10/01 CHEF PAUL PRUDHOMME , MATT MERRILL, MARK MADLER

CHEF PAUL PRUDHOMME - " K-PAULS NEW ORLEANS"
             

Chef Paul Prudhomme has propelled the distinctive cuisine of his native Louisiana into the international spotlight and continues to push the limits by creating exciting and new American and international dishes. Chef Paul learned the importance of using the freshest ingredients while cooking at his mother’s side and continues to use only earth’s finest harvests. As the youngest of 13 children, Chef Paul was always adventurous. His strong curiosity of life and cultural customs motivated him to leave Louisiana in his early 20’s and travel across the United States to experience every culinary environment possible. From an Indian reservation all the way to the finest, five-star restaurant, Chef Paul learned to love, appreciate and blend the flavors of his younger years with those of many other cultures.
             

MATT MERRILL - GM POMAR JUNCTION WINERY             

Growing up surrounded by a 9,000-acre vineyard for much of his childhood, Matt caught the grape-growing bug early, feeling at home around massive tractors and harvesters. He attended Paso Robles High School, continuing on to study Fruit Science at Cal Poly University. Near the end of his education, his dad, Dana, asked Matt if he'd be interested in tending a 40-acre vineyard on El Pomar Road in Templeton – the future home of Pomar Junction – in exchange for the  opportunity to live in one of the houses on the property. Knowing a good deal when he saw it, Matt accepted, and the Monday after he graduated from college was his first day officially working for the family business, Mesa Vineyard Management. Today, he is the administrator for the Pomar Junction brand in everything from events to bottling to the tasting room to charitable causes. Matt has since moved just two miles down the road from the winery with his wife Nikki son, Ethan, and baby girl Nora.

 
MARK MADLER - SAN FERNANDO VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Mark Madler covers accounting, aviation & aerospace, banking & finance, manufacturing, media & entertainment, the cities of Burbank and Simi Valley, and the Antelope Valley. He joined the company in February 2006. Madler previously worked as a reporter for the Burbank Leader. Before that, he was a reporter for the City News Bureau of Chicago and several daily newspapers in the suburban Chicago area. He has a bachelor’s of science degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.