Most of us would be lying if we said we hadn’t been drinking a little more than usual during lockdown. But Advanced Cicerone and beer sommelier Natalya Watson has been helping many of us use our time at home to drink not bigger but smarter.
Back in the depths of stay-home summer, Nat began her first Virtual Beer School when the launch of her debut book, Beer: Taste The Evolution In 50 Styles was canceled due to COVID-19. What began as a free online book club, chatting through the book by chapter, soon became so popular that it developed into Lockdown Beer School, a weekly educational session covering a wide range of beer-related topics picked from audience suggestions. The sessions not only helped attendees grow their beer knowledge—they brought invaluable structure and focus to those endless weeks, attracting 40–50 attendees per session.
When lockdown ended, unsurprisingly the demand for Beer School continued. What had started as an educational happy hour quickly grew in scope as Nat tackled the Cicerone Level One Certified Beer Server syllabus with a course designed to leave attendees exam-ready in a mere 12 weeks. The course was so successful, breaking down a wealth of beer knowledge into neat, digestible segments, that there are already 16 Beer School graduates.
“What began as a fun way to bring fellow beer lovers together and help get us through lockdown has turned into a new business for me, all thanks to the brilliant beery community that built up each week,” she says. With 45 attendees signed up for January’s Beer School and a Cicerone Level Two course in the works, Nat took on lockdown and won.
Words,Ruvani De Silva