(originally posted December 29, 2009)

True story: The Wench has a tendency to get star struck. But the “celebrities” in my world are the typical “celebrities” for the rest of our society. Forget Brad Pitt, I am completely enamored with amazing chefs, fabulous winemakers, crazy brewers and the biggest beer geeks in the industry. If I was a 13 year old, my room would be full of posters of people like Dr. Bill, Sam Calagione, Michael Jackson and Ray Daniels.

Speaking of Ray Daniels …

I first learned about the Cicerone Program in the Spring of 2008 while I was visiting Chicago. At that time, my blog was relatively new and my overall beer knowledge was beginner at best. Nonetheless, the program was intriguing and I always kept it in the back of my mind.

Fast forward a year. Being the awesome stalker that I am, I was one of the first beer to discover Ray Daniel’s presence on Twitter — @Cicerone_Org. Naturally, I bombarded him full force with all of my wenchness. I can only assume that Ray was extremely apprehensive at first. But, as with all my Twitter stalking victims, he realized that it is easier to concede to the cunning and forceful ways of The Wench than try to ignore her.

This past September, I had an awesome opportunity to take the Midwest by storm and play “guest of honor” at The Great Lakes Brew Fest. The trip brought me to the city of Chicago for a few days. And after countless emails requesting to meet for a beer (or two … or five), Ray finally succumbed to my bewitching — errrr aggressively persistent ways and agreed to meet me at Hop Leaf for dinner.

Although the conversation that night was relatively light, I was completely blown away by Ray’s level of beer knowledge. To this day, I think that Ray Daniels is the foremost knowledgeable person on beer that I have had the honor of meeting. In fact, I’ve been rather enamored by him — on a strictly professional level, of course. (wink wink).

My old goal used to become the “female version” of Michael Jackson. Now, I think my goal has been slightly altered. I want to be the “female version” of a Michael Jackson/Ray Daniels hybrid. Maybe one day you will see The Wench teaching at Siebel. Hey, you never know!

I’m proud to say that I recently passed the first level of the Cicerone Certification Program — aka Certified Beer Server. My goal is to reach Master Cicerone Level by the time I reach 30, which is coming up sooner than I’d like.

Well enough about me, right? I’m very proud to introduce you all to THE ONE, THE ONLY … RAY DANIELS!!! …

(photo credit: Matt Taplinger © 2008)

RAY DANIELS INTERVIEW

Full name: No one knows that! Ray Daniels will do, although I will say that my given name is Ray and not Raymond.
Twitter handle: @Cicerone_Org
Current location: My desk, Chicago, IL

Background “Snapshot”

1. Where did you grow up?

I started 9th grade at my eighth school due to the fact that my father was in the US Army. I came to consciousness in the small town of Alamagordo, NM and when I went to college and lived in the same dorm for four years, that was the longest I’d ever lived anywhere. Along with way, we spent time in Fort Irwin, CA (near Barstow); San Antonio, TX; Enid, OK; Indianapolis, IN; El Paso, TX and finally Montgomery County, MD—near Washington DC.

2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?

I made one attempt each at baseball and football during my grade-school years and sat on the bench during basketball season for two years in junior high before finding distance running to be more in line with my aptitudes. In high school I ran cross-country and track for two years with fair success, but I didn’t stick with it. In college I did a bit of intercollegiate fencing (saber). After 20 years of country club sports (golf & tennis) as an adult, I returned to endurance sports in my 40s and I completed several marathons and a number of triathlons including the 2003 Wisconsin Ironman. I did a bit of outdoor adventure racing during this period as well.

3. How old were you when you had your first beer?

Not quite 12 years old.

4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?

The very first beer I can remember drinking was given to me by my father in a hot parking lot shortly after the 1969 Indy 500. I suspect it was a Schlitz (his regular brand at the time) and that it was dispensed in hopes of knocking me out to staunch my complaining.

5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?

I matriculated at what was once known as the agricultural and mechanical college of Texas, better known these days as Texas A&M University. I began as a biochemistry major and in fact got my BS in that field. But the many activities and opportunities of a major university were too much for me to resist.

I began writing for the campus newspaper during my first semester and running programs for the student union (the MSC for you Aggies out there) by my sophomore year. Soon I had declared a second major in Journalism so that I could take their courses in writing and reporting and by the time I graduated, I had as many hours in English and Journalism as I did in Chemistry and Biology. I flirted with politics, both campus and real-life but never really connected there.

The “business” of running events and activities was my forte and by my senior year, I was president of the MSC overseeing a wide range of campus entertainment and cultural activities. This experience inspired me to pursue an MBA which I later completed at Harvard Business School.

Craft Beer Epiphany

Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”

1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:

My first Samuel Adams Boston Lager. Mind you this was about 1987 and green bottle beers like Beck’s and St. Pauli Girl were still high-brow fare for regular beer drinkers, especially in the East and Midwest. I was in Washington DC on business for the Chicago-based pharmaceutical company I worked for and checked into a small hotel. With nothing else on my agenda, I headed to the bar for a beer and saw table tents for Sam Adams.

I was surprised that there was an American beer brand I hadn’t heard of; more surprised that it was from a recently started brewery. Being the type who wanted to know all I can about things that interest me, I ordered one without hesitation. I don’t know that I can honestly tell you _what_ I tasted in that first glass, but I do recall being amazed at the flavor—that it had flavor, for starters—and that it tasted really good and distinctly different from anything else I had had before. I was impressed.

2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:

I’m still having revelatory moments related to beer. They may be small, but they still register. Little surprises sometimes come from a new brewer or just a new beer, but nearly every month I have something that I count as a taste discovery. Some have settings and even sometimes plots; others come as soft explosions at my kitchen counter with no one present but those in my Twitterverse. Often I can’t recall them when prompted (like right now), but they come back to me when they are useful like while I’m teaching, brewing or judging.

Beer Talk

1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?

IPA is without question #1. Saison and Dubbel are probably 2 & 3 today. A lot of factors influence that, including what is currently being made well and available fresh. That changes over time.

2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?

Bells, Lost Abbey and all the others.

3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?

The one brewery that I’ve ever visited and came away feeling that I would gladly chuck my life and go to work for doing anything they had available was New Belgium. Most of all, I feel they are an incredibly well-managed company. When there’s a problem, they solve it rather than learning to live with it or overlooking it because it would be inconvenient or uncomfortable to deal with. They have values as part of their corporate goals and they put time, money and risk behind implementing those values in their business. They seem to value and respect the people who work for them. And of course I love Colorado, so that’s a bonus.

4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?

Yes. I’ve made some weird stuff, not all of it drinkable. Sake—the Japanese rice wine. I made some once but it turned out with a sort of green tinge. I was too afraid to drink it. A Ryeizen or Roggenbier—with 67% rye malt that took 6 hours to lauter. I don’t recall that it was worth the effort! Kvass—a 2% abv refresher from the Slavic lands—actually tasted pretty good when consumed about 48 hours after pitching. Probably the best beers I’ve made have been a Kolsch, a pilsner and some orange mead. These were all made in the early 90s when I was doing a lot of brewing. I think frequency plus mastery are the conditions that allow anyone to make good beer consistently.

5. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?

Every pairing is an adventure to enjoy. And in a sense it is a constant journey as the truly fantastic ones have a way of passing from my memory within a week or two, like punch lines to good jokes. (I can never remember the really funny ones.) I just visited my parents in southern New Mexico for Christmas and we enjoyed tamales with mole sauce for lunch both days I was there. I would have loved to have tried some Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale with that—or maybe some Chimay dubbel.

6. In your opinion, what are some of the best resources for people learning about beer? Books? Websites? Programs?

Of course, I’m partial to certain books I’ve written and classes at the Siebel Institute and through the Cicerone program. Probably the two books I recommend most are Randy Mosher’s “Tasting Beer” and anything by Michael Jackson (soft spot for Great Beers of Belgium, sixth edition which I published for the Brewers Association after Michael’s death).

7. What are your top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?

Stan Hieronymus’ AppellationBeer.com is top of my list and I also like Jay Brooks’ BrookstonBeerBulletin.com and Tom Cizauskas yoursforgoodfermentables.com. All three are people I’ve known for a long time and respect and I enjoy what they have to say. That said, I’m open to new voices but don’t have a lot of time to troll for them. And of course I tend to hit blogs via Twitter links posted either by the author or someone who reTweets it.

(photo credit: Matt Taplinger © 2008)

The Professional Side

1. How long have you been working in the beer industry?

I’ve been self-employed since 1990 and did a lot of volunteer stuff in the beer world when I was still running a PR agency and getting started with beer. In 1996 I made the shift to beer as my business and my motto that year was “all beer; all the time.” I haven’t done much of anything else since then.

2. What was your first “real” job in the beer industry?

Kind of hard to say since I was self-employed. Creating and running the Real Ale Festival starting in 1996 might count. Writing regularly for publications from All About Beer to Zymurgy was happening at about the same time. But the first time I had a job description and got a regular check every month wasn’t until December 1999 when I was hired by the Brewers Association to edit Zymurgy and The New Brewer.

3. What beer certifications and credentials do you have?

BJCP National Judge (1993?)
Siebel Diploma Course in Brewing, Winter 1995
Herriot-Watt Graduate Program in Brewing & Distilling (I took key courses, but didn’t complete the diploma program.)

4. How many years have you been teaching at Siebel?

That started about five years ago when Randy Mosher and I created the Master of Beer Styles program. Since then, I’ve created additional courses and been asked to teach portions of nearly every course they offer under Siebel and World Brewing Academy.

5. What courses, if applicable, do you specialize in at Siebel?

The three big ones for me are:

• Master of Beer Styles (& Evaluation)
• Start Your Own Brewery
• Siebel Advanced Homebrewing Course

6. Outside of Siebel and Cicerone, do you teach about beer anywhere else? If so, where and what do you teach?

I do some custom training for distributors and retailers occasionally.

7. How many books have you published? What are the titles of said books?

My bio currently says that I have “written, edited or published more than a dozen books on beer.” That’s a lot easier than giving all the gory details of what I did for every book that lists me in the credits or on the cover. Here are some of those details:

Author (or co-author) of:

• Designing Great Beers
• 101 Ideas for Home Brew Fun
• Brown Ale (with Jim Parker)
• Smoked Beers (with Geoff Larson)
• The Perfect Pint

Editor of The Brewers Association’s Guide to Starting Your Own Brewery

As the publisher for Brewers Publications from 2001 to 2008, I was the “acquisition editor” and overall publisher on all of the following:

• Standards of Brewing, By Charles Bamforth
• The Compleat Meadmaker, by Ken Schramm
• Radical Brewing, by Randy Mosher
• Farmhouse Ales, by Phil Markowski
• Wild Brews, by Jeff Sparrow
• Brew Like a Monk, by Stan Hieronymus
• How To Brew, by John Palmer
• The Best of American Beer and Food, by Lucy Saunders
• Brewing Classic Styles, Jamil Zainasheff & John Palmer
• Michael Jackson’s Great Beers of Belgium (6th Edition), by Michael Jackson (posthumous)

8. How long have you been a BJCP beer judge?

I first took the exam in the fall of 1990 and had accumulated enough points to become a National judge by 1992 or 1993. (I did a lot of organizing and judging at national events.)

9. What is one of the most disastrous experiences you’ve had as a beer judge?

I can’t recall anything really awful. Although if you over do it the night before, it can certainly be challenging. These days I don’t hesitate to use a spit cup anytime I feel I need to reduce my alcohol consumption during judging.

There were years at GABF when I was training for the Chicago Marathon (which is run in October) and I would get up at 5 am to go run 8 or 10 miles before hitting a big breakfast and then judging all day. I don’t think I’d try that now!

10. What is one of the coolest, landmark experiences you’ve had as a beer judge?

Probably the most fun was a casual judging I did with Michael Jackson at a competition in Minneapolis (at the old Sherlock’s Home). Michael and I and another judge (Steve Hamburg maybe?) stood in front of a dining room full of homebrewers with microphones and tasted the best of show beers, commented on them and selected the winner. I remember it in part because Michael recommended my book to the assembled homebrewers—a very big deal for a first-time author!

CICERONE

1. How long have you been running the Cicerone Certification program?

Since its inception! We began administering exams on January 1, 2008, but I’d been developing the idea for nearly a year before that.

2. What was your inspiration for starting the Cicerone program?

Bad beer. Or rather bad beer service. I had had enough of servers—and often times managers—who didn’t know the first thing about the products they were serving or the draft systems they were using.

3. Why did you choose the name Cicerone?

First of all, I needed a unique word in order to be able to create a certification trademark. People can’t earn the exclusive right to use some title if the title is common and unprotectable. Second a lot of people in the beer business had told me they didn’t want to play second fiddle to the wine world and that I should stay away from any use of the word “sommelier”—which was something I agreed with.

So I started looking for a word and several things coalesced when I found “cicerone.” I had been looking, making things up and creating some really awful labored constructions (how about being a “Marquis de Cereviseae”?) before I found it. I knew what I wanted, but couldn’t get a grip on it with a single word.

Then when I saw “cicerone” in a thesaurus, I knew, literally right away, that was my word. What I saw immediately was the literal meaning: a cicerone is a “knowledgeable guide to arts and antiquities.” What better name for someone who is to be a knowledgeable guide to the ancient art of brewing? I was hooked on that alone. But there was a subliminal effect that I didn’t figure out until much later that I’m sure played a big role in my immediate and visceral reaction to the word.

“Cicerone” and “sommelier” have some linguistic similarities in that they both start with a sibilant “s” sound and take three syllables to pronounce (at least the way I say them). Finally, they are both words of foreign origin. I liked the faintly exotic feel of “cicerone,” but I loved that it was not French and also that it was not German because I didn’t want to be closely associated with either of those given their positions in wine and beer respectively. The Italians are known for their love of great food and great beverages and there’s even a craft beer movement in Italy, so I loved the fact that the word came from Latinate roots.

Finally: the word has a history in English. The Brits have used it for 400 years and you can find it in English dictionaries, but it is pretty unknown among anyone who doesn’t do crossword puzzles.

4. How is the Cicerone program different from all the other beer certification programs?

Well, there’s a judge certification program called BJCP here in the US. They focus on giving homebrewers feedback about their beers: stylistic adherence, brewing faults, etc. They assume a homebrew setting and focus on what the brewer CAN control. Our program looks at commercial brewing and for the most part, at what the brewer CAN’T control—like how the beer is stored and displayed and poured and paired. Mind you, there is some substantial overlap between BJCP and Cicerone with regard to styles, flavor and brewing process and ingredients. But the Cicerone program also gets into draft systems, bottle pouring, beer handling and storage and of course beer and food pairing.

As you know, I’m a veteran of the BJCP and still accumulate points every year in their program so that I’ve been an active judge for nearly 20 years. It is a great program, but we have different goals. What Cicerone does is to focus on people who sell and serve beer for a living: bartenders, wait staff, sales reps for distributors and breweries. Basic servers don’t need to write essay questions to be able to present a beer at tableside so we give them a multiple choice exam. At the same time, there’s a ton that an expert on beer could—and should—know that goes beyond off-flavors, style knowledge and judging skills so we have exams that cover those topics in progressively challenging forms for the second and third levels of the Cicerone program.

5. What does it mean to be a Certified Cicerone?

That’s easy: it means that the individual has demonstrated mastery of a specific syllabus of knowledge related to beer. That knowledge-base is published on our website in the “Master Syllabus” and the full criteria are given in our description of the three levels. The Master Syllabus runs about 19 pages in outline format and we make it available to anyone who wants to view it without restriction and we constantly solicit feedback on it from people in the beer and retail service industries. That syllabus is our “holy grail”—the starting point of everything we do and all that we are trying to do in terms of improving beer service.

6. What are you goals for the Cicerone — what do you hope to see it become in the coming years?

First is to improve the quality of beer service nationwide. Everyone who touches beer from the packaging line to the customer’s mouth needs to understand the ways that they can ruin beer and be motivated to keep it tasting great. The further you get away from the brewery, the more real abuse you see for beer. The Cicerone Certification Program seeks to improve beer handling & serving knowledge in all those places where it is lacking today.

Second is to improve the actual quality of the interaction between customer and server. That means giving servers the tools they need to inform consumers about beer in useful ways—whether that consumer is just discovering beer or has 20 years of experience exploring it.

Finally—and in some ways, most importantly—we want to avoid creating a snobbish atmosphere around beer. I hope that everyone who participates in the program will understand that there is a lot to know about beer and that no matter what level they have achieved as a Cicerone, there is still more to learn, more to explore, more experience to gather. Indeed, one of the greatest things about Andrew Van Til, our first Master Cicerone, is that exact attitude—the fact that he knows that there is still more to learn even for him and that he is open to those experiences.

The Personal Side

1. What is your current day job?

Director, Cicerone Certification Program.

2. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why?

I’d make Certified Beer Server certification mandatory for all servers in all bars in America—scratch that, the world! (And Certified Cicerone would be mandated for all distributor and brewery sales people as well as retail beverage managers.)

3. Are you married? Children?

No & Yes. I have two great kids, one in high school and one in college. Both are doing great things with their lives and I really enjoy spending time with them and their friends.

4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?

I like to make things from dinner to furniture. In recent years I’ve done some welding. Output included a coffee table, a tandem bike and a wrought-iron cross. I’m involved with some electronics currently (Arduino anyone?)—although that may turn out to have beer applications. Photography comes and goes. When I’m not working so darn hard, I like to kayak, orienteer and otherwise be active outdoors. Lately, I’ve been riding a unicycle from time to time around my neighborhood, just because I can. I have done some flying and hold a private pilot’s license in gliders but I haven’t done much with that now that I’m not spending time in Colorado.

5. Who are some of your greatest mentors in the industry?

That’s an interesting question. At this point, the people who I may have considered mentors at one time I now consider to be colleagues. John Hall from Goose Island has certainly always been a good source of thinking and advice, but we’ve worked together on so many things over the years and had so many different relationships as a result that the flashes of avuncular mentoring that went on were always mixed with a need for him to take care of his own business. And that’s kind of the way it is when you are self employed—and maybe when you are in the beer business. People are friendly, supportive, colleagial—but they have to look out for their own interests, do their own work as well. Others I’ve had rewarding relationships with include Charlie Papazian, Michael Jackson and Fred Eckhardt.

6. If you could meet anyone, dead or alive, you would it be and why?

Ben Franklin would be high on the list. I think he’d be fascinated with the technology and politics of today—and after a short period of adjustment, he’d take it all in stride and have some insightful things to tell us about how to do things better.

And I’d bring Michael Jackson back if I could. In addition to his great writing and incredible work ethic, he had a wonderful ability to speak truth to power in the beer industry that I don’t think anyone else possesses today.

Off The Beaten Path

1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be and why?

Maybe an American Brown Ale—and I mean a really hoppy one, too! Rich malt base with a depth of flavor that reveals something new as you try it in different situations and with different foods. Citrus and piney hop notes that demand attention but leave you wanting more. (!)

2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why?

Right this minute, I’d pick Brewdog’s Tactical Nuclear Penguin. Mainly because it is the most talked about beer that I haven’t had. There’s the collateral benefit that facing the executioner would be far easier after consumption and the fact that I might use such a brew in a successful escape attempt.

3. If I contracted you to brew a beer (or design a beer recipe) called “The Beer Wench” — what style would you chose and what, if any, extra ingredients would you add?

I think a blonde saison or a spiced hefeweizen. Rich, spicy, highly carbonated, luxurious blond head, irresistible, intoxicating …

4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?

I’ve long said that I would love to have the gift of universal fluency. I would love to be able to talk to anyone, anywhere at any time. And while that may seem pedestrian, I think fluency in every tongue would far more interesting that being able to bounce bullets off your chest or burn things with your eyes. It would probably also prevent you ever needing either one of those talents.

5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story?

Flown a glider through Colorado mountain wave where pockets of both lift and sink were driving the plane either up or down at rates in excess of 1000 feet per minute. While the ups took me an altitude of 18,000 feet, the inconsistent mixing bowl of eddies nearer the ground made for some very sweaty-palmed landings!

6. What are your thoughts on bacon?

Generally in favor, but it’s currently just an occasional guest star in my diet.

SPECIAL THANKS TO RAY DANIELS FOR BEING SUCH A ROCKSTAR MENTOR AND ALL AROUND AWESOME DUDE!

(PS: Will you marry me?)

CHEERS!

DRINK WITH THE WENCH PRESENTS:

The Beer Blogger Interview Series

Curious what goes on in the minds of your favorite beer bloggers? Well, The Beer Wench is and she has embarked upon a mission to interview as many beer bloggers that she can — from all over the world. Are you a beer blogger? Do you want to share your story? Send me an email!

INTRODUCING: DAVID PHILLIPS

AUTHOR OF: CHEESE AND CHEERS

Beer Blogger Interview

Full name: David Phillips
Twitter handle: @cheeseandcheers
Name of blog: Cheese and Cheers
Current location: Contiguous suburb of Chicago

Background “Snapshot”

1. Where did you grow up? Near Ft. Lauderdale.
2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond? Skateboarding and bowling.
3. How old were you when you had your first beer? 14?
4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it? The brands us JDs drank back then were really bad, like Wiedemann and Colt 45.  But I remember seeing a cover band doing a ZZ Top song at a horse ranch on a humid summer night, after having drank a couple cans of the swill, and I’ll never forget the heightened sense of being alive.
5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college? Went to Broward Community College in Florida, then I transferred to Loyola Chicago.  Studied journalism, and I was on the newspaper staff at community college, also put out a punk fanzine called The Borington Journal. I helped start a film society at Loyola, and took my studies quite seriously.

Craft Beer Epiphany

Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”

1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:

Okay, I was a reporter at a tiny daily in Illinois and I kept getting p.r. calls from an agency pushing a story about Beer Across America, one of the early beer-of-the-month clubs. Caved, and ended up writing a column with the headline “Good Things Come in Big Smelly Packages”—one of the bottles of the two 12 packs had broken. Then I started looking, and I found a place in Rockford that kept Bell’s Amber or Kalamazoo Stout on tap. The smell from the broken bottle was lovely like something from a bakery rather than a bar-room floor, and the Bell’s beers had such character, I knew instantly that this is what beer was supposed to be like.

Later I started reading Jackson’s books and that lead to drinking tall glasses of Hefewiezen with stacks of pancakes at sidewalk cafes in Chicago, and marveling over my first bottle of Saison DuPont on the front porch while my daughter created sidewalk chalk masterpieces.

Then there was the string of epiphany’s that came about from joining Chicago Beer Society and hanging out with some of the smartest, most passionate people in craft beer.

Beer Blog Background

1. How long have you been writing your beer blog? Just a couple months (Mid-March).
2. What inspired you to start writing your blog? I was looking for a way to make a living from two of my passions—craft beer and artisan cheese. I needed a website, but the blog was almost an afterthought. Once I started doing it I got hooked.
3. Why did you choose the name of your blog? Well, really to support the business of the same name.
4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it? Hope to keep the frequency to two or three posts a week. Will cover all things related to beer and cheese and their intersection. Will post pairings, hope to have some guests. Still planning to develop a cheese and beer consulting business, but I love making this wonderful juxtaposition and I simply enjoy sharing it with others. If no one beats me to it, I plan to write a book on the subject.
5. What is one of the coolest things that happened to you as a result of being a beer blogger? I’ve made friends with beer bloggers in the UK.  Must admit I feel the same kind of fondness for the UK as I might for a favorite old girlfriend.
6. What are you top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?

Argh!  To begin with, I’ve only been following beer and cheers blogs for about a year, so I may not as of yet found the faves. Still, I have found many, many nice ones. Here goes:

BEER:

• Zak Avery’s Are You Tasting the Pith
• Appellation Beer from Stan Hieronymus
• The Beer Wench
• Michael Agnew’s A Perfect Pint

CHEESE:

• Gordon “Zola” Edgar
• Cheese + Champagne
• It’s Not You, It’s Brie

Beer Talk

1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles? Glad you gave me three: Saison,  Bitter (all ranges), and Lambic.
2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries? Wish you gave me more: Right now I’ll go with Meantime, Jolly Pumpkin, New Belgium. (+Bell’s, Cantilion, Goose Island, Ayinger, Three Floyds, Dogfish Head, DuPont, Lagunitas, Lost Abbey, The Bruery, Great Lakes, Allagash, Orval, Rodenbach……ahhhhhhh!!!)
3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why? Dogfish Head, because they like to have fun, but they are serious too, and Dogfish is big enough that they might be able to meet my salary demands.
4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer? Yes, and a member of the Chicago Beer Society.  hmmm. I’m kind of a traditionalist when it comes to homebrewing.  Berliner Weisse, and Wit Bier with brett might be as interesting as I’ll get, but both the Mild and the Kolsch I did recently with my new brew brothers completely kicked ass.
5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they? Certified Beer Server (Cicerone Certification Program).
6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing? Oh God, just one? Bam Bier with steamed mussels, maybe.

The Personal Side

1. What is your current day job? Beer and cheese consultant, if that counts.
2. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why? Didn’t I just do that?  A major league starter with a 98-mph fast ball and some wicked junk seems like a decent gig. Or a brother at Orval.
3. Are you married? Children? Yes, God bless her, and we have three lovelies–a graduating high schooler, a first grader (both girls), and a six-year old boy.
4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies? American artisan and farmstead  cheese (I am also a member of the American Cheese Society), jazz, punk, bicycling, camping, fishing, Chicago sports teams, dreaming about high performance sports cars, architecture, and 21^st century ironic and iconic American filmmakers, like Wes Anderson, the Coen Brothers and Sophia Coppola.

Off The Beaten Path

1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be and why? A Best (Premium) Bitter. It’s just so comfortable and relaxed, and yet dignified, all of which I would like to be.
2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why? Gosh. A special occasion calls for Cantilion Gueuze or Iris, or a Hansens Kriek. I have a couple friends who have some vintages they would never share with me unless I was about to be killed. Then again, Orval might send one off in the right direction.
3. If I contracted you to brew a beer (or design a beer recipe) called “The Beer Wench” — what style would you chose and what, if any, extra ingredients would you add? A lovely ruby-colored mild, with about 20% brown malt, and 8% rye malt, and whole cone Fuggles.
4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be? Flying would be awesome, X-ray vision, but really I would just want to drive something like a Ferrari 458 Italia with a weird skin job.
5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story? One!? Skateboarded down circular expressway ramps in Miami as a kid. Swam through a culvert at the bottom of a rock pit, pulled a fish hook out of a gator’s mouth. It was small gator. Hooked a water moccasin with a fishing lure.
6. What are your thoughts on bacon? I think I want to make the ultimate beer cookie—oatmeal, toasted pecans, chocolate chips and crispy bacon. I’d pair it with Lagunitas IPA, or maybe Hop Stoopid.

SPECIAL THANKS TO DAVID FOR AN AWESOME INTERVIEW!

CHEERS!

DAMN IT … Now I’m craving cheese and beers!

Anyone can call themselves an expert on beer.

Heck, my personal business cards say Beer Connoisseur in lieu of having a “job title”.

But what does that really mean? After all, it is a self-proclaimed title. It would be like calling myself a wine aficionado. Sure I know more about wine than your average person, but does that qualify me as an expert in the subject?

In today’s society, standardized tests are king.

There is a reason why people obtain college degrees. As much as we would love to prove our own intelligence level without a diploma, it makes it that much easier to argue our case with that silly piece of paper.

And forget the significance of a college diploma, one can’t even get into college without a decent score on the SAT or the ACT. As for further education? Try getting into graduate or professional programs without taking the GRE, MCAT or LSAT. Not going to happen, my friends.

Would you visit a “doctor” that does not hold a Medicinae Doctor (MD) degree or hire a “lawyer” without a Juris Doctor degree? The Wench thinks not.

Having an official title means a lot in today’s day and age. Sad yes, but true.

If I told you that I gave the best massages in the world, would you pay me $100 an hour to massage you? Probably not. If I was certified in some crazy exotic form of massage from some fancy massage therapy school,  I can guarantee that you would pay me big money to massage your back.

There is a large debate on whether or not standardized measures should predetermine one’s ability to perform a certain set of skills. I can argue both ways.

You see, I am “that guy” — the student that everyone hates. Mom, Dad … please stop reading. No, really. You don’t want to hear this.

I was the kid who never had to study. EVER. You remember that kid in college, the one who spent all day on AOL instant messenger and all night hanging with friends, watching movies, out at parties and NOT studying? You remember that kid who never came to class, but got straight A’s? Yep, that was me.

Now, Mom & Dad, I know you are still reading this. But, remember what you told me? “We will pay for A’s & B’s but not for C’s & D’s.” Did I ever let you down? No.

I’m very proud to say that I never had to pay my parents a cent … just saying. Regardless of my (lack of) studying habits, I graduated with honors.  But luck has nothing to do with it.

As much as I hate them, I do believe that standardized tests are important. Without them, anyone could declare themselves have any sort of credentials that they want or see fit, by their own standards — i.e.: I drink beer, therefore, I am a beer expert.

Society does need (ahhhh and my liberal nature hates admitting this) some sort of standards when it comes to expertise in different arenas. There has to be some sort of neutral and fair system in place that determines ones level of expertise in a certain subject. Am I wrong?

Long story short, I had a bad day. A really really bad day. An Alexander and Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

Yes, it was that bad. One of those days where you question your own self-worth and your purpose for existence on the planet.

Sure, I call myself a beer “connoisseur” … but what does that mean?? I write about beer, big deal. I drink a lot of beer, big deal. I read a lot of beer books & websites, big deal.

Wellas fate would have it, my stars were aligned in some sort of twisted yet methodological pattern today. You see, just as I was about to go get myself into a drunken funk and sulk in a corner, a strange thing occurred.

My friend on Twitter (@djacra) passed the Cicerone Certified Beer Server test. And upon congratulating him on his amazing feat, many of my followers that that it was I who had passed the exam — not him. And after explaining the mix up to several people, it occurred to me … how am I not certified??? (After all, I consider myself to be … errrr… a beer connoisseur?)

My rather emotional and irrational state of mind jaded my perception. And so I ventured into my beer cellar, where I found a relatively low abv beer to aide as liquid courage.

Once I made my decision, I could not go back. With Frank Sinatra on the stereo & La Folie in the glass, I registered my information into the Cicerone program. And with no prior preparation or studying, I took the test.

Why on earth would pay $50 to take a test on a whim without any sort of preparation?

My closest friends in college and high school will tell you that I’m not one to study. (Once again, Mom & Dad — earmuffs!!!)

Studying was never my thing. LEARNING is, however. I’m really good at learning things and committing them to memory automatically (I am blessed with a photographic memory — yes try and test it, I dare you). Which, kind of makes it redundant to study. After all, if I KNOW it already — why would I need to study it?

And so, I challenged myself today. Do I really know as much about beer as I think I do?

As it turns out, I’m on the right track. Am I a beer expert? Oh hell no. Am I a beer dummy? Oh hell no.

Neither an expert nor a novice, I am The Beer Wench — a Cicerone Certified Beer Server!!!

Several bloggers and other internet sources have written posts about the “most influential” or “top” people to follow on Twitter — in specific topics of interest (such as food, wine, social media, etc…)

However, everyone seems to be over looking the beer community. Pssshhhaw. How rude. Us beer geeks can be influential and important too, ya know!

So I thought I’d take the liberty to make my own (COMPLETELY SUBJECTIVE) list of the “Top 20 Most Compelling Beer Personalities on Twitter”. What exactly is my credential for creating the lists? Well let us start by defining the word compelling:

com⋅pel⋅ling  [kuhm-pel-ing]
–adjective
1. tending to compel; overpowering: compelling reasons.
2. having a powerful and irresistible effect; requiring acute admiration, attention, or respect: (a man of compelling integrity; a compelling drama)

THE BEER WENCH’S CRITERIA FOR THE TOP 20 MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALTIES ON TWITTER:

1. COMPELLING ENOUGH TO FOLLOW: I must follow this person. Unfortunately, this rules out the people I do not follow — which means this list has potential to change in the future.
2. COMPELLING CONTENT: Tweets contain information of value in relation to the craft beer industry. (i.e.: news updates, events, announcements, beer reviews, links to beer related information, etc…)
3. COMPELLING PERSONALITY: Twitter personality is interesting and captivating. There is a person behind the twitter handle — they are more than just a “brand” or a “blog”.
4. COMPELLING CONVERSATION: Community engagers — people who are constantly engaging in conversations with the twitter community (whether it be through retweeting or replies). People who constantly have one way conversations, in my opinion, are not compelling. Talk to me. And I will follow you.
5. COMPELLING FOLLOWER RATIO: Good follower to following ratio. This does not mean they necessarily need to have a huge followership — number of followers is NOT criteria for this particular list. But they need to have at least an equal amount of followers as they are following.

At first, I was going to rank the top twenty followers — based on how well they execute the basic 5 criteria listed above. But, the metrics on that is too complicated for me to deal with at this time — and besides, it would be entirely way to subjective and open for debate. Instead, I’m going to list my TOP TWENTY MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALITIES ON TWITTER in a random order. There is no method in my madness (although, it be but madness). The numbers have no relevance to rankings. IGNORE THE NUMBERS.

THE BEER WENCH’S TOP TWENTY MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALITIES ON TWITTER

1. @dogfishbeer – Dogfish Head has (hands down) the best brewery brand presence on Twitter. Why? 1. She has a personality. AND a name. In fact, the Dogfish Head Twitter account is Mariah Calagione — aka Sam’s wife. She is constantly retweeting her followers and engaging in conversations. If you send her a question or mention her brand, she responds. Mariah kicks ass.
2. @TheArtofBeer — Tay Shaw is one of the biggest craft beer evangelists on Twitter. She has been known to send (coveted) craft beer all around the country to her followers. She is extremely active in the twitter community and also very entertaining.
3. @Cicerone_Org — Ray Daniels is one of the foremost educators on the subject of beer. He is one of the most brilliant men I have ever had the pleasure of meeting in real life. If you need to know something about beer — he is the man to talk to.
4. #gents – AKA @kenoftheyear @DrStarkWeather @SlovakBrewer @hopcast @beerad – These dudes are hiliariously entertaining, but also a wealth of information. They get together on a frequent basis to homebrew and taste beers … and then share all of their experiences on Twitter. They also create entertaining video blogs at Hop-Cast.com Following the hashtag #gents can get addicting …
5. @beerbabe — Besides having a super cool name and really hot avatar, Carla defies the common misperception that women hate beer. She is a huge advocate of females in the beer industry and uses both Twitter and her blog as a platform for expressing her passion.
6. @hookedonwinter – PJ is one of my favorite people to banter with back and forth about beer. He is an awesome homebrewer (I know this for a fact) who is aspiring to turn his passion into a career. Through both Twitter and his blog, PJ encourages others to join his adventure in starting a brewery.
7. @bruisinales – This woman must be a robot, because I swear she never sleeps. Julie can be found on Twitter just about every minute of every day. No really. Her tweets are very entertaining and she provides a lot of great content regarding beer releases, beer events and beer news.
8. @beerandnosh — Even though I only just started following Jesse, he has provided me with a wealth of beer knowledge via Twitter. Jesse is by far one of the best beer photographers out there and I love living vicariously through his photos and tasting notes.
9. @TimWeber & @StephWeber – Rockstar homebrewing couple in the process of getting certified through the American Brewers Guild. They have aspirations to start their own brewpub in the next 5 years. They are very engaging and informative on Twitter. And well, ADORABLE.
10. @ChipperDave — I’ve been following Dave’s blog for some time now. He is well-connected in the beer world and extremely knowledgeable about all things beer. I was lucky enough to meet him in person at GABF.
11. @beerinator – This dude is super talented. Jonathan is a key member of the Beer Mapping Project as well as DRAFT magazine’s Web Director. He is located in Chicago — beer hub — and is extremely engaging and fun to follower.
12. @olllllo – Very talented homebrewer (LOVED his Pro-AM beer at GABF). Works for a brewery in Arizona. Like me, he travels in the name of beer. Great beer knowledge resource.
13. @StoneGreg — Another “brand” that utilizes social media very well. Greg is the owner of Stone Brewing Co. (you know … that small unknown craft brewery …) Although he travels a lot, Greg does a great job of responding to tweets as well as retweeting others.
14. @beersage — Currently runs one of THE best beer news sites out there — beernews.org. He is always tweeting out the most cutting edge beer news … whether it be new releases or beer events, this guy is definitely one of the best beer sources on the web!
15. @newbrewthursday — A collaborative team of (4) funny & cute beer geeks. All dudes. They are hilarious, supportive and very engaging on Twitter. Excited to meet them at San Diego Beer Week.
16. @HomeBrewChef — Chef, brewer, writer, photographer. Sean knows his beer. And on top of that, he makes amazing food — with beer as an ingredient. I’ve had his cookies — trust me, he’s good.
17. @SudsyMaggie — Another femme fatale in the beer industry. Beer blogger, homebrewer & huge beer evangelist, Maggie is freaking ADORABLE. Regardless of whether or not you’ve met her (I have), she is too cute not to love.
18. @BlatzLiquor — Joe runs Blatz Liquor, a super awesome liquor store that has a kickass beer selection. Joe constantly tweets about new releases and specials that his store is featuring … unfortunately for me, I do not live near Milwaukee … otherwise I’d be there everyday.
19. @TeeCycleTim — Contributing author to DRAFT magazine (online). Tim is THE Beer Runner. He writes about staying physically fit while living the life of a beer enthusiast. He is also a big environmentalist and entrepreneur.
20. @brewed4thought — EXTREMELY well-connected beer “geek”… always ahead of the trend. Great blogger, beer event planner and resource for all things beer. Also, THE editorof the “soon-to-be-released” online beer publication on RATEBEER.COM site (where I will be a featured publisher)… stay tuned.

Runners Up and the “Up and Coming” Beer Tweeters):

• @BeerinBaltimore – Don’t let his avatar fool you. Brad does not limit himself to just tweeting about beer in Baltimore. However, he is THE best resource in Baltimore for beer events & beer news.
• @odiedog52 — Brian is absolutely ADORABLE! Super beer geek … just getting into the whole swing of things with Twitter. Currently imprisoned by the Army, but soon to be released. Brian is also the beer editor for Mutineer Magazine.
• @tattoodbrew — Jon is a talented graphic designer by trade, which explains why he has one of the coolest avatars on Twitter. He offsets his beer “geek” image with his badass tattoo obsession and passion for all things music.
• @jchristie — Josh definitely puts the geek in “beer geek.” Where as most people are pairing their beers with food, Josh pairs his with books. He is probably the most adorable book nerd-beer geek on Twitter.
• @bisonbrew — Emerging brewery brand on Twitter. Daniel is dedicated to all things organic and sustainble. Produces awesome beer … and has a down to earth personality.
• @misohungry — Jenni bakes with beer. Her treats are F*ing phenomenal … and I would know. She has baked with me. Great recipes for beer geeks who want to bake with beer!
• @ruinationpress – Tattoo obsessed beer geek and fellow beer blogger. Really engaging on Twitter. Good friend. Knows his shit.
• @beertodd — Brewer of some awesome and unique beers at Copper Canyon in Southfield, Michigan. Super beer activist … and recently released a great viral video in support of the Rock Art Brewery movement.
• @Beervangelist — Owner of New Holland Brewing Co. in Michigan. Only just started following Fred, but already … he is providing me with lots of compelling and valuable content. Fred is on my list of “brands to watch.”
• @sarahhuska — Voted (in a secret ballot) as one of THE hottest beer lovers on Twitter. Many of my guy beer geek friends have a crush on her … and for good reason. She is hot. And she knows her shit about beer.

NOW … before all you Twitter beer connoisseurs out there start crying about not making this list — just remember, this is a subjective list. My list is based on the people I follow, how often I interact with them and the value of their tweets. As far as I know … this list can change over night.

The two best tips I can give to beer personalities on Twitter is 1. BE HUMAN (don’t talk AT my … talk WITH me) … and 2. BE COMPELLING.

CHEERS!