Show of hands: Who doesn't want to go into commercial brewing?

Ya know, I like my job; it's not stressful, decent pay, good coworkers, and I sit on my ass reading HBT and other silly websites in my downtime. However it's not what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. My income is about what I expect brewers to make so it's not like I'd be taking a big hit on my lifestyle if I switch careers.

I'm awful with managing a business. I can do it but I don't like it and I certainly cannot turn a small business into a large successful one. I'd rather go to brew school, and then work for a small brewpub (10bbl) and have creative control over what I make. Brew something different all the time and do what I want.

I would never want to own a brewery or anything. Too much time managing the business, not enough time brewing. And I love working with my hands so it's a win-win in my book.

jkreuze said:

Professional brewer?

No, not for me.

Professional beer drinker, though--that's something I'd be interested in!

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corrected that for you, being a beer taster would get old fast. I feel like I would lose all the joy from drinking beer if I had to go to work everyday and sip beer and analyze it. Now if there was a pro beer drinking league I would be in.

NBDL (National Beer Drinkers League) anyone? with all the crap thats on tv now I'm sure it would go over in a big way

it's tough because people are always telling you (i assume), "hey, your beer is awesome, why don't you open a brewery?" which is legit in my case because our local brewery is not good. i spent the better part of last summer trying to get my ducks in a row and seeing how plausible the whole concept was. i/SWMBO finally decided it was too much work and too much of a lifetime commitment. i've worked too hard at my career to drop it all and wager the future of my family on opening a brewery/restaurant (which our town SORELY needs more of). the visions in your head are always grandeur, but the reality of it is much different. the amount of **** that can go wrong with a brew system and owning your own business in general would be extremely stressful and knowing my personality, i would just drink more to cope with it... that wouldn't be a good recipe for a lengthy life like i hope to live.

i have no doubts that I could do it and run a successful business, but you're there 24/7. no family time, no free time, no hobbies to satiate your jones. even if you got it up and running smoothly, making money, etc. after 5 years, you're still a slave to the business and always will be. there's no kicking back with your feet on the desk playing around with different recipe ideas all day when you own a business. of course you can say you will hire people to take care of that stuff for you, but in the early years, you do EVERYTHING. distribute, brew, market, manage, inventory/stocking, everything.

i also think it's something that most new homebrewers get in their heads right off the bat. after brewing for a few years, i think the thought fades. so, no, i don't wish to go pro.

Any small business is difficult and usually relies heavily on people wanting to spend more money for a similar product just because it's more craft/homemade.

android said:

it's tough because people are always telling you (i assume), "hey, your beer is awesome, why don't you open a brewery?"...

i also think it's something that most new homebrewers get in their heads right off the bat. after brewing for a few years, i think the thought fades. so, no, i don't wish to go pro.

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I've had family and friends give me the same encouragement time and time again... Even had one friend offer to help set me up financially.

I know what it is to run a business - even one where each day is more like "play time" than anything else.

But, when it comes down to it, I think most of us chiming in here have stated that it's the business side that gets you. Many people I've met here are more than capable brewers, sure they can make great beer, but how many people in brewing are great business people?

I'll opt for no - no desire at all. I'll make my beer and accept praise from family and friends - who btw are obligated to give praise in exchange for free beer - it's a social contract!

I'm a business owner... never brewed a drop of beer in my life. If I could make a better living brewing beer then what I do now I'd do it in a heart beat. Just a different widget.

I don't know what it is but it seems as if nearly everyone that take homebrewing on as a hobby thinks or considers the professional aspect at some point. Just take a spreadsheet and go through all of the various expenses and sheer qty of beer that you would need to sell to break even and then make money - most of us will stop right there.

One Idea I have (kind of out there) is to have a small craft brewery that only released seasonal qty's in bomber bottles. Essentially a brewery that does not have a signature beer but more of a brewery that would brew something different EVERY time. I am not talking dogfish stuff either - but maybe one season it is Pale, the next Stout etc... maybe run into or have a signature yeast but that is about it.

Possibly reach a point in your business where you were some sort of collaborative brewer - bouncing from brewery to brewery (renting or sharing profit) on some random collaborative beer that is only available once. ??? so many possibilities.

And the reality of it is you have two choices - 1. a brew pub (better have something else like food / entertainment) and 2. Brewing w/ wholesale distribution (better have distributors lined up ready to deliver) - It would almost be an accident if either ever worked out!

But yeah - the dream would be a small personal brew-pub simply for recreation and possible very small local sales (TABC in TX would never let that happen!)

BrewFrisco said:

One Idea I have (kind of out there) is to have a small craft brewery that only released seasonal qty's in bomber bottles. Essentially a brewery that does not have a signature beer but more of a brewery that would brew something different EVERY time. I am not talking dogfish stuff either - but maybe one season it is Pale, the next Stout etc... maybe run into or have a signature yeast but that is about it.

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i think that's a great idea, but i do remember hearing about a small brewpub in portland (or somewhere NW) that does exactly that. there is a female brewmaster there and i think they won small brewpub of the year at NHC either in 2009 or 2010. sounds like it would be a cool place to work as a brewer.

You can sell apple pies on the street, but you can't mess with alcohol laws.

I would like to sell just to friends and coworkers. Everyone likes my beer, they want to buy it. I don't even know if it is legal for them to buy all the ingredients and bring it over for me to brew (no money changing hands).

Since I have a good job/benefits I would not take out a loan to gamble on everything from the economy, to a vendor that sent me the wrong bottles.

Stuntman said:

You can sell apple pies on the street, but you can't mess with alcohol laws.

I would like to sell just to friends and coworkers. Everyone likes my beer, they want to buy it. I don't even know if it is legal for them to buy all the ingredients and bring it over for me to brew (no money changing hands).

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Don't quote me, but you could probably brew it and send them home with a bucket of wort and a packet of yeast.

I found the responses here very interesting. Many of the respondents focused solely on brewing. It does not matter if you make the world best beer you still have to market, sell and distribute the beer as well. I am a marketing manager by trade and I thought it would be great to open my own marketing agency. What I found was I thoroughly enjoyed making sales presentations to prospect and clients. I also enjoyed doing the actual marketing work for clients. I didn't enjoy the running of a business and closed it down after being open for 6 years. Things such as bill paying, deciding what bills to pay based on my cash flow and acting as a collection agency to get paid from my clients. These are all aspects of running a business that are not part of brewing and other than not having the money to start a brewery are exactly why I have no interest in starting a brewery.

Yep - bottom line is that you have to have a following ready to buy the beer. Here in TX, in order to sell, you have to go through the distribution channels. Ideally, you would want to spend a bunch of time perfecting your line-up of beers - then get some home-brew awards and have a small following - that will go a long way when you pitch this to your prospects.

I have no idea what it take to even get your beer into the hands of a distributor. I am sure they have some guidelines.

But this would probably be the only way to focus on 'Brewing' rather than the 'Brewpub' approach since you wouldn't really need anything other than a good recipe, some capital, and patience.

Obviously subsidizing with renting the brewery for special occasions or business party's etc...

The only other way that I can see the 'Brewpub' approach work for me is if there were some way to brew and do some sort of party catering. Cater parties with something simple like BBQ and then we also supply the beer... not real sure what the laws are on that approach though... probably totally illegal here in TX! Then maintain a smaller >1bbl setup and minimize the up-front capital / risks. Partner up with a good mobile BBQ guy..

BrewFrisco said:

The only other way that I can see the 'Brewpub' approach work for me is if there were some way to brew and do some sort of party catering. Cater parties with something simple like BBQ and then we also supply the beer... not real sure what the laws are on that approach though... probably totally illegal here in TX! Then maintain a smaller >1bbl setup and minimize the up-front capital / risks. Partner up with a good mobile BBQ guy..

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Mobile bbq and beer business in Texas? Hope you can make a nice Miller clone >_<

Yep, if the opportunity came along I would almost certainly walk away from my PhD and brew. I think I would ideally want to walk into an existing brew-pub as an assistant brewer and eventually take over. I say this because I have seen a lot of turnover at my local brew pub, ABC in amherst. Every time they have a new assistant brewer I think "Damn, I wish I would have known they were looking!!"

Of course, I also have this ridiculous dream: I spent some time in Southern Germany in a town called Freilassing. I stayed at a bed and breakfast where they brewed a great many, absolutely delicious beers. Best hefeweiss in bavaria (imho). It was a very small mom and pop joint. It was the best beer I had in Germany, great menu, too. I often romanticize living at that B&B and doing the brewing. Absolutely beautiful surroundings, lots of great, welcoming people (within a day I was having dinner at locals houses), and really great beer. What else do you need? Hell, they don't even distribute their beer, so you wouldn't have to worry about marketing and distributers. Just live at the B&B and brew great beer. That's the dream!

i dream of one day having my own brewpub. a nice line of shiny conicals and the equiptment to brew 5 gal-60gal batches. 12 tap bar, a big ol' smokehouse and a theater type set up behind the bar. Of course, i would never let the public in or sell one drop of beer. i just want all those shiny toys to play with. once you turn a dream into a business, the dream turns into another boring repetative job.

While it most definitely is a dream, I still dream of one day opening a small brewpub here in East Texas. We don't have one (yet), nor do we have any decent actual bars (they're all in restaurants).

Of course, I'm not totally at a loss on the business side either, we have two restaurants, two liquor stores, have owned a club, and a few other restaurants.

The wife and I just want a badass bar (and kitchen) in this town that seriously needs one. And of course, I want a corner of it dedicated to a small 1-2bbl nanobrewery. I wouldn't hinge the whole business on the brewing.

We're just sick of the retail liquor business, and well the restaurant's aren't totally ours (family stuff). We just want our "own" little thing.

iijakii said:

Mobile bbq and beer business in Texas? Hope you can make a nice Miller clone >_<

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If it doesn't say Miller it still won't work.


There used to be a very small brewery just north of downtown Fort Worth (the building is still there with signs and fake fermenters on the side) that opened around 2000 and basically tried to make a Miller-like beer called "Texas Beer" that they marketed around downtown and into the stockyards, which is a stockyard/old west themed neighborhood of tourist traps, country bars and restaurants themed to everything proudly Texan. You know what? They couldn't even compete against Miller even though the beer tasted pretty much the same, was cheaper in bars and had a Texan flag on it. People in those bars just didn't want to venture away from their Miller.

They also tried putting in a brewpub in the 90s in the stockyard when brewpubs were first legalized in the state. It failed pretty much right away. It seems as though there are a dozen or so planned breweries/brewpubs in the Dallas/Fort Worth area but it looks like they have been in the planning/development phase for over a year with no change.

I thought everyone in Texas drank Shiner Bock.

waldoar15 said:

I thought everyone in Texas drank Shiner Bock.

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In my retail experience, it's Bud Light. Miller Lite isn't even on the radar as a top seller.
At my stores it goes:
#1) Bud Light (By ALOT)
#2) Coors Light
#3) Budweiser
#4) Busch
#5) Keystone Light

Miller Lite is like #9

I kind of went back to school to become a brewer, but I'm not up for the risk and insanity of selling my stuff.

I for one would like to buy other people's homebrew. Popping down to the farmer's market and picking up a mixed six pack that someone brewed up would be pretty cool, I think.

Unfortunately, the ATF and the FDA would never let that happen.