Complete Chile Pepper Book

This book will be the standard reference on chile peppers for a long time to come. I give it my three-chile rating, which translates as hot-hot-hot. -- Jim McCausland Fresh Dirt blog 20091110 A narrow topic, you say? Not with the 100 top varieties covered and 85 convincing reasons for embracing more than just our beloved jalapenos and serranos. -- Renee Enna Chicago Tribune 20091208 A nicely done work that will fit well within any culinary or gardening collection and will appeal to both the novice and the expert gardener. Recommended. -- Lisa Ennis Library Journal 20091201

A foremost international expert on capsicums, Dave DeWitt has written or coauthored more than 30 books on peppers and has edited two magazines on the subject. His Chile Pepper Encyclopedia won Best Spice Book in English in 1999 at the Versailles World Cookbook Awards. He has been a radio announcer and television producer as well as appearing on many national television programs. Dave is a board member of the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University, chair of the board of the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum, and an adjunct associate professor at New Mexico State University. He holds a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Virginia and a Master's degree in English from the University of Richmond. Sunbelt Shows, Inc., which Dave owns with his wife, Mary Jane Wilan, is a media company that specializes in fiery foods and barbecue. Sunbelt Shows has produced the annual National Fiery Foods & Barbecue Show since 1988. Paul W. Bosland made the Guinness World Records of 2006 for discovering the world's hottest chile pepper, "Bhut Jolokia". A regents professor of horticulture at New Mexico State University, he has released more than 30 cultivated varieties, including a no-heat jalapeno pepper, for which he won the infamous IgNobel from Harvard University, and a habanero chile, "NuMex Suave", which retains the unique habanero flavors without the heat. He has written or coauthored more than 100 scientific papers and is coauthor of six books. Known as the Chileman, Paul leads the chile breeding and genetic research program at NMSU where he cofounded and directs the university's Chile Pepper Institute, a research and educational center. He serves as chairman of the annual New Mexico Chile Conference, the world's largest conference dedicated to the chile pepper. His chile pepper gardening column appears in Chile Pepper magazine. He earned his bachelor's degree in genetics and his Master's degree in vegetable crops from the University of California, Davis, and his Ph.D. in plant breeding and plant genetics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Horticultural Science, among other honors.