News
July 26, 2017Three DeCrescente Employees Achieve the Rank of Certified Cicerone®
DeCrescente Distributing Company is proud to announce that employees Zeb Pagerie, MacKenzie Liptak and Ben Richards have earned the title of Certified Cicerone®. Pagerie, Liptak and Richards now make 15 people who have successfully completed the beer-training program at DeCrescente Distributing to become Certified Cicerones.
In the beer industry, the Cicerone Certification Program is a comprehensive testing curriculum that provides a measureable means of designating the expertise of an individual about every facet of beer. Certified Cicerone is the second level of certification and many individuals spend one to two years preparing for this exam.
“This level of certification is extremely difficult to achieve and requires intense preparation and commitment. I’m very proud of these folks”, said C.J. DeCrescente, President of DeCrescente Distributing Company.
Those who achieve this certification have a solid and well-rounded knowledge of beer and beer service as well as assessing beer quality and identity by taste. The exam tests knowledge of modern beers and styles, beer history and historical styles, identifying flawed beers, understanding beer ingredients, the brewing process, plus beer pairing principles.
DeCrescente added, “Our retailers and consumers are extremely well educated about beer today and we need to be a resource they can count on for knowledge. This type of training will be ongoing as we need to always look to add value to our customers.”
There are just over 3,000 Cicerones in the world and approximately 220 in New York State. DeCrescente Distributing is honored to have taught 15 of these Certified Cicerones, further demonstrating their established credibility in the beer industry and their continued commitment to superior customer service.
