How to Learn About Beer
How long is a piece of string? There are as many ways to learn about beer as there are paths into the industry itself and no way is more "correct" than any other. Which means this piece is less of a definitive guide and more a set of advice to get you started.
You don’t need to have qualifications to work within beer but for some people it’s the path they would prefer to take. If you’re not sure where to start with qualifications, then there are a couple of different options as well as degrees in Brewing and Distilling, both of which I’ll cover shortly.
The way I got into beer education was with the Cicerone Program through the bar that I work in. It takes you through four levels of beer education: Certified Beer Server, Certified Cicerone, Advanced Cicerone and Master Cicerone. It is one of the most popular beer education programs for those working within hospitality, and even though it is all self-study, just having a syllabus made my learning about beer ten times easier because I personally need a structure of topics to work through.
As someone with dyspraxia I tend to find I need a lot more help when it comes to education than just reading books. Especially when so much of beer education is self study, and the topic is so vast that it intersects history, technology, geography and science. Not to mention the sheer number of beer styles, and the variations within those styles. Plus we’re not just dealing with fermented fruit, we’re dealing with four very different ingredients, each with their own needs and ways in which they could make beer taste like garbage if handled incorrectly.
Okay that might seem a little intimidating, but when I first started in my bar job back in 2018 I didn’t even like drinking beer that much, let alone know how it was made. Now I love beer, and can even confidently talk about tasting notes and comfortably engage in discussions with my colleagues and other drinks professionals.
Ask and Taste
My biggest piece of advice for learning about anything is: don’t be afraid to ask questions because anyone who acts like your questions are stupid is not worth your time.
My biggest piece of advice for learning about beer is; taste everything. I don’t mean just eating and drinking, and I also don’t mean just tasting beer. I’m talking about tasting everything. Stopping to think about what flavours and aromas you can find in each sip, each bite. We’ll go through the process of tasting in more detail a little further along in the module. As far as I am aware, people aren’t born with a good palate, it’s all about practice and process. Don’t be afraid to make notes as you’re going!
(Tasting is also super personal, your sensory system is connected to your memory, which means that when I taste something my experience is probably pretty different to yours. If you’re feeling a little down about your palate you should read this piece that Rachel Hendry wrote about tasting and how cows are better at it than humans anyway.)
Find What Works For You
If you are looking to study for the Cicerone program, whether you’re a bartender or just looking to learn a little about beer; I would highly recommend taking Nat Watson’s Virtual Beer School which is currently available for the first two levels of Cicerone as a Zoom class, with classroom sessions, audio recordings and the option of homework. Nat has a great book called Taste the Evolution in 50 Styles and her website contains a wealth of educational content which I would urge you to check out.
The Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD) has been teaching the secrets of drinks production since 1886, taking you from a foundation level in brewing all the way to Master Brewer. Along with their main programmes in brewing and distilling, they run courses in packaging, cider making and malting. Over the pandemic they have also been hosting free online seminars and events on different topics within beer so keep your eyes peeled for those.
If you’re looking to work on your palate and become a beer judge then the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) or the Beer and Cider Academy courses might be more up your street.
If you’re a practical learner like myself, then it might be useful to find a local brewery who would be willing to let you into their space to shadow someone. Once you start seeing these processes alongside learning the theory, everything starts to fall into place. Try and go to a couple of different sized breweries too, as there is no one size fits all method for brewing.
Utilise social media, there are always people studying beer education or hosting free events you might not have known were happening otherwise. Join some beer groups on Facebook like Crafty Beer Girls, UK Beer and Brewing Professionals or our Burum Collective group. Give a shout out on Twitter and you’ll easily find yourself a study group - tag us and we’ll always retweet!
If you are a person of colour either already in the industry or looking to learn more about beer then there are a series of mentorship or sponsorship programmes in beer and hospitality that you can sign up to through communities like Beer Kulture, Be Inclusive and The Michael Jackson Foundation.
Do What You Can
My understanding and love for beer strengthened once I started interacting with food and drinks professionals of all disciplines. I have and continue to attend as many tasting events as I can afford, from coffee, conventional wine, natural wine, cheese and spirits (one day I would really like to go to an olive oil or honey tasting if anyone wants to go with me). I’ve done a day of sorting and pressing with a nearby cidery. I subscribe to and read the works of various food writers. I’ve helped keg and bottle cider. I’ve volunteered for brew days.
Of course, I give you this advice as a 27 year old whose only responsibilities are to pay my rent and hang out with my wife and cat. If you aren’t able to engage in any of the activities suggested above, I would still urge you to connect with other drinks professionals, whether in person with your local bartenders or with those further afield via social media.
I promise you you’ll learn so much more.
