My Road to Cicerone®: Elizabeth Starks

Elizabeth Starks is a Certified Cicerone^® from Cambridge, MA. Here she explains how studying for the Certified Cicerone exam improved her abilities as a discerning taster and educator. 

1. Where do you work and what do you do there?
   Currently, I am working on getting a small farm and brewery running in upstate New York. Up until this past May, I was working at Lamplighter Brewing Co. in Cambridge, MA. I joined the team shortly before the taproom opened (almost two years ago) and I wore a few hats. If I wasn’t working in the taproom, you could find me leading group tastings on-site or around the city, teaching “Beer Education” classes to staff, or helping out with a canning run.
2. How did you first hear of the Cicerone Certification Program?
   Upon settling in one night several years ago with a nice glass of Hill Farmstead’s Anna to watch the documentary “Somm.” I wondered if something like this existed for beer and felt a pressing need to try it out. Fast-forward a few years and I finally acted on it.
3. Why did you choose to pursue Certified Cicerone while already working in the beer industry?
   I wanted to expand my knowledge of beer any way I could. Both working at a brewery and the Cicerone program helped with that a lot. The order of events is just what coincided best with my schedule at the time.
4. What was your study support network like? Did you receive support from a study group, your employer, or study solo?
   For the most part, I studied solo. At the time, however, I was leading a quality control panel at Lamplighter with the director of our yeast lab. I later saw that spending our days off training our palates on the likes of baby vomit, old socks, and vinegar with an off-flavor kit was a blessing in disguise when it came time for the exam. Having Lamplighter’s draught system to play with wasn’t a bad thing, either. Also, in the last month or so before the test I found an amazing study group led by Suzanne Schalow at Craft Beer Cellar. I wish I had found them sooner. It was just a small group who would attend, focusing mostly on the Advanced Cicerone^® exam, which really stretched my studies. Those guys first helped me to differentiate between lactic and acetic acid, for starters. Among them was an Advanced Cicerone, shout-out to David Pavlus – I believe it was he who one night was able to accurately call-out pluot as the fruit in this wild beer we had during a blind tasting – a true inspiration!
5. Describe your study process. How did you prepare for the exam?
   To study I utilized the Certified Cicerone syllabus and the Certified Cicerone style flashcards. I read Tasting Beer by Randy Mosher and referenced The Oxford Companion to Beer by Garrett Oliver. I used an off-flavor kit to spike my nightly Budweiser samples the week leading up to the exam. I’m very into homebrewing, which helped a lot with the brewing processes component of the test. And I drank a lot of styles that I usually wouldn’t have again and again to learn their nuances (e.g. lots of Scotch ales and all the bocks – and I did gain an appreciation for them!).
6. Explain how earning your certification has helped your career.
   The certification has helped to boost my credibility as a beer professional. During private tastings, for example, people love hearing about the program and proceed to ask more detailed questions about beer and brewing. I also think it gave the owners of Lamplighter more confidence, knowing I wasn’t completely making up the descriptions of their beers and beer education material for the staff...ha ha.
7. What are your greatest strengths now that you’re a Certified Cicerone?
   Forcing myself to drink beer with a hyper-critical eye really changed my approach to tasting and understanding beer. I feel like it was a work-out program for my palate, and now it’s stronger and more precise than before. I can taste and smell more in beer, as well as in food and wine, and pick up on the little nuances I have been missing for years. Also, being able to articulate what I’m smelling and tasting is a big plus, but always a work in progress.
8. Were there any areas of study that you became particularly interested in while preparing for the Certified Cicerone exam?
   I loved learning the particulars of pairing beer with food, and more about food in general. I didn’t really know what Buddha’s Hand or Cherimoya was, but now I do, and I can say that yes, this beer does have hints of this and that in its flavor profile. Beer and food together is one of the oldest and simplest traditions, and learning about the histories behind the styles that arose from different places and cultures is one of the more interesting components, I think.
9. In your opinion, how valuable is it for those looking to boost their career to earn Cicerone certification?
   The certification can undoubtedly provide benefits to anyone. Whether you use the certification to enhance your resume and advance your career, or you quietly have the certification simply to enhance your personal library of beer knowledge, it will surely be of value.
10. What advice do you have for Certified Beer Servers who are looking into taking the Certified Cicerone exam?
    Drink every style you can get your hands on, invest in an off-flavor kit, and maintain a genuine interest in the material to keep it fun for yourself.

Ready to get started? Learn more about the Certified Cicerone exam here!