2015 Who's Who Inductee: Dale DeGroff

The James Beard Foundation’s Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America is a cadre of the most accomplished food and beverage professionals in the country. Though they represent a diverse cross-section of the food and beverage industry—from chefs to journalists to farmers to business executives to scholars—each has been identified by his or her peers as having displayed remarkable talent and achievement. Every member of the Who’s Who has contributed in some substantial way to America’s constantly evolving culinary scene.

DALE DEGROFF / MIXOLOGIST / NYC

Master mixologist Dale DeGroff, a.k.a. King Cocktail, developed his extraordinary talent tending bar at esteemed establishments, most notably New York’s famous Rainbow Room, where in the 1980s he pioneered a gourmet approach to re-creating classic cocktails. DeGroff has since been credited with reinventing the bartending profession and setting off a cocktail revival that continues to flourish. Winner of the 2009 James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional and author of The Essential Cocktail and The Craft of the Cocktail, DeGroff has been hugely influential in the bar world for more than three decades. He is also a partner in the award-winning bar training program Beverage Alcohol Resource (BAR) and the founding president of the Museum of the American Cocktail.

Watch the short video above, which celebrates DeGroff's career and aired at the 2015 James Beard Awards, and stay tuned for videos about our other 2015 inductees!