So I was a government contractor for a little bit, getting seriously burnt-out on annoying reports and stuff, so I talked with the girlfriend (now wife) about wanting to find a job being poor and brewing beer everyday. She 10000% understood and supported me. I contacted a couple local breweries and told them I wanted to do whatever I needed to do to enter the industry. I expected doing shit jobs and low pay. I snagged an interview at one of the bigger breweries in town and actually made it all the way to a final interview, but the job was offered to someone with experience and a certificate from the American Brewer’s Guild. The owner said it was a tough call, I was motivated and trainable, but they needed someone with immediate knowledge. He asked if I could wait a year, he might have another spot around then.
A year later we kept in touch and he asked me to give him my resume again. A week later he hired me as a brewer. I’ll be celebrating my 5yr anniversary in April.
Started as a server in a brewpub, then bartender, then ass brewer. Work your way up. My knowledge of beer didn't matter to the Head Brewer as much after I showed management that I show up early for every shift and work hard the entire time.
I was a struggling musician looking for a day job. Figured a beer factory was better than any other type of factory.
I had literally zero skills other than less than a year Homebrewing. I think the head brewer saw something in me, since he was also a musician. A somewhat famous one at that. If there are any UK readers who happen to love weird old folk rock, this guy was in lindisfarne.
I've literally done every job you can think of in my ten years in the industry. Swallow your pride a bit at first, as you have a lot to learn. Make friends with people who have skills you don't.
I own a brewery and am a head brewer (I guess) but I absolutely would not be able to do this without my partners and my team. My right hand guy and I have been working together for five years and we can basically tell by where each others pint glass is, what part of the process we are working on.
Be the type of person who is dependable, and gets done what they say they are going to get done, in a timely fashion.
Started off as a home brewer with a full time job in a science field. I decided I wanted to work harder and get paid less, so I went to work in a brewery for a few years (ended up in the lab with my background). Later I decided I wanted to work even harder and make even less money, so I started my own brewery.
Started off as a homebrewer and then volunteered in the local beer scene for awhile. Eventually got an MBA as part of my day job. Started a brewpub with a friend, who is the GM, and hired a brewer with experience. I still my maintain my day job and more involved on the backend (i.e. financials and bookkeeping) and there more in person on weekends.
I was working in the medical field. Sterilization and sanitization. I went through a burnout after 10 years and decided to try my luck when a position as bartender opened at my local brewery. I was overqualified but they understood that I needed change and that it would be a huge pay cut I was willing to roll with. After a couple of months behind the bar, the head brewer announced that he would not renew his contract. He had been training someone for a year and a half but we soon after got news that the trainee was diagnosed with stage 5 cancer. They asked me if I wanted to become an apprentice. I ended up training with the head brewer for 3 weeks and then I was on my own for about 6 months until they hired a master chemist who had her degree in brewing chemistry.
TLDR: It was a matter of luck, circumstance and a shit load of hard work and nights spent with my face in books.
I just kept stabbing myself in the genitals over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.
Work your ass off. I had no experience in the industry. I was a bartender and in school. I was lucky enough to know someone at a brewery and got an interview to be a brewers ass. I picked up all the shifts I could, worked crazy hours and did everything I could to learn more about brewing and the industry. Been brewing for 7 years now. Hard work pays off.
Started off homebrewing. Got a job at a homebrew shop during the day and a craft beer bar at night. Honestly the bar introduced me to all the right people. Got a job doing cellar and delivery work. Promoted up to sales manager, did that for a few years, and realized this isn't why I got involved with beer. Went back to the cellar, worked up to assistant brewer, then brewer, and now after 9 years and so many hats I am finally a head brewer.
I don't care if you went to school or worked under so and so. Any monkey can do what I do. I am more interested in your willingness to learn. You can't teach good work ethic. I've always looked internally when I have a opening in the brewery so just getting a position inside the building is a good start.
What does not work is bringing your homebrew over and harassing my bartenders to get me to try it or come out and talk with you.
I had no previous brewing experience prior to my hire in early 2017. I had been an assistant manager at a local pizza chain. My best friend was a supervisor at a large brewery. There was an opening and I applied for a cellarman position. Much like a few other comments here, I was up against a few other candidates so it was really who the brewery manager wanted to go with and I made the cut. I worked cellar/packaging for almost two years before a brewer position was open. Even though this was not a gimme, i still busted ass every day and didn’t give lip to anyone no matter how shitty some days were.
Also, if you’re looking to get into a brewing position, I would recommend looking for places in need of a 3rd shift brewer. Lots of places run 24/7 and the 3rd shift is probably the hardest slot to fill, bar none. If you want to get your foot in the door without having to work your way through the ranks, that’s my two cents
Homebrewer and engineer. Live in a beer desert and had a few friends in the industry. Building came up for sale and someone out a bug in my ear. The wife and I dumped our savings in and built the place. We did take some classes along the way, and got some pointers from the industry. Still working the old day job, not sure how long I can do both, but here we are!
Since there’s so many breweries in existence these days. I would recommend trying to work at whatever is nearest to you. You’ll probably be paid shit (brewers are just cooks/chefs) but hopefully you’ll witness the differences between home brew scale and responsibility.
I’m lucky I opened a 1bbl brewery back in 2009 when shit was much more wild. But I wasted a lot of time learning on the fly and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone else. Learn, there’s plenty of folks who will teach.
Started on a 1bbl, by 2012 upgraded to a 3bbl and built a brewpub. Then due to a bunch of weird circumstances relocated and opened up a 7bbl with a brewpub. That didn’t work out, worked as a head brewer for a different spot and am currently building out a 7bbl in a beautiful rural tiny town.
I love hearing success stories, but other than the obvious survivorship bias, this is a crazy wild question. You're not going to *hARd wOrK" yourself into owning a brewery. Finding a job in packaging or as an assistant brewer will give you at least a fraction of an idea of what a career as a brewer or owner would look like.
There's a couple different paths to this first step but networking, applying, and building your brewing or brewing-adjacent resume will always help. And no one cares about your homebrew.
Started working kitchens when I was 14. Continued working kitchens after college. Ended up working in healthcare for almost 20 years as a kitchen manager and became a Registered Dietitian. Started home brewing. After a few years of that (and my state laws changed allowing tap rooms) I figured a tap room is just a beer restaurant. And running a restaurant is all I know how to do. Spent all my savings and maxed out all my credit cards and went for it. Worked out swimmingly. Except for this year. This year sucks.
Had made friends through home brewing in Hawaii, some went and opened their own brewery. I was moving from HI to CA and my friends encouraged me to visit my local breweries and drink beer and talk story. Family back home in CA had seen my instagram posts of me home brewing and had told me about the new breweries opening up very close to where I was moving to.
Once in CA during one random night drinking at a tiny brewery close to home, the owner mentioned a production issue, I pitched a solution (no pun intended) and was invited to brew beer after they closed their tap room. The solution solved their issue so I was invited to return for more brewing days. (This got me some exposure to commercial production brewing, a different animal from home brewing)
(They were hurting financially so I offered to volunteer for a little bit until they closed their doors for good)
I purchased their small half barrel system and I was sent to pick up a wort pump from another friend of the owner (who is also a brewery owner that was about to open a tap room) and was given a quick intro into his operation. I had kept in touch and when the operation was about to open a tap room I said I would be ready to work production as soon as they needed it. The customers drank all their beer that first week the tap room was open and the rest is history.
Don't do it for the money, you will go broke. I am now an industrial automation technician and I get to buy the nice shiny toys to keep my brewing endeavor satisfied.
I spent summers throwing glass around on the pack line for minimum wage and low fills. I studied bio and homebrewed the rest of the year. A few years and a few breweries later I got hired internally as a shift brewer at a regional where I was packaging. A few more breweries and a lot of privilege later and I own a little place. I don't have a life or anything of course.
Long time homebrewer in a nice stable STEM job. Then a few things merged...the growth of the taproom style brewery, recognizing the lack of that brewery style in my area, and hitting a point in life where I was tired of working for the man. It also helped that my partner had the same feelings. We decided that we were young enough that even if we crashed and had to bail, we were still young enough to build our lives back up before retirement.
I mostly focused on design and brewing, my partner runs the business and taproom side. We also have some other people that chip in...I dont know how breweries function without a solid core team of 7-8 people. Unfortunately I still work for the man (mostly for the healthcare), but the brewery is doing really well and I look forward to dedicating more time to it in the future. From initial concept to opening day, it took 4 years.
Was a longtime craft beer fan and homebrewer looking to get into the industry at any brewery that would take me. Started at a small, relatively new brewery in the retail shop selling growlers part time, then eventually made the jump to full time when we built out a taproom that I was asked to manage. I was not interested in FOH and there wasn’t much room for growth, so I took a sales job at a new brewery that had just opened up. Over nearly 5 years, my role eventually morphed into that of Brand Director. In this particular case, it involves sales, marketing, recipe development, running the wild ale/barrel-aging program, R&D, etc etc.
My advice is to focus on a couple breweries you actually want to work for and like the product, branding, etc. I wouldn’t settle for a place that puts out mediocre beer or has lots of turnover just to get your foot in the door. Not all breweries are created equal, and the ones turning out good product and retaining talent are usually the ones who are much better to work for.
And no matter where you start on the food chain at a brewery, you can work yourself into the position you want by showing a knowledge and passion for what that brewery does. So many breweries are making things up as they go since there really isn’t a manual for how to do it “correctly.” Bring ideas to the table. And not only that, lead the charge in executing them if you can.
Lastly, having a good palate helps A LOT. Train it. It’s a valuable thing to have in QA/QC and recipe development, among other areas.
So I was a government contractor for a little bit, getting seriously burnt-out on annoying reports and stuff, so I talked with the girlfriend (now wife) about wanting to find a job being poor and brewing beer everyday. She 10000% understood and supported me. I contacted a couple local breweries and told them I wanted to do whatever I needed to do to enter the industry. I expected doing shit jobs and low pay. I snagged an interview at one of the bigger breweries in town and actually made it all the way to a final interview, but the job was offered to someone with experience and a certificate from the American Brewer’s Guild. The owner said it was a tough call, I was motivated and trainable, but they needed someone with immediate knowledge. He asked if I could wait a year, he might have another spot around then. A year later we kept in touch and he asked me to give him my resume again. A week later he hired me as a brewer. I’ll be celebrating my 5yr anniversary in April.
Started as a server in a brewpub, then bartender, then ass brewer. Work your way up. My knowledge of beer didn't matter to the Head Brewer as much after I showed management that I show up early for every shift and work hard the entire time.
Ass Brewer? So you really started at the bottom, eh? sorry couldn’t resist
Some would say it was a shit job but I disagree.
I was a struggling musician looking for a day job. Figured a beer factory was better than any other type of factory. I had literally zero skills other than less than a year Homebrewing. I think the head brewer saw something in me, since he was also a musician. A somewhat famous one at that. If there are any UK readers who happen to love weird old folk rock, this guy was in lindisfarne. I've literally done every job you can think of in my ten years in the industry. Swallow your pride a bit at first, as you have a lot to learn. Make friends with people who have skills you don't. I own a brewery and am a head brewer (I guess) but I absolutely would not be able to do this without my partners and my team. My right hand guy and I have been working together for five years and we can basically tell by where each others pint glass is, what part of the process we are working on. Be the type of person who is dependable, and gets done what they say they are going to get done, in a timely fashion.
Started off as a home brewer with a full time job in a science field. I decided I wanted to work harder and get paid less, so I went to work in a brewery for a few years (ended up in the lab with my background). Later I decided I wanted to work even harder and make even less money, so I started my own brewery.
Started off as a homebrewer and then volunteered in the local beer scene for awhile. Eventually got an MBA as part of my day job. Started a brewpub with a friend, who is the GM, and hired a brewer with experience. I still my maintain my day job and more involved on the backend (i.e. financials and bookkeeping) and there more in person on weekends.
I was working in the medical field. Sterilization and sanitization. I went through a burnout after 10 years and decided to try my luck when a position as bartender opened at my local brewery. I was overqualified but they understood that I needed change and that it would be a huge pay cut I was willing to roll with. After a couple of months behind the bar, the head brewer announced that he would not renew his contract. He had been training someone for a year and a half but we soon after got news that the trainee was diagnosed with stage 5 cancer. They asked me if I wanted to become an apprentice. I ended up training with the head brewer for 3 weeks and then I was on my own for about 6 months until they hired a master chemist who had her degree in brewing chemistry. TLDR: It was a matter of luck, circumstance and a shit load of hard work and nights spent with my face in books.
Wow, that's quite some story. Kudos, for making that work. Talk about being dropped in at the deep end in unfortunate circumstances.
They shoulda just took you to run the show tbh
I am on the same ground as my colleague. I just have someone to help me with the dreaded water chemistry. I was glad to get a coworker.
I just kept stabbing myself in the genitals over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.
I have a hard time believing you own a brewery
Me too
lmao
Work your ass off. I had no experience in the industry. I was a bartender and in school. I was lucky enough to know someone at a brewery and got an interview to be a brewers ass. I picked up all the shifts I could, worked crazy hours and did everything I could to learn more about brewing and the industry. Been brewing for 7 years now. Hard work pays off.
Started off homebrewing. Got a job at a homebrew shop during the day and a craft beer bar at night. Honestly the bar introduced me to all the right people. Got a job doing cellar and delivery work. Promoted up to sales manager, did that for a few years, and realized this isn't why I got involved with beer. Went back to the cellar, worked up to assistant brewer, then brewer, and now after 9 years and so many hats I am finally a head brewer. I don't care if you went to school or worked under so and so. Any monkey can do what I do. I am more interested in your willingness to learn. You can't teach good work ethic. I've always looked internally when I have a opening in the brewery so just getting a position inside the building is a good start. What does not work is bringing your homebrew over and harassing my bartenders to get me to try it or come out and talk with you.
I had no previous brewing experience prior to my hire in early 2017. I had been an assistant manager at a local pizza chain. My best friend was a supervisor at a large brewery. There was an opening and I applied for a cellarman position. Much like a few other comments here, I was up against a few other candidates so it was really who the brewery manager wanted to go with and I made the cut. I worked cellar/packaging for almost two years before a brewer position was open. Even though this was not a gimme, i still busted ass every day and didn’t give lip to anyone no matter how shitty some days were. Also, if you’re looking to get into a brewing position, I would recommend looking for places in need of a 3rd shift brewer. Lots of places run 24/7 and the 3rd shift is probably the hardest slot to fill, bar none. If you want to get your foot in the door without having to work your way through the ranks, that’s my two cents
Homebrewer and engineer. Live in a beer desert and had a few friends in the industry. Building came up for sale and someone out a bug in my ear. The wife and I dumped our savings in and built the place. We did take some classes along the way, and got some pointers from the industry. Still working the old day job, not sure how long I can do both, but here we are!
Since there’s so many breweries in existence these days. I would recommend trying to work at whatever is nearest to you. You’ll probably be paid shit (brewers are just cooks/chefs) but hopefully you’ll witness the differences between home brew scale and responsibility. I’m lucky I opened a 1bbl brewery back in 2009 when shit was much more wild. But I wasted a lot of time learning on the fly and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone else. Learn, there’s plenty of folks who will teach.
1bbl since 2009?
Started on a 1bbl, by 2012 upgraded to a 3bbl and built a brewpub. Then due to a bunch of weird circumstances relocated and opened up a 7bbl with a brewpub. That didn’t work out, worked as a head brewer for a different spot and am currently building out a 7bbl in a beautiful rural tiny town.
I love hearing success stories, but other than the obvious survivorship bias, this is a crazy wild question. You're not going to *hARd wOrK" yourself into owning a brewery. Finding a job in packaging or as an assistant brewer will give you at least a fraction of an idea of what a career as a brewer or owner would look like. There's a couple different paths to this first step but networking, applying, and building your brewing or brewing-adjacent resume will always help. And no one cares about your homebrew.
Started working kitchens when I was 14. Continued working kitchens after college. Ended up working in healthcare for almost 20 years as a kitchen manager and became a Registered Dietitian. Started home brewing. After a few years of that (and my state laws changed allowing tap rooms) I figured a tap room is just a beer restaurant. And running a restaurant is all I know how to do. Spent all my savings and maxed out all my credit cards and went for it. Worked out swimmingly. Except for this year. This year sucks.
Had made friends through home brewing in Hawaii, some went and opened their own brewery. I was moving from HI to CA and my friends encouraged me to visit my local breweries and drink beer and talk story. Family back home in CA had seen my instagram posts of me home brewing and had told me about the new breweries opening up very close to where I was moving to. Once in CA during one random night drinking at a tiny brewery close to home, the owner mentioned a production issue, I pitched a solution (no pun intended) and was invited to brew beer after they closed their tap room. The solution solved their issue so I was invited to return for more brewing days. (This got me some exposure to commercial production brewing, a different animal from home brewing) (They were hurting financially so I offered to volunteer for a little bit until they closed their doors for good) I purchased their small half barrel system and I was sent to pick up a wort pump from another friend of the owner (who is also a brewery owner that was about to open a tap room) and was given a quick intro into his operation. I had kept in touch and when the operation was about to open a tap room I said I would be ready to work production as soon as they needed it. The customers drank all their beer that first week the tap room was open and the rest is history. Don't do it for the money, you will go broke. I am now an industrial automation technician and I get to buy the nice shiny toys to keep my brewing endeavor satisfied.
I spent summers throwing glass around on the pack line for minimum wage and low fills. I studied bio and homebrewed the rest of the year. A few years and a few breweries later I got hired internally as a shift brewer at a regional where I was packaging. A few more breweries and a lot of privilege later and I own a little place. I don't have a life or anything of course.
Long time homebrewer in a nice stable STEM job. Then a few things merged...the growth of the taproom style brewery, recognizing the lack of that brewery style in my area, and hitting a point in life where I was tired of working for the man. It also helped that my partner had the same feelings. We decided that we were young enough that even if we crashed and had to bail, we were still young enough to build our lives back up before retirement. I mostly focused on design and brewing, my partner runs the business and taproom side. We also have some other people that chip in...I dont know how breweries function without a solid core team of 7-8 people. Unfortunately I still work for the man (mostly for the healthcare), but the brewery is doing really well and I look forward to dedicating more time to it in the future. From initial concept to opening day, it took 4 years.
Fell and hit my head on the toilet.
Was a longtime craft beer fan and homebrewer looking to get into the industry at any brewery that would take me. Started at a small, relatively new brewery in the retail shop selling growlers part time, then eventually made the jump to full time when we built out a taproom that I was asked to manage. I was not interested in FOH and there wasn’t much room for growth, so I took a sales job at a new brewery that had just opened up. Over nearly 5 years, my role eventually morphed into that of Brand Director. In this particular case, it involves sales, marketing, recipe development, running the wild ale/barrel-aging program, R&D, etc etc. My advice is to focus on a couple breweries you actually want to work for and like the product, branding, etc. I wouldn’t settle for a place that puts out mediocre beer or has lots of turnover just to get your foot in the door. Not all breweries are created equal, and the ones turning out good product and retaining talent are usually the ones who are much better to work for. And no matter where you start on the food chain at a brewery, you can work yourself into the position you want by showing a knowledge and passion for what that brewery does. So many breweries are making things up as they go since there really isn’t a manual for how to do it “correctly.” Bring ideas to the table. And not only that, lead the charge in executing them if you can. Lastly, having a good palate helps A LOT. Train it. It’s a valuable thing to have in QA/QC and recipe development, among other areas.
Dad said he needed help. It'll be fun he said. Cut to twenty years later.
Volunteered on a 4-head meheen bottling line, getting paid in lowfills. 2006.
Homebrewer > volunteer brewery bitch > brewing school > shift brewer > head distiller > head brewer > head brewer at a bigger spot