Dale "Cocktail King" DeGroff is one of the world's most famous mixologists: often called the "Da Vinci" of bartending, he preferes to be considered a "bar chef" and not simply a bartender, because of his chef like approach to mixology.

DeGroff worked for twenty years in some of United States most renowned bars, clubs and restaurant (including the famous Rainbow Room in New York and Hotel Bel Air in Los Angeles) acquiring extraordinary techniques and developing its own unique style. Since his first cocktail, The Ritz Cocktail, "Cocktail King" has signed about a hundred original cocktail, including or the Belmont Breeze or the Fitzgerald. Despite his long career, he still represents the modern face of drinking culture: that's why he was chosen as a consultant to match every character of "Sex and the City", one of the trendiest TV series, with the right cocktail.

Tradition and Innovation
Most people say that what makes DeGroff a real King is his respect for tradition: he knows everything on cocktail history, from its origins in 19th century till present days. Moreover he knows perfectly all the ingredients he uses in its concoctions, their properties and flavours, always trying to find new ones: for exemple he often uses ingredients that most of his colleagues don't, like fresh fruits and handmade juices. Moreover he pays great attention to the freshness and composition of the ingredients, being sure, for example, that ice cubes are made from really pure water and are of the right size (so that they don't melt too fast diluting the drink too much). DeGroff reputation comes in fact from his ability to use his knowledge about classical cocktails and his almost scientific interest in ingredients' properties to turn familiar drinks into brand new trendy cocktails.

Today DeGroff is a leading authority in the world of drinks: not only he creates cocktail menus for the most famous venues in the US and Europe, but he is also hosted regularly on many TV and radio show, writing columns on several famous magazines and writing best selling books on cocktails. He also trains young bartenders around the world, and organizes his famous "Cocktail Safaris", a sort of study trip for young bartenders to visit the best Manhattan bars, tasting their best cocktails and learning the recipes from the best professional in town. Moreover "Cocktail King" will soon launch his new book, The Craft of the Cocktail, which will not only include lots of recipes, but also tips, instructions, cocktail history and techniques.

Information on seminars and book on Dale DeGroff's official website: www.kingcocktail.com