I need all your help getting a job at a brewery!

[jwalk4]

Having said that. School probably won't help me. I noticed a school (relatively) near me has a partnership with Niagara College starting in Sept 2013.

http://www.oldscollege.ca/programs/Horticulture/Brewmasters 2013.pdf

Don't know if anyone has attended Niagara but sounds like a brewing career is more in who you know than what piece of paper you have on your wall. Thoughts?

I have heard that the Niagara brewing program has a good reputation. When I toured the Adnams brewery, one of there brew guys told me that a few of their employees came from the Niagara Program.

*Edit* However, I should say that most brewmaster's from breweries that I know of have at least a master's in microbiology.

 

[PupThePup]

Don't know if anyone has attended Niagara but sounds like a brewing career is more in who you know than what piece of paper you have on your wall. Thoughts?

That's the way it is in every field. Except perhaps high turn over common labor jobs (and even those are becoming slim pickings now-a-days).

Two questions I ask when I hire someone:
1.) Do they have the knowledge and ambition to do the work?
2.) Are they going to do what I ask of them without questioning/complaining?

Both of the above attributes usually end up fading over time and the person moves on. Sometimes they leave in a professional fashion and sometime not...

Hiring is mostly arbitrary. Even if you know someone, it's still arbitrary.

Be careful about volunteering to be a slave. That's not a good position to put yourself in.

If you're going to work for someone, make sure they pay you a fair days wage. A living wage. (Not very common in today's work environment.)

Finally, be careful of what you ask for, you just might get it.

 

[manofleisure]

Keep is as simple as:

I am interested in beer and brewing
Understand the basics as I have been homebrewing for x years
Currently have a physically demanding job
Know what a hard days work is and show up on time/sober.

For any potential job (not just in brewing) I would not mention I would show up on time and sober. That's an expectation for any job. Bringing it up would make the employer wonder, "Is there a reason this guy needs to point out his ability to read a clock and not get drunk before work?"

 

[seabass07]

Show up sober, but don't expect to leave sober.

 

[iambeer]

Don't forget to tell them how much you love to drink beer when your olfactory senses and taste buds are most alert--the morning! Potential employers love to hear that almost as much as hiring people who are currently unemployed.

 

[AndMan3030]

You know that may have been meant as a joke (my sarcasm meter is off in this place a bit) but I like this idea, I might put it to use in my own search down the road.

I love this idea...

 

[ByramMike]

To piggy back on markm's and aip's comments... I don't work for a brewery, but I visited one in Ft. Worth in December for their Saturday "tour". I spoke with about 10 people who had "Brew Crew" shirts on and none of them were paid employees. To a person they told me they just hung out for the tours, got to know the folks there, and were asked to be part of their tour team. I did speak to an assistant brewer and he said they hire one or two of those folks a year.

Worth a shot!

 

[iambeer]

 

[HeavyKettleBrewing]

You know that may have been meant as a joke (my sarcasm meter is off in this place a bit) but I like this idea, I might put it to use in my own search down the road.

Not a joke. I answered an ad for a machinist position by creating a resume that resembled a blueprint. It caught their eye enough to get me an interview. Standout and someone will notice you.

 

[hans_shu_east_gluff]

So, I am getting a lot of mixed messages here. Is it possible to make a career out of brewing? I would like to. I feel a bit deterred by the few negative comments. I like a hard days work. Nothing makes a beer taste better. But I have bills to pay. Is it possible?

 

[Nightshade]

So, I am getting a lot of mixed messages here. Is it possible to make a career out of brewing? I would like to. I feel a bit deterred by the few negative comments. I like a hard days work. Nothing makes a beer taste better. But I have bills to pay. Is it possible?

Yes it is, but starting pay isn't great in most cases but it really depends on who you get on with too.

The craft/micro/brewpub size outfits vary a lot, but you can advance faster and learn more about the actual process of making and designing beer and stand a better chance of using some of your own recipes as well (in brewpub at least).

BMC you will make better pay and benefits as a whole, but you learn your job (think militaryesque) and that is it, so you may be swamping mash tuns for the next 5 years then you advance to grain weighing (just example). The plus is raises are more frequent and larger than a small brewery but you have to play some politics along with your work to stand out. Not a bad gig honestly but it can be stressful.

I work the brewpub angle and enjoy the hands on direct involvement from grain to glass aspect as well as seeing and talking to my customers to get feedback so I can make adjustments as needed or as I can. The bad is that it isn't a job that is gonna get me a house in the hills, but I am using it as a stepping stone to get to bigger things down the road.

 

[hans_shu_east_gluff]

I love the idea of working at a brew pub. But my ideal situation would be owning and operating one, or at least have some creative input. I live in a small town with no brewpubs, no microbreweries and not many people who enjoy my hobby other than my beer itself. I feel like a brewery would be where I learn the ropes and a brewpub would be later in life when I can say I've put my time in and know exactly what I am doing. Anyone skip brewery and go right into owning their own brew pub? Ultimately that's what this thread is all about. I just assumed working at a brewery would be the starting point and very beneficial. Anyone think taking a business class in college of University would be a better jumping off point?

 

[BrianDorry55]

So, I am getting a lot of mixed messages here. Is it possible to make a career out of brewing? I would like to. I feel a bit deterred by the few negative comments. I like a hard days work. Nothing makes a beer taste better. But I have bills to pay. Is it possible?

Open your own.

After working at a brewery for a little while I realized that having any position other than "Owner" wasn't going to do it for me...and I didn't really think earning years of experience in a brewery was the only way to open my own someday. Learn the ins and outs of everything...connect with the right people...and aspire to be an entrepreneur. The things that you can't learn at home, go to a local place and ask to intern on weekends or nights.

 

[seabass07]

True. There is no way around it. If you are an assistant brewer, you are the bitch. With so few head brewer positions around, you could be an asst for years before an opportunity pops up.