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Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

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VincentOates

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Does anyone here work in the brewing industry? How do you like it as opposed to making it as a hobby?

How does one go about getting into the brewing industry? I would assume home brewing would be a good start.
 
I'm really curious about this, too. I found an article that talks about it, but I would really like to learn more.

I love to homebrew and if I got paid for it, I would love it even more. But is professional brewing really as glamorous as I think it is?

Also, as a followup question, are pro-brewers ever annoyed by us noobz asking all of these questions about their jobs and us telling them how awesome it must be?
 
From what I've read and seen discussed, you always start at the bottom. Washing kegs, bottling line, etc. Then, you either put in your years of work to move up, or you move up because you have a degree in something useful like microbiology. Or you shell out tons of money to start a microbrew and work your ass off to make a little bit of profit...hopefully.
 
As much as I enjoy homebrewing, I am pretty content at keeping it a hobby, unless after I graduate from business school, I would love to work in the business side of a microbrewery.

There seems to be a lot of common ground between homebrewers wanting to brew for a living and sound engineers wanting to make records for a living, which is something I used to dream about doing. I even went to school and graduated with a degree in recording arts only to find out, there are no jobs at studios for audio engineers and if you want a job doing it, you have to shell out tons of money to create your own studio. I see a lot of parallels between the two communities and those dreaming of quitting their day job to do what they love. There are however a lot more people working at a brewery than at a recording studio, so I would think the odds of getting your foot in the door are better
 
I just recently made the jump between avid home brewer to assistant brewer at a local brewpub and I couldnt be happier with the choice I made. Like curlyfat said, I am starting at the bottom cleaning casks, scrubbing the floor, etc, but its still fun and worth it. What ive noticed in the craft beer industry is that there isnt any room for people who arent passionate about it. There just isnt not enough money. I wasnt worried at all about whether or not I would enjoy turning a hobby into a job because I knew thats what I wanted to do.
 
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