[3][4] The name caligatum (Latin: 'boot') refers to the appearance of the mushroom, which looks like it is wearing a boot due to the presence of dark fibrils on the lower portion of the stem.

[5] The cap (pileus) is hemispherical at first, soon becoming convex to flat, reaching 12–15 cm in diameter, and it is covered in large, chestnut to dark-brown fibrous scales or patches.

[5] The stem (stipe) is 4–12 cm long, tapering and somewhat rooting at the base, and has a well-developed cottony ring covering the gills when young.

It is regularly consumed along the Mediterranean coast, and is highly valued in the island of Cyprus, where is considered a delicacy pickled and preserved in brine or vinegar.

[5] Tricholoma magnivelare is similar, and is more populous than T. caligatum in the Pacific Northwest; it also appears elsewhere in North America, Europe, and Asia.