Hi,
I'm looking to learn more about beer and would be keen to hear from anyone who works in the beer space from big to small. Craft to non craft etc?
Whats it like working in the beer industry? Any tips or advice for getting in the door? Any feedback? Just keen to hear all angles and ideas.
Thanks
What's It Like to Work in The Beer Space? or at a Brewery? Any Advice?
LGINGUY578789 on 16/04/2019 - 05:30
Comments
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Never mix business with pleasure..
I'm strugɡliŋg with thw word "work" being used so close to the word "beer" lol
Extremely competitive industry. A few behemoths versus a lot of small players (at least in Melbourne). At the moment the market is saturated which is great for consumers but not so great for craft brewers or their employees.
Getting into the industry is hard. Need experience to get a job, need a job to get experience, that old chestnut. There's also limited recognised qualifications available. Even then they are competitive courses to get into as they require previous experience and/or degrees.
Entry level "assistant brewer" job will consist of being a glorified cleaner 40 hours a week on essentially minimum wage. 70% of commercial brewing is the cleaning. Sanitation is key. If you have no homebrewing/brewing experience you'll likely never progress from this role.
Ultimately, if you are deadset that this industry is your passion, I'd suggest (if not already) getting into homebrewing for at least 2-3 years so you have a good understanding of the entire process. It is actually a very cheap hobby to get into. Once you start getting more serious you will outlaying big $$$ for good equipment however! Join your local homebrewing club. Learn. Enter a few competitions. Learn. Do the BJCP course. Learn. Then get a TAFE/uni course/experience to meet the requirements to get into and complete the Fed Uni graduate course. This will get you in a good position to be employable. Then make the decision whether you wish to turn your passion hobby into your employment.
Do you know how to brew?
Yes - go talk to some breweries.
No - you don't have the initiative and you're just day dreaming.
Your methodology of gaining employment is seriously flawed.
It's a job where many people are passionate about, unlike an office job.
It is not completely unreasonable for an employer to expect an applicant to have a basic understanding of the industry, especially if the applicant says they have a keen interest.
You can't claim to have a keen interest and know nothing… especially when the information is readily available.
You missed the point.
There are many, many industries which are very hard to get into regardless of knowledge.
Someone not having expertise in a field doesn't mean they lack initiative.
Just having knowledge in a field doesn't mean you're employable.
In this particular field nobody would have the knowledge to "brew" on the type of systems professional breweries use unless you've attended 1 of only 3 training organisations in this country that have courses.
@Typical16-bitEnjoyer: Two people walk into my brewery for a job.
First person says he wants to work here. I ask them to substantiate. They ask me what I mean. I ask them how much they know. They tell me about their potential and initiative.
Second person says he wants to work here and they've dabbled with micro brewing since you can get a kit for a fifty and YouTube the rest. I'd ask them to substantiate but this guy keeps going on because he is passionate.
You're telling me the first person has a chance? Come on.
@[Deactivated]: Ok. You invented a generic scenario with no basis on reality. Cool. Thanks for confirming to all that you:
- Didn't read my post; and
- Don't work in the brewing industry.
You don't get a job in this industry by
"knowing how to brew" and "talking about your potential and initiative"
The pay is horrible. I managed to get an offer as a trainee brewer at one of the most well known and arguably biggest craft brewerys in Aus recently, but had to decline as I couldn't afford what was essentially the minimum wage salary.
It would be a dream job as I am a beer tragic but unfortunately being balls deep in a mortgage stops you from doing certain things.
I like beer