Master Sommelier
Fred Dexheimer
- Discipline
- Master Sommelier
i. Biography
In 2021, Fred Dexheimer was a wine consultant at Standard Foods in Raleigh, North Carolina, a role that asks for technical precision, timing, and the kind of palate memory that can track a bottle across seasons and rooms. He earned the Master Sommelier credential in 2007, one of the highest recognitions in the wine trade. The work around him suggests a career built less on display than on reading, comparison, and the ability to make a glass land in the right moment. Asked what shaped his understanding of wine, Fred Dexheimer pointed to two bottles that triggered what he called “Ratatouille moments” — the sort of rare encounters where wine, memory, and art align in a single instant. It also fits a career that moved through service, consulting, teaching, and advocacy without leaving the discipline of the trade.
Coming Up
Early in his career, Fred worked as wine and beverage staff at Gramercy Tavern, wine and beverage staff at Jean Georges, and wine and beverage staff at BLT Restaurant Group. Those years were spent in rooms where service tempo, standards, and coordination are part of the craft. The job is not only to pour, but to pace the table, interpret the room, and keep the wine program in step with the meal. From there, he became sommelier at The Black House at Straw Valley in Durham, North Carolina (until 2015), a role that carried him deeper into pairing decisions, service rhythm, and the daily discipline of hospitality. The line from dining room work to sommelier work is clear: more responsibility, more interpretation, and a tighter grip on the details that shape the guest’s experience. Today, Fred’s work spans several overlapping roles, each reflecting a different branch of beverage practice. He is founder of Juiceman Consulting, a title that points to independent judgment and a practice built outside one house. He is cocktail consultant of Self-employed / various clients, which signals range across spirits and beverage programs. As seminar instructor of Astor Center, he translates knowledge into instruction. He also serves as spokesperson of Wines of Chile and spokesperson of Wines of Southwest France, roles that place him in direct conversation with regions and their identities. Alongside those commitments, he remains wine consultant of Standard Foods, returning his expertise to a room where it can shape service in real time.
Where They Are Now
The line points to a practical kind of return: not nostalgia, but the possibility of revisiting a place with enough history to make rebuilding worth discussing. For Fred Dexheimer, that reads as part of a career defined by continuity, revision, and the working knowledge that hospitality can be remade through shared intent.
In Their Words “There are actually two bottles that [provided] Ratatouille moments for me, when fireworks went off and I had a full-circle moment where life, wine, and art seemed to meld together.” “We were talking and realized it might be worthwhile to explore rebuilding Standard Foods together.”
Career - Founder — Juiceman Consulting - Cocktail consultant — Self-employed / various clients - Seminar instructor — Astor Center - Spokesperson — Wines of Chile - Spokesperson — Wines of Southwest France - Wine consultant — Standard Foods, Raleigh, North Carolina - Wine and beverage staff — Gramercy Tavern - Wine and beverage staff — Jean Georges - Wine and beverage staff — BLT Restaurant Group - Sommelier — The Black House at Straw Valley, Durham, North Carolina (until 2015)
Honors
He earned the Master Sommelier credential in 2007.
FAQ What is Fred Dexheimer's current role? As of 2026, Fred Dexheimer is Founder of Juiceman Consulting. Where did Fred Dexheimer work before? Fred Dexheimer's earlier career included Gramercy Tavern, Jean Georges, and BLT Restaurant Group. What recognition has Fred Dexheimer received? Master Sommelier (2007).
