Aaron Berg, recipient of the Minnesota Mycological Society’s 2026 Golden Chanterelle Award, obviously lives a charmed life.
A Lucky First Mushroom Find
“The first mushroom I positively identified was a morel. Back around 2006, we lost an enormous elm tree in our yard to Dutch elm disease. It was really big; the trunk was about six or seven feet across. The next spring, I was mowing the lawn and noticed a mushroom. I started looking around, and there were a bunch of morels. I mowed a few and stepped on some.”
After a few days of research, Aaron was brave and did what we’ve all been advised to do: he built up his courage, cooked a tiny bit, then waited a day to see if anything happened. With no negative effects, he jumped to the next obvious step. He cooked a bunch in a good amount of butter and enjoyed some mushroom pasta.
That was the first step in his mushroom journey.
“We enjoyed mushrooms from that tree for a number of years.”
A few years later, his friends bought him a membership in the MMS. Those were some good friends.
Morel Memories
Aaron fondly remembers another great morel flush.
“I found a huge double elm tree at Ft. Snelling State Park. One of them started to die, and the morels really started coming up. The trees were so big that there must have been 100 feet of morels in all directions. I would walk away with 2 pounds of morels.”
The only downside to this spot is that it was discovered by other foragers during the pandemic.
From Forager to Educator
I asked Aaron what other mushroom adventures he’s had. He related a time with his wife on a canoe trip in the Boundary Waters.
“We were at Lake 4 on the Ely side of the Boundary Waters when I discovered an interesting mushroom. I still think about it and remain unable to identify what it was. That was before I started to keep mushrooms…”
You have probably met Aaron; he’s often at MMS-sponsored events. After about four years of membership, Aaron started volunteering, leading forays, and now mostly serves as an educator.
Aaron is friendly and has an unquenchable thirst for mushroom knowledge. He is a part of Funga, the scientific group within MMS.
“I enjoy so many aspects of the scientific side.”
Documenting the Fungal World
Aaron has made a number of iNaturalist entries and works to make his identifications as detailed as possible. He enjoys microscopy and seeing the minute aspects of mushrooms.
“I like trying to describe mushrooms, trying to describe it so well that people can identify it without a photo.”
This includes not only physical descriptions of the mushroom but also where and when it was found.
“My goal is to document a mushroom so well that it is accepted into the fungarium at the Bell Museum. The standards there are quite high; there’s a two-page list of everything required.”
Science Meets the Kitchen
By the way, during this interview Aaron jumped off the call for a moment to turn down a pot of mushroom stew on his stove. With Aaron, it’s not just scientific pursuits.
He told me that he enjoys cooking Ischnoderma resinosum, the resinous polypore.
“It can be really tough, but if I carefully slice and cook it, I can get a great vegan beef flavor from it.”
Aaron believes that this mushroom is overlooked as an edible.
“When properly cooked, it is delicious.”
Sharing the Best Spots
Many of us are hesitant to share our favorite foraging locations, but not Aaron. He readily offered his favorite when asked: the Sunrise River Landing near Wild River State Park.
“In July, it has a lot of chanterelles but also king boletes, hedgehogs, and beefsteak mushrooms in September. It just has so much variety – edible and inedible mushrooms. It can be swampy but not muddy, sandy but also good soil. Even in dry years, that area holds a lot of moisture. There are usually lots of mushrooms.”
Unfortunately, there are also a lot of mosquitos, and it seems easy to get lost because the river winds around so much.
“All the ditches and changes in topography make it easy to get lost.”
Favorite Mushroom Gear and Products
Lastly, Aaron does have a few favorite mushroom products. He has a prized Opinel pocketknife and a foraging bag that attaches to his belt.
For food products, he uses Trader Joe’s Mushroom & Company Multipurpose Umami Seasoning Blend.
“It is mostly porcini mushroom, salt, pepper, and various herbs. I use it instead of plain salt.”
He also showed a bottle of Northern Foragers Corn Smut Huitlacoche Mexican Truffle Oil, explaining that it is a hard one to find.
Congratulations, Aaron!
Make sure to say hi to Aaron the next time you see him on a foray or at any MMS event. Also, congratulate him on winning the MMS’ 2026 Golden Chanterelle Award.
Written by David King, MMS Passport Coordinator