Exam by Alberto G. on flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Changes to Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.2

Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.2 is dated November 20, 2017.

There were minor formatting changes throughout, plus two key changes you need to know.

Minor formatting changes throughout

Imperial measurements in the syllabus now also have metric equivalents shown in parenthesis.

It’s kind of weird. Here in the U.S., we’re the global odd ones out with the Imperial system, but it is the nationwide standard. Now that the Cicerone® Certification Program has syllabus for several countries, I don’t see much need for the USA syllabus to show the metric measurements.

Currently, the Cicerone website has versions for:

• USA: English
• Canada: English
• Australia: English
• International: English
• Internacional: Español

With Certified Beer Server becoming more popular outside of the USA, and Beer Exam School accessible worldwide, I also updated the study lessons on the website to include metric measurements in parenthesis.

Please let me know if you see something that I missed. Just make a comment below this post and I’ll get it updated for the peeps on the metric system.

Using a glass washing machine

Instructions were added for using a glass washing machine.

For when your employer doesn’t use the 3-sink method for getting the glasses to beer clean, but they have a glass washing machine dedicated to the task.

Pouring a beer from tap on nitro

Instructions were added for pouring a beer from tap on nitro.

It’s very similar to pouring a beer from tap on CO2, but there’re are a couple key steps that are required by the super sudsiness of those creamy beers we love on nitro.

One beer style added

The Cicerone® Certification Program has stated that the beer styles in their syllabus reference the BJCP Guidelines rather than the Brewers Association’s because BJCP Guidelines don’t change very often. BJCP is still operating from their 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines. So there’s not a lot of updates to this section of the Certified Beer Server Syllabus.

However, one new style was added: International Pale Lager. The style is basically a copy of the widely popular, American Pale Lager.

What you need to know:

So that’s it! That’s all of the changes to the Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.2. Thankfully, it was not a whole lot this time.

After 10 years of conducting exams, I guess the Cicerone® Certification Program is still honing their syllabi. I don’t see much other need for changing the Certified Beer Server syllabus as often as they do. I mean glass washing machines have been around a while, beer on nitro has been around a while, although it is getting more popular. The Cicerone Certification Program isn’t a program of lifelong learning, they don’t require continuing education credits for keeping your status. But I guess it’s good that they keep up with the latest in the industry.

I already updated my study notes and flashcards on this website to reflect these changes. So if you haven’t already started studying for the Certified Beer Server exam, now’s your chance!

Use my free study notes and flashcards on this website for the best way to pass the heck out of the Certified Beer Server exam the first time! Get going and let me know when you pass.

Join Beer Exam School

Study along with my notes–pass this exam!

Sign up for the email list:   Enroll me in Beer Exam School!

The post What was changed in Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.2? appeared first on Beer Exam School.

Exam by Alberto G. on flickr (CC BY 2.0)

The Certified Beer Server Syllabus is rarely updated

I started gathering my study materials for the exam in October 2014. The latest version of the syllabus was 2.0, dated June 1, 2013.

The Cicerone® Certification Program had stated that the beer styles in their syllabus reference the BJCP Guidelines rather than the Brewers Association’s because BJCP Guidelines don’t change very often. Well, BJCP released new style guidelines in 2015. So Cicerone updated their syllabi. Here are the changes to Certified Beer Server Syllabus.

Changes to Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.0

Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.0 is dated July 1, 2015. It hadn’t been changed in a while, so this was a major overhaul.

Programmatic changes

In August 2015, Cicerone® Certification Program announced that it would add a fourth level to the program: Advanced Cicerone^TM. The highest level was too hard, so they added another level for people who want to go beyond Certified Cicerone®, but perhaps not all the way to Master Cicerone®.

“While we have seen tremendous demand for the Master Cicerone® exam, the additional degree of knowledge and skill required to pass is too great for the vast majority of candidates to achieve,” says Ray Daniels, Founder and Director of the Cicerone® Certification Program. In fact, in the prior two years only 3 individuals have passed out of 46 attempts. “The new exam level gives serious beer professionals recognition for additional learning and skill development beyond the Certified Cicerone® level.”

Minor changes throughout

Storage for bottled beer is specified at 43° F unless otherwise stated for a specific style.

“Lift off” caps are now referred to as “pry-off” caps.

Basic grammatical corrections and organizational changes were made as in listing the steps to remove a wire cage and cork.

Qualitative style parameters now includes “appearance.”

The following changes were made to quantitative ABV ranges:

Lower <4.4% is now <4.5%

Normal 4.4% – 5.9% is now 4.5% – 6.0%

Elevated 6.0% – 7.4% is now 6.1% – 7.5%

High 7.5% – 9.9% is now 7.6% – 10.0%

Very high remains >10.0%

Acid flavor was removed from the syllabus. Previously, it was mentioned with sour. Two of the merging flavors, Carbonic and Metallic, were also removed. But I kept them in the study guide.

Aroma evaluation techniques were elaborated to include:

• Distant sniff
• Short sniff
• Long sniff
• Covered sniff

Traditional traits of regional hops were changed as follows:

• American hops added tropical fruit and catty.
• German/Czech hops no longer have woodsy characteristics.

Beer styles renamed

Several beer styles were renamed to match BJCP Guidelines.

The following beers were deleted:

• Munich Dunkel
• English Mild
• Scottish ale(s)

The following beers were added:

• Munich Helles
• Berliner Weisse
• American Barleywine

And:

American Lager was simplified from “Light, Standard, Premium” to simply “American Light Lager.”

Beer styles reorganized

The beer styles were also reorganized:

• The order of the countries was changed.
• American beers were previously subcategorized as just “historic” and “modern.” Now they’re broken into better subcategories that reflect the beer styles.
• German Bocks subcategory was added.
• “Spontaneously ferments” is now called “Lambic Beers” (Belgium/France).
• “Farmhouse beers” is now called “Unique beers” (Belgium/France).
• “Other Belgian beer” is now called “Pale Belgian beers.”
• Oatmeal Stout moved from America to England. We’ll miss you.
• Porter moved from England to America, and is no longer robust. Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.

Changes to Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.1

Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.1 is dated September 1, 2016.

There were fewer changes than the last time.

Minor changes throughout

Basic grammatical corrections, such as to “engage” the keg coupler is now described as to “lock” the coupler.

Some organizational changes were made, as in outlining the different way to pour bottled beer with yeast or without yeast.

What you need to know:

So that’s it! That’s all of the changes to the Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.x. Much of it minor details not even worth mentioning. But I did anyway.

For the more important changes, I already updated my study notes and flashcards on this website. So if you haven’t already started studying for the Certified Beer Server exam, now’s your chance!

Use my free study notes and flashcards on this website for the best way to pass the heck out of the Certified Beer Server exam the first time! Get going and let me know when you pass.

Join Beer Exam School

Study along with my notes–pass this exam!

Sign up for the email list:   Enroll me in Beer Exam School!

The post What was changed in Certified Beer Server Syllabus v3.x? appeared first on Beer Exam School.