Enjoying Working in a Brewery

There seems to be an odd phenomenon happening in the brewing industry these days. Normally, when I meet strangers and tell them that I am a brewmaster, they think I've got this awesome job that allows me to drink all day. I'm inclined to agree, although the whole drinking all day myth is pretty far from the truth. Lately though, there seems to be a lot of articles written by brewers about how being a brewer sucks. The common reasons they give: It's hard, there is more cleaning than brewing, late night shifts are necessary and they suck, not enough social time, it's dangerous, the pay is bad, and the barrier to entry into becoming a brewer is pretty tough. All of that is true... It is difficult being a brewer... But it is awesome!

While it is true that being a brewer is tough, physical work (at least for most micro-breweries where equipment automation is a fantasy). I believe that is part of what makes the work so rewarding. How many jobs are there where you can work up to 80 hours in a week and when you're not at work, you still enjoy thinking about the next upcoming projects? Anyone who knows me will tell you that even after a 14 hour day of brewing, I'll still talk your ear off about upcoming beers or improvements we've made on existing recipes.

It is also true that on a brew day there is more cleaning than actual brewing going on. There is also a lot of multi-tasking, testing, troubleshooting, and frustration, but at the end of the day, it is always worth it when you see someone come in after they get off work, sit down at the bar, and order a pint.

As for the pay and the difficulty of getting a job, there is truth to that as well. The first job most people take in a brewing job is going to be a lot of grunt work, keg washing, scrubbing floors, helping run the bottler, etc. and the pay is likely going to be hard to live off of for a while. But if you look at the big picture as an entry level brewer, there are a ton of opportunities to move up. It all just comes down to how dedicated to it you are. If you come into the brewery as an entry level employee and you show that you can handle multitasking, staying busy, and that you are actively trying to learn the processes and techniques, the opportunities are endless. That is the way I started in the brewery... Serving beers in the taproom and helping out with a 4 head manual bottle filler, now 2.5 years later at age 24 I am the brewmaster with an International Diploma in Brewing Technology. How many businesses give the opportunity to move up like that?

All in all, I think I'm a pretty lucky guy getting to brew beer everyday. Yeah, it's difficult, it's frustrating at times, the shifts can get ridiculous, but every day I get to do what I love. To the brewers that are telling everybody that their job sucks... Maybe it's time you find a new job. As far as I'm concerned, there isn't a profession in the world that will make me as happy as a brewer.