Certified Cicerone Syllabus Study Guide

Front 1

Describe the three-tier system

Back 1

By law, alcoholic beverages must comply with the three-tier system in the US. The three tiers are Brewers/Importers, Wholesalers (also known as Distributors), and Retailers
i. Brewers and importers sell to wholesalers
ii. Wholesalers sell to both on- and off-premises retailers
iii. On- and off-premises retailers sell to consumers

Front 2

Name 2 common exceptions to the three tier system:

Back 2

Brewpubs that both brew and retail to consumers

Breweries that brew and sell directly to retailers or consumers

Front 3

What taxes are generally levied on beer?

Back 3

Federal Excise Tax – paid by brewers
State Excise Tax – generally processed and paid by wholesalers
Sales taxes and other locally required fees – paid by retailers
Income taxes levied on brewers, distributors, and retailers

Front 4

What should you check when assessing a beer shipment?

Back 4

1. Date code if available
Bottling / Packaging date and Best by date
2. Physical condition of container
Not dented or broken, No signs of leakage or box weakness
3. Temperature
Ideally beer will still be cool when it reaches the retailer—the flavor of beer that is warm or hot to the touch may have been substantially altered during shipment.

Front 5

What are the physical and behavioral indicators negatively influenced by alcohol?

Back 5

* Vision: (visual acuity, depth perception; peripheral vision; and glare recovery)
* Reaction time: simple, choice and complex reaction times
* Tracking tasks: compensatory and pursuit tracking
* Cognitive functions: concentrated attention; divided attention; rates of information processing; judgement; and decision-making.
* Psychomotor skills: coordination; body sway; manual dexterity; and general walking
* Other aspects: memory; risk-taking; overcompensation

Front 6

What is Absorption?

Back 6

* Absorption is the passage of alcohol into the blood.
* Most absorption occurs from the small intestine due to its large surface area and rich blood supply.

Front 7

What is Elimination?

Back 7

* Alcohol is eliminated from the body by excretion and metabolism.
* Most alcohol is metabolized, or burned, in a manner similar to food, yielding carbon dioxide and water. A small portion of alcohol is excreted, such as through the breath.

Front 8

What is considered to be a healthy consumption of alcohol?

Back 8

Alcohol moderation is equivalent to 1 drink over the course of an hour and — for women, 2-3 drinks in one day — for men, 3-4 drinks in one day.

Front 9

What are responsible serving practices when selling alcohol?

Back 9

* Always check IDs
* Alcohol is not served to intoxicated persons — right to deny service
* Alcohol is not “over-served” — right to deny service
* Encourage water & food consumption
* Call taxi cabs for intoxicated individuals

Front 10

Beer is best consumed ___________________

Back 10

Fresh

Front 11

How can freshness be preserved and enhanced by wholesalers and retailers actions?

Back 11

Rotate Inventory, Store Beers Properly &

Serve Beer Properly

Front 12

How to rotate inventory?

Back 12

Ensure that beer is consumed in the order of dating

Remove out of date products from service inventory

Train staff to encourage/sell/promote all beers offered

Front 13

When should Non-pasteurized draft beer be consumed (with no date code)?

Back 13

about 45-60 days (refrigerated)

Front 14

When should Pasteurized draft beer be consumed (with no date code)?

Back 14

about 90-120 days (refrigerated)

Front 15

When should bottled beer be consumed (with no date code)?

Back 15

If kept refrigerated, can be good for up to six months
- When not refrigerated or if subjected to other stresses, may
be noticeably off after three months
- Taste aged product against fresh product to determine
deterioration

Front 16

How long does it take for skunky flavors to become evident in beer?

Back 16

Skunking can occur in a matter of minutes, most often in green or clear bottles.

Front 17

Where is skunking most notable and what causes it?

Back 17

Skunking is most notable in beer aroma and is caused by exposure to sunlight or fluorescent lighting.

Front 18

Draught beer must be served using....

Back 18

CO2 or a CO2-nitrogen mix at the
proper pressure setting.

Front 19

________________should never be used instead of CO2 or a CO2-nitrogen mix in a draft dispense system

Back 19

Compressed Air

Front 20

A party pump limits the flavor stability of the beer to_________________.

Why?

Back 20

Less then 24 Hours

because oxygen and air-borne contaminants are put in contactwith the beer

Front 21

Volume of a standard keg

Gallons:

Ounces:

# of 12oz Beers:

Weight:

Back 21

Gallons: 15.50
Ounces: 1984
# of 12 oz. beers:165
Weight (Full): 161 Pounds

Front 22

Volume of a 1/4 barrel keg

Gallons:

Ounces:

# of 12oz Beers:

Weight:

Back 22

Gallons: 7.75
Ounces 661 992 992 1984
# of 12 oz. beers: 82
Weight (Full): 87 Pounds

Front 23

Volume of a Pony keg

Gallons:

Ounces:

# of 12oz Beers:

Weight:

Back 23

Gallons:7.75
Ounces: 992
# of 12 oz. beers: 82
Weight (Full): 87 Pounds

Front 24

Volume of a Cylinder keg

Gallons:

Ounces:

# of 12oz Beers:

Weight:

Back 24

Gallons 5- 5.16
Ounces 661
# of 12 oz. beers 55
Weight (Full) 58 Pounds

Front 25

Varieties of keg valve systems/ coupler types

Back 25

Front 26

Internal Structure of a Keg

Back 26

Neck, Topskirt (Chime), Top Bowl, Keg Valve, Holes, Chime, Valve Down Tube, Bottom Skirt (Chime), Bottom Bowl, Sump

Front 27

Pressure Side Components:

Name the gas sources of a draft system

Back 27

CO2- Primary gas used to dispense draught beer

Nitrogen- Usually blended with CO2- Good for long draw system

Front 28

Cylinder/Bulk tank

Back 28

may be used for high volume. Filled, maintained and inspected by the vendor.

Front 29

Nitrogen generator

Back 29

-Extracts nitrogen from the atmosphere

-Air is supplied by either a remote or integrated air compressor

-Typically equipped with a built-in gas blender

-Should have the following features:

1) Produce N2 with a purity of at least 99.7%

2) Have air inlets equipped with both an oil/water filter and a sterile air filter

3) Use “oil-free”- type compressors

-All filters should be inspected and replaced according to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Front 30

Air Compressor

Back 30

NEVER use with a traditional keg

-When beer is exposed to oxygen, it produces stale paper or cardboard-like flavors in the beer

-Also pushes contaminates from the outside atmosphere into the keg

May be used with “Bag-in-Ball” type kegs (e.g. KeyKeg)

Front 31

Gas blender

Back 31

-Mix pure tank CO2 and pure tank nitrogen to specified ratios

-Can be ordered to specific ratios and provide one, two or even three blends

-3 product blenders will usually be set to dispense beers at 2.7 volumes of CO2and 2.5 volumes of CO2 and nitrogenized beers.

Front 32

Recommended features for a Gas Blender

Back 32

-Output mix is present by the manufacturer and is not adjustable on site

-Blender shuts down when either gas supply runs out; preventing damage from running only one gas

-Blenders produce two or three blends so that both “Nitro” and regular carbonated beers can be served. The blends for regular carbonated beers can adequately serve products with a reasonable range of CO2 volumes (e.g. 2.2-2.8 volumes of CO2).

Front 33

Primary and Secondary Regulators

Back 33

-Adjusts and controls the flow of gas from any source

-A primary regulator attached to the gas source

-Two gauges:

-One high pressure showing tank or supply pressure

-Second low or regulated pressure gauge showing what is being delivered to the keg

Front 34

Absolute Pressure

Back 34

the total pressure on the beer and is the sum of atmospheric pressure plus any additional applied pressure from dispensing gas

Front 35

Atmospheric Pressure

Back 35

the amount of force exerted by the weight of air in the Earth’s atmosphere above an object.

Front 36

Couplers

Back 36

-Gas flows in and beer flows out of the keg through the coupler

-When attached to keg to tap it a probe on the bottom depresses a ball or poppet in the keg valve, allowing CO2 or mixed gas to enter the keg thereby applying pressure to the beer

-Attach a jumper or a beer line using a washer, tailpiece and beer nut

-Check for leaks after installing a beer nut to any coupler

Front 37

Jumper Line

Back 37

-A flexible piece of vinyl tubing used between the keg and draught beer system that should be replaced annually

Front 38

FOB Detectors

Back 38

-Stops the flow of beer through a line once the keg is empty

-Reduces the beer loss normally associated with changing a keg and reduces operating costs

-Should be cleaned every two weeks and completely disassembled and manually cleaned quarterly to assure a clean system

Front 39

Trunk Line

Back 39

an insulated bundle of beer line and glycol line)

-Glycol supply and return in the center

-Products line on the outside

-Vapor barrier

-Foam Insullation

Front 40

Power Packs (glycol chiller)

Back 40

-Used to maintain temperature of the beer lines

-Key component of long draw systems

Front 41

Beer Line

Back 41

(vinyl, barrier, stainless, etc.)

-Most draught systems use clear vinyl tubing for all or part of the beer line

-Barrier tubing- low-resistance, easy to clean beer line for long draw systems

-Stainless steel- found in jockey boxes and tap towers

-Colored vinyl and braided vinyl used for CO2 gas

-Polyethylene tubing used to carry glycol coolant

Front 42

Draft Tower

Back 42

-Various shapes and sizes and may have anywhere from one to dozens of faucets

-Beer line running through tower must be kept at the same temperature as the beer cooler

Front 43

Beer Faucets (2 Types)

Back 43

Standard (rear shut off)

-Have vent holes that need to be carefully cleaned and inspected during routine cleanings

Nitro faucet

-Used to nirogenate beer

-Uses a diaphragm and restrictor plate to “cream” the beer

Front 44

Direct Draw Draft System

Back 44

Most direct draw systems employ vinyl beer line and pure CO2 gas

-Open procedures-dispense enough beer to repack vinyl beer lines

-Include a drip tray and incorporate a tap tower

Front 45

Air Cooled Draft System

Back 45

-Also called 'Long Draw'

-Fan pushes cold air from a condensing unit inside the cooler into and through the duct work.

-Single-duct systems runs up to 15 feet and double duct systems runs longer than 25 feet

Front 46

Glycol Cooled Draft System

Back 46

-Systems that run longer than 25 feet

-Separate chiller pumps a chilled mixture of water and food-grade glycol through cooling lines parallel to and in contact with beer lines

Front 47

What is the standard operating temperature for a draft system?

Back 47

38* F

Front 48

Troubleshooting a draft beer system:

No beer at faucet

Back 48

Empty C02, N2 or Gas blend / Replace bottle

Regulator Shutoff Closed / Open Regulator

Gas Bottle Main Valve Turned Off / Turn On

Keg Empty / Replace with full Keg

Coupler not engaged / Tap keg properly and engage coupler

Check ball in coupler stuck / Free check ball

Line or Faucet dirty / Clean line or faucet

Front 49

Troubleshooting a draft beer system:

Beer Foaming

Back 49

Temperature too warm / Adjust temperature

Temperature too cold (beer frozen in lines) / Adjust Temperature

Kinked Beer Line / Change Beer Line

Wrong diameter or length of beer line (min. 4-5 ft or 3/16" tubing)

Applied Pressure too high or low / Adjust to brewers specification (12-14 psi for most beers)

Coupler or Faucet washers bad / Replace coupler or faucet washer

System is dirty

Leaking or out of C02 / Check fittings, clamps, shutoffs and regulators - replace if necessary

Beer foaming in jumper -keg valve seal torn or ripped / replace keg and report defect to distributor

Beer foaming in jumper - Physical obstructions at coupler valve junction / Remove physical obstructions or debris

Beer foaming at faucet - clogged bent holes / disassemble and clean faucet

Front 50

Troubleshooting a draft beer system:
Flat Beer

Back 50

--

Front 51

Troubleshooting a draft beer system:

Cloudy Beer

Back 51

--

Front 52

Applied balance: psi

Back 52

the pressure applied to any keg is shown by the gas regulator attached to it

Front 53

Why do you need to maintain a clean draft system?

Back 53

To maintain optimum taste, clarity and limit waste.

Front 54

Frequency of cleaning?

Back 54

2 weeks

Front 55

Cleaner Type

Back 55

2% caustic solution

3% for older or problem lines