Scott Jones ’98, Executive Food and Wine Editor for Southern Living Magazine

Scott Jones '98, Executive Food and Wine Editor for Southern Living Magazine

Scott Jones always had two passions—writing and food. To develop himself as a writer, he earned a degree in magazine publishing and journalism from the University of Mississippi. To gain the knowledge and expertise he would need to write about his second passion, he enrolled at The Culinary Institute of America, from which he graduated with honors. And it was in his CIA Wine Studies class that he developed his lifelong love affair with wine. Ultimately, he poured his knowledge and expertise into authoring the Southern Living Wine Guide and Journal.

Scott received scholarship awards from the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) and The James Beard Foundation that provided both financial support and a vote of confidence as he pursued his culinary degree. Thankful for the help he received while studying at the CIA, Scott passes along his expertise and enthusiasm to students at Culinard, a culinary college in his hometown of Birmingham, AL, where he regularly gives talks and seminars to aspiring culinarians.

Most recently Scott has been on a mission to popularize down-home Southern cooking. In his role as editor at Southern Living magazine he has helped create the new book 1001 Ways to Cook Southern.