Also called: Head Distiller
Leads a distillery, designing recipes and overseeing how whiskey, rum, gin and other spirits are made and aged.
You walk the rickhouse where thousands of bourbon barrels age, pulling samples with a long glass 'thief' to taste how each is developing. You tweak the mash recipe for a new rye and decide which barrels are ready for this year's special release.
Highly variable; well-known master distillers earn far more.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 8 years after high school. Often a chemistry or fermentation science degree plus many years in a distillery; some learn entirely on the job.
Ways in: On-the-job training, 4-year college, Certification. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Fermentation Science, Chemistry, Food Science.
Growing about average. Craft distilling has grown quickly.
Low risk for 10 years. Automation runs stills more consistently, but recipes, tasting and brand craft are what distillers sell.
Classes: Chemistry, Biology, Business class.
Official data: O*NET occupation 51-9199.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.