June 14 @ 8:00 am – June 17 @ 5:00 pm EDT
Join us in Santa Rosa, CA in June 2026 for our annual NATGA Congress, where we will be enjoying many of the amazing offerings of Sonoma County, including vineyards, wineries, truffle orchards, amazing culinary adventures, and of course Truffles.
Agenda Highlights
Keynote Speaker: Alessandra Zambonelli, PhD, Univ of Bologna, Italy
- State of the Truffle Industry and Perspectives from Italy
- Latest Developments and Techniques in Improving Soil Microbiomes
Breeding and Training Exceptional Truffle-Hunting Dogs, Raúl Deoiz, Spain Founder and Manager of Trufdog.
Truffle Species and Tree Species; New Combinations and Opportunities, Brian Upchurch, Carolina Truffiéres, NC
Keynote Speaker:
Alessandra Zambonelli
Alessandra Zambonelli is a prominent Full Professor of Botany at the University of Bologna, specializing in applied mycology and a world-leading expert on truffles. Her research concentrates on truffles covering their genetics, ecology, cultivation, and mycorrhizal associations. She has worked in applied mycology since 1981 and led many national and international projects. Prof. Zambonelli has published over 235 scientific articles and co-authored books, including “Taming the Truffle”, which is the definitive book on the history, lore, science, and cultivation of truffles.
The NATGA 2026 Congress will feature 2 full days of useful, relevant research and the latest information on truffle cultivation. You’ll be able to network with industry experts, successful truffle producers and leading truffle researchers. In addition to the scientific content, we are adding unique Sonoma County Events centered around truffles, such as wine and truffle bite pairing and a moderated panel discussion with well-known Michelin Star Chefs.
For the first time ever, we are also offering 3 additional Bonus Truffle Experiences, with a variety of optional programs including:
- Cooking with Truffles,
- Truffle Dog Training and a
- Truffle Microscopy Workshop.
These Bonus Truffle Experiences will take place before and/or after the Congress for an additional fee.
Congress kicks off on Sunday evening at the Flamingo Resort, June 14 with our annual Welcome Reception where you can connect with old friends, meet new NATGA supporters and network with the experts. Day One will start at the Flamingo Resort and will feature presentations from our Keynote Speaker, Professor Alessandra Zambonelli, as well as additional industry professionals on topics related to truffle cultivation, production, and marketing of truffles. The afternoon will be spent touring a Sonoma County truffle orchard and vineyards, watching a truffle dog demonstration, and experiencing fabulous Sonoma County wines, paired with gourmet truffle bites prepared by Eric Anderson, a Michelin Star Chef.
Day Two will include our annual NATGA members Business Meeting, an additional presentation by Prof Zambonelli as well as more truffle and Ag industry professionals in the morning. For the first time ever, the afternoon will also be available to the public via a Day Pass. The afternoon session, From Soil Prep to Harvest: Latest Research and Development for Truffle Cultivation will also be especially informative for those considering starting a truffle orchard. We’ll also feature a moderated Chef Panel Discussion with Michelin Star Chefs, a Truffle Marketplace, and Silent Auction. Congress concludes with our Closing Reception and Wine and Truffle Bite pairing.
Moderated Chef Panel Discussion with Michelin Star Chefs
Tuesday, June 16 at 2:30-4:00 PM
We are pleased to confirm the participation of several highly acclaimed Northern California chefs, widely recognized for their expertise in working with fresh truffles:
Moderator
Dustin Valette
Chef Owner
Dustin Valette is a prominent chef and restaurateur based in Healdsburg, California, known for his deep roots in Sonoma County and his focus on ‘hyper-local, micro-seasonal”; wine country cuisine. He currently operates several high-profile establishments in downtown Healdsburg, including Valette and The Matheson. Before opening his own restaurants, Valette built an impressive resume at some of the West Coast’s most prestigious kitchens including Dry Creek Kitchen and Aqua in San Francisco
Panelists
Eric Anderson
Chef Owner
Erik Anderson is a Michelin-starred chef known for his work in some of the most prestigious kitchens in the United States, including The French Laundry in Napa, Coi in San Francisco and Four Seasons Resort in Calistoga. Chef Erik Anderson has partnered with Theorem Vineyards and will launch Ilora, a forthcoming, exclusive tasting menu restaurant in Calistoga, California
Douglas Keane
Chef, co-owner
Douglas Keane is an award-winning American chef best known as the owner and visionary behind the Michelin-starred restaurant Cyrus. Based in Sonoma County, California, Keane has become a prominent figure in reimagining the sustainability and ethics of the fine-dining industry. His accolades include two Michelin stars, four stars from the San Francisco Chronicle, a James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific, and being listed in Gourmet Magazine's Top 50 Restaurants in America, among many others.
Ken Frank
Chef Owner
Ken Frank is the executive chef and owner of La Toque in Napa Valley, California. A self-taught culinary pioneer, he is widely regarded as one of the defining figures of contemporary French-California cuisine. Ken Frank is known as one of the world’s foremost truffle experts, he hosts the annual Napa Truffle Festival. In 2014, he was the first American chef invited to participate in the prestigious Alba White Truffle Festival in Italy.
Optional Programs
Wednesday June 17
We prepared a series of extra curricular opportunities which require additional fees. Access to the optional programs are limited to Congress Participants. To register to these program, edit your existing congress tickets or select the add-on while purchasing new congress tickets.
Microscopy Workshop
Take a look at your roots.
Join a small group of growers for a hands-on microscopy workshop designed to take you below the surface. You’ll work directly with stereoscopes and compound microscopes, learning how to properly prepare root samples and identify key morphological features across tuber species.
Bring your own roots from your orchard if you have them. This is real analysis, applied to your own growing conditions.
Led by Inga Meadows, Scott Oneto, and Ann Scanlan, this workshop is built for growers who want clarity, not theory.
- 5–6 hour intensive (lunch included)
- Limited to 20 participants
- $450 per person
If you’re serious about understanding what’s happening in your orchard, this is the session to take.
Inga Meadows
Extension Plant Pathologist
Inga Meadows is an Extension Plant Pathologist for the North Carolina State University Vegetables (primarily tomato) & Herbaceous Ornamentals, Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology. She addresses disease issues for commercial vegetables & greenhouse growers by providing recommendations for disease prevention or suppression. Her program conducts research aimed at improving tools for managing disease.
Scott Onetto
Farm Advisor
Scott Oneto has been a farm advisor with the University of California Cooperative Extension for the past 22 years.
Truffle Dog Training Workshop
Truffle dogs aren’t born—they’re trained.
This hands-on workshop is designed for growers who want to build a working relationship with their dog and develop reliable truffle detection skills. You’ll learn how to introduce scent, reinforce behavior, and create consistency in the field.
This is practical, field-based instruction, not a demonstration. You’ll leave with a clear understanding of what it takes to train and work a truffle dog.
- Built for growers at all experience levels
- Focused on real, repeatable training methods
- Small group format for direct instruction
- $350 per dog-handler team, $100 for an additional person
- Limited to 10 participating dogs, first come first served.
If you’ve been thinking about training your own dog, this is where it starts.
Raúl Deoiz
RSCE Certified Dog Trainer
Founder and manager of Trufdog, a leading specialist in breeding and training exceptional truffle-hunting dogs and host of the Dog Training Workshop at the 2026 NATGA Congress Workshop
Quivira Cooking Class
This is not a tasting. This is hands-on.
Set at Quivira Vineyards in Sonoma County, this small-group cooking experience puts you in the kitchen with fresh truffles and expert guidance. You’ll learn how to properly handle, prepare, and cook with truffles, techniques you can take home and use.
Led by Chef Julia Farkas Gnall, this class connects the orchard to the plate in a way that’s both practical and memorable.
- Hands-on instruction in a working kitchen
- Hosted at an organic estate vineyard
- Small group, immersive format, limited to 12 participants.
- $185 per person
If you want to fully understand the value of what you’re growing, this is the experience to add.
Julia Farkas Gnall
Chef
Chef Julia Farkas Gnall has over 20 years of professional kitchen experience and hosts the Cooking Workshop at Quivira for the 2026 Congress
Congress Speakers
Alessandra Zambonelli
PhD
Full Professor of Botany at the University of Bologna’s Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences in Italy and co-authored Taming the Truffle: The History, Lore, and Science of the Ultimate Mushroom.
Mark Coleman
Forestry Faculty
TRAPI project director. Fourteen years as Research Scientists with US Forest Service in Wisconsin and South Carolina. Forestry Faculty at University of Idaho for the past thirteen years.
Ann Scanlan
Vice President and Research Task Force Lead
Ann Scanlan currently serves as VP of NATGA and is chair of the Research Task Force. She has an orchard in the mountains of Southern California.
Margaret Townsend
Owner
Margaret saw the potential for truffle production on her family farm in Kentucky back in 2011 when she started a 25-acre venture dedicated to raising Perigord Truffles (Tuber Melanosporum) in Southern Kentucky.
Brian Upchurch
Brian Upchurch, a former President of NATGA, is a professional horticulturist who owned and operated a wholesale specialty nursery for 30 years prior to starting his truffle orchard business with his son, Davis.
Fran Angerer
Artistic Truffle Farmer, Local Defacto Truffle Meister
NATGA Member since 2019, truffle grower
Congress Ticket Prices
All-Inclusive Full Congress Package, June 14-16:
Includes 2 full days of industry presentations, breakfasts, lunches, orchard tour, wine and truffle bite pairing and Michelin Chef Roundtable Discussion, Truffle Marketplace, Silent Auction, and Opening and Closing Receptions with Wine and Truffle Bite pairing:
- Member, Earlybird (until March 31, 2026): $545
- Member, $595
- Non-Member, $695
Day Pass and Truffle Marketplace, June 16
Open to the Public
Includes lunch, afternoon scientific session, Michelin Chef Roundtable Discussion, Truffle Marketplace, Silent Auction, and Closing Reception with Wine and Truffle Bite pairing:
- Day Pass, Earlybird (until May 31, 2026): $295
- Day Pass at the Door: $325
Accommodations
Our room block is below and we encourage everyone to book their rooms now! Your card is not charged until your stay, so there is no downside to book your room now! We have the dates and hotel confirmed so we can put our 2026 Congress up on our webpage as well so that folks can book rooms and start blocking off their calendars. And now the fun of planning the rest of the Congress begins!
Pre-book now. There is only a limited number of room reserved with a NATGA discount.
Resources
Sonoma County Tourism information