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June 16, 2025
NORTHEAST WISCONSIN – Through Divine Beer Pairings, Amy Soquet – local entrepreneur and self-described craft beer enthusiast – said she is rewriting the rules of what craft beer and food can do together.
Describing the new venture as equal parts education and entertainment with a side of palate adventure, Soquet said Divine Beer Pairings aims to offer experiences like no other through collaborations with other local businesses.
“I poured beer for a long time, but I wanted to branch out and bring an experience,” she said.
All leading up to this
Earning an associate’s degree in marketing communications from Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, Soquet said she spent much of her early adult years in advertising and marketing – a career that later served as a foundation for Divine Beer Pairings.
Although she only started dipping her toe in the craft beer industry in 2020, she said her passion for beer and food pairings goes back “even further.”
Growing up in Wisconsin, as it has for many others, Soquet said beer and cheese have always been a part of her cultural DNA.
During a trip to Paris – “because why not spend four months in France” – Soquet said her deep-rooted appreciation for beer was rekindled when she attended her first-ever beer and cheese pairing event.
“It was a great experience,” she said. “I met with the host – she spoke English, thankfully – and I told her I was from Wisconsin, where we, too, had a lot of beer and cheese.”
That interaction, Soquet said, lit a spark that would eventually become Diving Beer Pairings.
“When I came back to Wisconsin, I said, ‘Yep, I am going to start some beer pairing events and share the experience I had in Paris with others,’” she said.
Though she had already been working in the craft beer industry prior to her trip to France, Soquet said when she returned home, “I decided to start taking it more seriously.”
This, she said, meant studying for the Cicerone® (pronounced “sis-uh-rohn”) certification exam.
A cicerone in the craft beer industry, Soquet said, is what a sommelier is in the wine industry.
This journey, she said, eventually took her to Sydney, Australia, where she completed her off-flavor cicerone exam.
“I traveled to Sydney, Australia, to take part in that exam and was able to visit with some friends,” she said.
Soquet said the trip also provided her with an opportunity to explore the craft beer scene in Noosa, Queensland – which is known as the craft beer capital of Australia.
The in-person off-flavor cicerone exam, Soquet said, can be taken anywhere in the world that offers the exam – “I chose Australia.”
“I could have taken it in Chicago or Minneapolis, but I wanted to go to Sydney,” she said. “I had never been there before, and I was going to visit two of my friends. It was also a chance for me to visit craft breweries in a different country.”
The beer that hopeful candidates test during an off-flavor exam, Soquet said, is not meant to be served to consumers.
“The off-flavor exam is a blind test taken in person,” she said. “Off flavors are beers that shouldn’t be served – meaning they have diacetyl or DMS in them, or it tastes like wet cardboard – those are called ‘off’ flavors, and you have been able to detect them.”
Up next, Soquet said she is working toward becoming a certified cicerone, which includes taking a three-hour written, online exam.
Though being a certified cicerone isn’t required to organize beer pairing events, Soquet said for her, it’s about taking that extra step.
“For me, (going through the process) has pushed me to really learn the industry – all the different ingredients used in beer, what brewers do in the production facility, further understanding the beer-making process,” she said.
The online cicerone certification process, Soquet said, is a “learn-at-your-own-pace” type of process.
“I have all the books, I’ve done all the training, I took the in-person exam – now it’s just a matter of taking that final exam,” she said.
As she works toward becoming a certified cicerone, Soquet said she is using the knowledge she has already gained at Divine Beer Pairing events.
In addition to supporting her pairing selection decisions leading up to an event, she said it also serves as a base for sharing that knowledge with those in attendance.
“Not only am I pairing beer with gourmet cuisine, I’m teaching beer education,” she said. “Everyone leaves an event knowing something they didn’t know before.”
Soquet said her background in event marketing has also come in handy in many different ways as founder of Divine Beer Pairings.
“I’m applying all of my skills from advertising and marketing – bringing that knowledge and skillset into the craft beer experience by hosting these events and also educating people,” she said.
Collaborations, pairings
At the core of what Divine Beer Pairings does, Soquet said, is collaboration with other local businesses.
“I’m collaborating with a brewery and a food partner – whether it’s a cheese vendor, or a food truck or another food vendor,” she said. “It is a shared promotional experience. I highlight the food vendors’ cuisine and show how it can be paired with the brewery’s beer.”
Unlike wine and food pairings, which Soquet said have more of a defined set of rules – “reds and bolds with dark meats and then whites with the lighter meats, like fish and chicken” – beer has a much broader palate base to work with.
“Craft beer has a lot of flavor and ingredients and tasting notes to work with that pairs really well with food,” she said.
As one might expect, in addition to tapping into the knowledge she has gained thus far through her cicerone education, Soquet said taste-tasting is also a critical step in her pairing selections.
“The one that I’m working on currently, for August, is the different flavored soft dough pretzels from Manderfield’s Home Bakery in Appleton,” she said. “Each one has different flavor tasting notes. So, I take samples, and then we go back to the brewery and taste test – we’re looking for complement, contrast and cut.”
Complementary pairings, Soquet said, involve matching similar flavors, while contrasting pairings use opposite flavors to create a more dynamic experience.
Cut, she said, is about using beer to cleanse the palate or counteract strong flavors like richness or spice.
Furthermore, Soquet said finding the perfect combination of craft beer and gourmet cuisine isn’t just about finding the right match – “it’s about creating an experience that excites your senses and sparks conversation.”
“Each pairing is designed to surprise and delight, with flavors that interact in unexpected ways, bringing out the best in both the beer and the dish,” she said.
Each bite and each sip, Soquet said, reveals new layers of flavor and enjoyment.
Seeing the smiles and excitement on people’s faces as they leave a Divine pairing event, Soquet said, is one of the best parts of the job.
“The excitement you see when a combination of beer and food comes together that they thought would never work – but when paired together, it’s mind-blowing,” she said. “An example would be pairing a carrot cake with an IPA. When the two come together, it’s like a flavor explosion.”
Soquet said she already has a handful of events planned at establishments throughout Northeast Wisconsin this summer – including a beer and slider pairing event at McFleshman’s Bar in Appleton June 17 and a beer and cheese pairing event at Irish Temper in Green Bay June 24 – with more being added every day.
Check on divinebeerpairings.com or find it on Facebook for more details.
A ‘divine’ pairing
Soquet said the inspiration behind the business’s name stems from her desire to provide just that – “a divine experience.”
“I came up with a name because I saw an article where somebody did a beer pairing with donuts, and they said it was ‘simply divine,’” she said.
Soquet said, to her, that’s exactly the experience she aims to provide to event participants.
“It seemed like a perfect fit,” she said.
Growth is brewing
In terms of growth, Soquet said the hope is to add a couple of like-minded employees so Divine Beer Pairings can host multiple events in multiple locations at the same time.
For now, the founder said she’s content with sharing her passion for the industry with others.
“The goal is to celebrate the best of Northeast Wisconsin’s craft beer scene, supporting local breweries while bringing people together for flavorful, memorable events,” she said.
