He admits the process of becoming a sommelier wasn't always easy. In fact, identifying scents and tastes from different wines was more challenging than he anticipated.
"You're tasting and you hear people saying 'I get mango, I get pineapple and peach' and I'm thinking to myself 'I'm not getting any of that," he laughed.
"What helped me too is outside of actual wine tasting was smelling everything. The foods you eat, smelling it before you eat it, being able to associate the smells with the words. So that was the biggest thing for me.
"The more you practice the better you get."
During the sommelier program, Clitsome didn't focus only on wine. He had courses on various whiskies and beers, as well as grape varietals and wine tasting. After a year of honing his palate and his nose, he put that training to good use.
"I started a family cidery making apple cider. We have a family property just outside of Quebec City, my father-in-law's property, where he has a big apple orchard," said Clitsome. "That was in the middle of the sommelier thing. One thing led to the next and we decided 'why don't we start making cider?'"
The decision was made. Clitsome flew to England to take cider making courses and talked with experts before searching for equipment. Slowly, 'Cidrerie Le Domaine des Sorciers' in Saint-Famille, QC began to take shape.
Perfecting their cider though, took some time.
"It started with the first trial year where we just tried our hand at making it. It actually came out that it was somewhat drinkable, so we thought 'let's try this again,'" Clitsome laughed. "The next year we refined it, it got even better, and we opened a store on the property.
"We have a small little store, it's really nice. It faces the St. Lawrence River, has a nice patio, it's a big tourist destination."
At this point, Clitsome knew he'd have to build on his education to take his cidery-making hobby to the next level.
He enrolled at Queen's University and finished off his MBA in May of 2019.
The last three years have been a whirlwind, but he wouldn't change anything about them. Although, he's pretty sure he won't be found in a classroom any time soon.
"I was convinced that once the MBA was over, I'm like 'that's it, I'm not doing any more and I've had enough school.' But sure enough you fill your time with other stuff," he said.
"I'm big on learning. I like to keep broadening my horizons and learning new things."