Dave Dewitt
“The Pope of Peppers”
Education:
B.A., Literature, University of Virginia, 1966
M.A., Literature, University of Richmond, 1967
Professional Affiliations:
President, Sunbelt Shows, Inc.
Board Member, The Chile Pepper Institute, New Mexico State University
Board Member, New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum

Dave DeWitt is one of the foremost authorities in the world on chile peppers and spicy foods. Dave researched and wrote numerous magazine and newspaper articles on chile peppers in the late 1970's. In 1984, St. Martin's Press published his first cookbook, The Fiery Cuisines, co- authored with Nancy Gerlach. That book is still in print more than seventeen years later by Ten Speed Press. In 1987, Dave and Nancy approached a local publisher, and the three launched Chile Pepper magazine with a mere 212 subscribers. By 1995, with Dave as the editor-in-chief, the magazine had surpassed 50,000 subscribers with a total circulation exceeding 80,000. The magazine was sold in1996 and Dave launched Fiery Foods & Barbecue Business Magazine, a trade publication.

The earlier Chile Pepper magazine project led to numerous books, including The Whole Chile Pepper Book (Little, Brown, 1990), which now has nearly 100,000 copies in print and recently had its tenth printing. Dave has 31 published books to his credit and continues to write books at the rate of one or two a year. He is also producer of the National Fiery Foods & Barbecue Show, the trade show for the multi-billion dollar Fiery Foods and Barbecue industries, now in its 13th year. His book The Chile Pepper Encyclopedia (William Morrow, 1999) won the award “Best Spice Book in English” at the 1999 World Cookbook Awards at Versailles. His latest book, again with Nancy Gerlach, is Barbecue Inferno: Cooking with Chile Peppers on the Grill (Ten Speed Press, 2001).

Other notable books by Dave and his co-authors include: The Pepper Garden, Peppers of the World, Hot & Spicy & Meatless, The Healing Powers of Peppers, and The Hot Sauce Bible.

In 1995, his book, A World of Curries, was nominated for a James Beard Award. Dave is co- producer, writer, and host of Heat Up Your Life!, a three-part video documentary series on chile peppers and spicy foods that will run on PBS or a cable channel. He is also publisher of the Fiery Foods & Barbecue Super Site, at www.fiery-foods.com.

National TV appearances for Dave include “American Journal,” Cable News Network, “The Today Show,” “Home with Gary Collins,” “Scientific American Frontiers,” “Smart Solutions,” and "CBS Sunday Morning." He has also been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, American Way, Smithsonian, and approximately 200 newspapers across the country.