Cicerone Certification Program

Although the craft beer community is becoming more familiar with the Cicerone Certification Program, I wanted to write a blog post about the organization and what it represents. There are many certification programs for individuals to become "Wine Sommeliers", but this program focuses strictly on craft beer. Cicerone has already become the biggest craft beer certification program and is gaining a lot of respect in the craft beer community because of its well thought out certification levels.

The three certification levels are: Certified Beer Server, Certified Cicerone, and Master Cicerone. I recently passed the Certified Beer Server exam. For those that are pretty confident in their craft beer knowledge, this test should not be too difficult. When I started studying I realized that I needed to learn more about draft systems, liquors laws, and some unfamiliar beer styles. If you follow the syllabus that the program posts and go over each section thoroughly, then you should be able to pass the first time around. And if not you get one free retake.

I am beginning to study for the Certified Cicerone exam, and from what I have gathered this separates the elite from the novice. A lot of in-depth knowledge is needed for the next two levels, which means you need to become familiar with beer from various angles. Personally, I am excited to expand my knowledge of this wonderful libation and solidify it through the Cicerone Program.

Cheers! Prost! Salud!