Learn to predict whether a pairing will harmonize, contrast, or amplify before the first bite, the same logic sommeliers use for wine, applied to whiskey.

Build detailed flavor profiles for whiskeys like Old Forester, Four Roses Single Barrel, and Maker's Mark using the AWS Flavor Intensity Scale, then test them against a standardized tasting plate.

Learn the real history and proper proportions behind the Old Fashioned and the Manhattan, and how proof and viscosity change what each cocktail pairs with.

About the course

This module treats whiskey the way a sommelier treats wine: as an ingredient in a larger meal, not just a pour on its own. You'll learn the three foundational pairing principles, Balance, Counterbalance, and Explosion, and apply them across meats, cheeses, and desserts rooted in the Southern ingredients that share bourbon's flavor DNA. You'll also build detailed profiles for six benchmark whiskeys and use them in classic Old Fashioned and Manhattan builds. This is a standalone module, it does not include the Level One exam or certification, which are only awarded with the complete 10-module program.

Your Instructor: Susan Reigler

Susan Reigler wrote the book on American whiskey. Eight of them, actually. She's the author or co-author of eight books on bourbon and American spirits, an adjunct professor of Beer & Spirits at Eastern Kentucky University, and a working spirits judge, which means she's spent decades doing exactly what this course teaches you to do, at a level most drinkers never reach. She's judged whiskeys against each other by the hundreds, trained hospitality students on the science behind every barrel, and turned some of the industry's driest regulations into stories people actually remember. That's the instructor behind every module in American Whiskey Scholar: someone who has done the tasting, read the fine print, and can tell you, precisely, why your glass tastes the way it does.

Curriculum

1 Chapter · 18 Lessons

    1. (Included in full purchase)

      Welcome to Food & Cocktail Pairing

    2. (Included in full purchase)

      I. The Regional Connection: Southern Ingredients

    3. (Included in full purchase)

      II. The Six Focus Whiskeys

    4. (Included in full purchase)

      III. Basic Pairing Principles

    5. (Included in full purchase)

      Food Pairing Scorecard

    6. (Included in full purchase)

      IV. Exercise I: The Flavor Dissection Plate

    7. (Included in full purchase)

      Flavor Intensity Scale

    8. (Included in full purchase)

      V. Exercise II: Building the Flavor Profile for Each Whiskey

    9. (Included in full purchase)

      VI. Food Pairings and Ingredient Application

    10. (Included in full purchase)

      VII. The Role of Proof and Viscosity in Pairing

    11. (Included in full purchase)

      VIII. Classic Cocktails: The Old Fashioned and The Manhattan: How Food Pairings Translate to Cocktail “Food” Flavors

    12. (Included in full purchase)

      IX. Exercise III. Building Pairing Menus

    13. (Included in full purchase)

      The Secrets of Food Pairing

    14. (Included in full purchase)

      The Secrets of Food Pairing - The Chew Down

    15. (Included in full purchase)

      X. Glossary of Key Regulatory and Production Terms

    16. (Included in full purchase)

      Quiz

    17. (Included in full purchase)

      XI. Review

    18. (Included in full purchase)

      XII. Recommended Reading

Build a menu around your favorite pour.

Enroll in Food & Cocktail Pairing and start pairing whiskey with real intention.

$49.00

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