Hunting for truffle butter

by Food Wine Dine

It's a cold rainy winter morning and Duncan Garvey from Perigord Truffles and butter king Pepe Saya are on the hunt for truffles in Marulan about 2 hours from Sydney. This is the first truffle hunt of the season and todays bounty will be churned into fresh truffle butter within 24 hours.

The truffle dogs lead the way along the rows of trees stopping every few metres to dig their paws into the ground indicating they have picked up the fragrant smell of truffles just below the surface. Duncan Garvey is soon on the ground smelling the soil in what looks like a prayer to the truffle gods and his well developed sense of smell will soon tell us if the truffle is ready for harvesting or should be left for another day.

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The freshly harvested truffles are shaved and mixed into Pepe Saya's beautiful cultured butter at his factory in Sydney. The truffle butter is then hand shaped and packaged ready for distribution to some of Australia's best restaurants and food purveyors. 

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Truffle Butter from Duncan Garvey and Pepe Saya is available now from retailers around Australia or can be ordered here.


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For more details and stockists please visit


The Pepe Saya Questionnaire

by Food Wine Dine

Pepe Saya is the king of butter. 



Name: Pepe Saya

Hometown: Tempe, NSW

Occupation: Buttermaker

Butter to me is....What wine is to a catholic

What is the most surprising thing about butter? It's colour , it's smell - and it's demand

What is your favourite comfort food? Bread and Butter pudding and/or custard and banana

My favourite dish from my childhood is....Ice cream with hundreds and thousands

Food Hero? Ronnie Khan

Where should people be eating? At home

My favourite tool in the kitchen is....My new Kitchenaid

What is your coffee of choice and where do you buy it? At the moment Single Origin from Surryhills

If you could only have 3 food items in your house what would they be? Bread, Butter and Cheese

What's the best advice you have received? Keep it real!

Who inspires you? My wife and children and people who love what they do!

What is your food dream? Watch this space.

Where is your favourite food travel destination and why? Middle east - the colour, the smells... ahhh they love food

What is the next big thing in food? Producers

What is the most underrated ingredient? Truffles

What is your favourite drink? Water

What is your favourite food? Comfort food

The best advice I can give you about cultured butter it

I make butter because....I love it

If I wasn't making butter I' a steel smith

Butter is the new......Black


Pepe's Details


Twitter: @pepesaya

Facebook: Pepesaya