Help Wanted ( You too can work for your local Brewery)

This past week and weekend our friends at a local brewery were busy canning beer they made on contract for a brewery that is starting out.  Since the new brewery does not have their equipment operational they had to contract the beer they needed the beer for a festival starting later this week.  A call went out asking for help in finishing the canning process.  I have no clue as to the exact number of cans produced, but from what I saw on Sunday there were multiple pallets of beer.  Many of my friends were able to work more than I was but I know any help was much appreciated.  Also everyone was "paid" well and did not go home thirsty.  True I was not paid any money, nor were any of the other volunteers, but still I felt like I was working for the brewery.

 Anyone can "work" for your favorite brewery or brewpub.  They love having free volunteer labor and greatly appreciate you giving up some of your free time to assist them around the brewery.  For the most part they will not give you the jobs that require the most grunt work, unless you are willing to do it.  The jobs you can do vary from cleaning, scrubbing, hauling spent grain, carrying bags of grain or even helping to brew a batch of beer.  As many of you probably know brewing is probably at least 90% cleaning and maintenance and actually less than 10% brewing.  So helping at a brewery may not be all that glamorous, but it is hard work and very rewarding when the work is done.

I have had the good luck to help brew a batch of beer at two of the four local brewpubs/breweries in the Quad Cities.  I believe a few friends of mine have been able to help brew a batch at all four.  To me this is great fun and well worth the hard work I had to put into it.  Most brewers really love having assistants when it comes to moving spent grain, since it is dirty, hot and wet work.  They do not mind sharing this job with eager helpers.

Also depending on the brewery/brewpub you can be up and working in the early hours of the morning.  One local brewpub starts to brew at 2 or 3 a.m. since the brewhouse is located right behind the bar they serve the beer.  Other breweries have the serving area and brewing area separated and start at a more reasonable hour like 6 or 7 a.m.  I have found out especially in the summer it is best to brew earlier in the day since the brew process does create a lot of heat.
 Brewers will gladly accept help at any time and to do just about anything in the brewery.  Do not be afraid the next time you go in and have a seat at the bar ask the brewer if there is anything you can do to assist him or her.  They may not have something for you that day, but be persistent and open with your availability and they will take you up on your offer.

 Volunteering to work is a great way to get your foot in the door and sometimes even leads to a volunteer becoming an actual paid employee.  So if you are thinking about working at a brewery or even starting your own brewery, volunteer at a local brewery/brewpub.  Even better if you are in an area with multiple breweries/brewpubs, volunteer to work at as many as you can.  That way you gain experience on different brewing systems and with different brewers, since no two systems are the same and no two brewers are the same either.  I know a couple people locally that started out working for free and then they became paid employees.  Also there are numerous examples around the United States of volunteers become paid employees.  So if this is something you want to do, go for it.

Some people may be thinking I want to help my local brewery but really do not want help brew beer.  Well there are other things you can do as well.  Many breweries/brewpubs are willing to do in kind exchange with skill laborers such as electricians, carpenters, pipe fitters or other skill trades.  They will "pay" you in product for your trade skill on a project that they do not fill comfortable doing.  So if you are a skilled laborer check with your local brewery/brewpub if they have any such projects.

Other ways to help are low skill like what I did on Sunday within a matter of seconds I was able to man my position in the canning process.  Some of the positions required a bit more training but none of them were rocket science. 

Another way is to volunteer to assist at a beer festival the brewery/ brewpub is attending.  This is a very fun experience, plus it is not overly difficult.  Each festival has their own set of ground rules so pay attention to those, but overall it is a matter of pouring beer for the fest goers.  The brewery/brewpub staff at the event will gladly accept the extra hands, that way they have an opportunity to wander the festival grounds and experience the various beers offered by other brewers.  One thing I enjoy is being able to help spread knowledge and understanding of the beer you are helping serve.  Needless to say it helps to have some knowledge of the beer you are pouring, but the more important thing is to be a willing server. 

I know this is not a complete list of ways someone can "work" for their local brewery/brewpub, but it should give you a good idea of the many ways you too can work for your local brewery.  Some require hard physical work some do not.  The main idea is to get in there and do some work.  The "pay" will be well worth it! 

QC Beerguy