Understanding and Highlighting Mushroom Aromas

Robert is a former chef, President of the Ottawa Mycological Society and teaches a variety of in-person and online fungi classes including mushroom identification, cultivation and the history of fungi. Robert founded Think Fungi, an organization focused on the research, education and conservation of fungi. Think Fungi has launched a free community for mycophiles and a mushroom marketplace to fund research projects. Think Fungi led the charge in the 2022 Great North American FungiQuest, which resulted in 150,000 observations of 4,400 species in North America in a one-month period. Robert began foraging mushrooms for the first time in 2010 as a chef in Europe and the pursuit of these delicacies completely changed his outlook on life. Having retired from the kitchen in 2013, he has been focused on his love of mushrooms and has been active in bringing the world of fungi to the masses through his events and courses on just about anything fungi-related. Learn more or get in touch with Robert by visiting thinkfungi.org

Wade owns and operates a maximum nutrient bioavailability food lab named The Fermented Forest. He specializes in koji fermentation and permaculture, but is fluid with most other types of fermentation as well.

He has 20 years of foraging experience and 10 years working with koji. Current projects are dry aged truffles and a solvent/ alcohol free extraction process focusing on cordyceps and other adaptogenic/ medicinal mushrooms. He is excited to be a part of the NAMA culinary arts committee and to meet as many people as possible from the myco-community.

Spike Mikulski
Spike is the Executive Chef at Pot au Feu Bistro in Providence, Rhode Island, where he gets to prepare and serve foraged ingredients you can't find on any other menu in New England. Spike is Rhode Island's first mushroom forager approved by the State to sell wild mushrooms commercially and he teaches the State’s certification program once a year for those also interested in foraging mushrooms for local restaurants and markets. During the rainy season, Spike enjoys studying the Amanitaceae, some of which make up his top ten edibles. Unfortunately for Rhode Island, there are no Amanita approved for sale, so you will not find them on the menu at Pot au Feu. He does, however, get to utilize his experience as an Amanita Expert and Northeast specialist for the “Poisons Help; Emergency Identification for Mushrooms & Plants” Facebook group as an identifier. In the off season, he has taken a fascination to learning food molds and plant pathogens commonly seen in the modern kitchen, observing occurrences like "sour-rot" on sweet potato caused by Geotrichum candidum (which is utilized in cheese making) or garlic bulbs being parasitized by Penicillium corymbiferum (known for its antibiotic properties). Spike has a few of his dishes featured on Instagram at @1wd2ef3rg4th5yj6uk7il He also has some educational Amanita Identification videos on his YouTube Channel.

Born and raised in Miami, FL, Nicholas Prieto is a classically trained chef, product developer, and permaculture enthusiast with over 16 years of experience, including work in Michelin star restaurants and under some of the top chefs in the country. As the founder of Red Flower Fungi, he combines his Cuban heritage with his passion for gourmet mushrooms, fermentation techniques like koji, and tropical fruits to create innovative products such as Leoncito Cafecito, a Lion’s Mane-infused Cuban espresso, and Umami Sazon, a mushroom seasoning for everyday dishes. He also leads Cubansis Café, a pop-up experience that brings people together around wellness, culture, and mycofunctional foods and beverages.

Nicholas is an experienced mushroom cultivator and processor with a commitment to sustainable agriculture. His work in the medical cannabis industry, including his role as Florida’s first Edibles Chef/Director at Curaleaf, adds to his expertise in plant-based wellness and product innovation. With a deep love for tropical fruits and fungi, Nicholas’s mission is to raise the bar for both flavor and function in the culinary world. Through workshops, pop-ups, and collaborations, he inspires others to explore the potential of fungi, tropical ingredients, and sustainable practices for flavor, health, and sustainability.

Dr. Gordon Walker is originally from Cambridge, MA but also spent time growing up on the Northshore of Massachusetts. He attended UC Santa Cruz, obtaining a B.S. in Biochemistry. He then attended UC Davis, where he completed his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He then worked for Opus One winery, isolating wild yeasts and pioneering new wine technologies. He spent time working in biotechnology around the Bay Area, then returned to UC Davis where he completed post-doctoral work on fermentation process control. Besides his passion for all things fungi and fermentation, he is an avid chef, forager, sailor, SCUBA diver and gardener. He resides in Napa, CA.