.

It is solid (i.e., not hollow) with a furfuraceous surface (appearing to be covered in bran-like particles), and mature individuals usually have short, stiff hairs at the base.

[6] Fruit bodies have a strong ability to capture and neutralize the chemical methyl mercaptan, one of the main odiferous compounds associated with bad breath.

[10] In North America, its distribution includes eastern Canada and extends south to Florida and west to Minnesota.