HERODOTUS described butter as one of ‘the oddities of the Scythians’ who lived in the Black Sea littoral. The Greeks called it boutyron, apparently a literal translation of ‘cow+cheese’. In France today, distinctive regional butters are part of the defining food culture of the country. Slow Food Perth will host ‘Butter works’, a tasting of Australian and New Zealand, European and locally home-made butters, on Sat 25 July 2009. The workshop has been inspired by Trudy Parker’s trip to Japan earlier this year where she attended a butter-making course at a Hokkaido dairy. Venue: 36a Gardiner Street (rear house), East Perth. Time: 2:00-4:00pm. Fee: $15 members, $20 friends. Information: Pauline Tresise email or T 08 9381 4519. Booking form.