INTERVIEW WITH A CICERONE
us to enjoy their purchase and feel antici- pated at The Common. We want you here and we have a seat ready for you. I want you to walk away from your experience at The Common finding your new favourite beer. That’s the dream — and also hearing “I don’t like beer, but I like this beer.” Those are the two hugest silent wins for me. The menu is selected to encourage trying a flight. I hope people see enough that piques their interest to say, “Hmm, they all look interesting. I may as well just get a flight.” What’s your favourite style of beer right now? Ideally, a flight of seasonals, but if there’s a side pour tap of a Czech style, then that would win — all year round, all the time. It’s Friday night and you’re looking to crush a pint somewhere. Where are you headed? If I’m not closing on Friday night, it’d be Sookram’s or Low Life Barrel House for a flight —or a Leopold’s Tavern, any location. Where is your favourite place to travel outside of Manitoba for beer? I know Vancouver and Toronto are great, obviously, but people are really overlooking Calgary and Montreal as beer cities — lots of breweries yet the quality is still extremely high with ex- ceptionally curated beer bars too. In the States, I dream of going back to Chicago and Portland — just incredible food and drink landscapes. It’s so woven into both their identities. How do you think Winnipeg’s beer scene compares to other cities across North America? Small and mighty. I think we’re still going through some growing pains that big cities went through years ago. In a few more years, I think Winnipeg will be one of those cities that’s renowned for its food and beer scene too. We talk to a lot of tourists at the bartop and are always making sure they have a list of the “can’t miss” places based on their specific tastes. We want people to leave Winnipeg saying they ate and drank at
My main philosophy for the menu is that there's got to be a fun choice for everyone.
Photo courtesy of The Forks Market
How does it feel to be the first female cicerone certified in Manitoba? It feels great. I’ll be honest, though — it doesn’t feel like something “I” did. I studied for a long time with Sara, my friend from the wine industry, and Drex, who brews at Sookram’s Brewing Co. They helped me a lot with multiple blind tastings for the in-person exam. My boss Andrew at The Common made sure I had everything I needed to pass and would keep me positive when I was in the weeds. My husband Krys would run flashcards with me every night. It took a village, so to speak. What exactly is a cicerone? Can you explain the process to get certified? The Cicerone Certification Program website says it “designates hospitality professionals with proven experience in selecting, acquiring and serving today’s wide range of beers.” Some folks liken it to that of a somme- lier but for the beer industry. To get cer- tified, you’ll need to pass the beer server exam. After that, you study for a very long time (I took a year almost) to do the three-hour written exam, and then you fly to a testing city to take your blind tasting exam. You’ve got to drink a lot of beer analytically to really know your styles and off flavours, which sounds great but you get burnt out from dissect- ing aroma and flavour so intensely and categorizing minutiae. It took a lot of margaritas to become a cicerone.
What would your advice be to those wanting to challenge the cicerone exam?
My advice is contact me to go for a beer somewhere and I will prepare you in great detail. I made lots of silly mis- takes so that you don’t have to. I’d also suggest getting a network of supporters to help quiz you and blind taste test you. They’ll give you feedback, coach you and sharpen your palate. I imagine this would be hard to do all alone, so I would love to help anyone who is serious about doing it while it’s all fresh in my mind. It’s much more fun, and you’ll learn more if you do it with a team. What does your role look like at The Common? What is your philosophy on curating their beer selection? My role consists of managing the local rotation of breweries and selecting any out-of-town beers to match the seasonal needs of the beer menu. I also manage the non-alcoholic selections, draught maintenance and our Belgian cellar menu. I get to do staff beer training plus ticketed and unticketed beer events throughout the year. My main philosophy for the menu is that there’s got to be a fun choice for everyone. Some people just want a light lager to have fun. Some people want a white whale never before tapped in Manitoba imperial stout to have fun. Some people don’t like beer so we have a couple fun options for them. Some people don’t drink alcohol at all and still want a cool craft beverage to sip on. Everyone’s idea of fun must be consid- ered. I sincerely want everyone who visits
38 | WINTER 2025 | SAVOUR MANITOBA
Powered by FlippingBook