[Kyle Winzer]

Hi I'm Kyle and I am a part of a group in Connecticut looking to start a new brewery/bar/venue with a concept that stands out against the current options in the area. We've been doing research and trying to gain some guidance to ensure we start out on the right foot and to avoid as many issues as possible. We are interested in finding a Head Brewer that believes in our creative focus and is willing to help bring the vision to life. I appreciate any and all assistance and I am willing to discuss in more detail with anyone that is interested.

Kyle Winzer

bsharpbrewing@gmail.com

[Cliffs]

Hi I'm Kyle and I am a part of a group in Connecticut looking to start a new brewery/bar/venue with a concept that stands out against the current options in the area. We've been doing research and trying to gain some guidance to ensure we start out on the right foot and to avoid as many issues as possible. We are interested in finding a Head Brewer that believes in our creative focus and is willing to help bring the vision to life. I appreciate any and all assistance and I am willing to discuss in more detail with anyone that is interested.

Kyle Winzer

bsharpbrewing@gmail.com

what kind of beers are you hoping to brew?

[Kyle Winzer]

We would like to have at least five staples that we have on tap year round. Something along the lines of two styles of IPA, a stout or porter, a sour, an ale and maybe even create our own version of a light beer. We would have seasonal beers as well as specialties that would be rotated throughout the year. This is more like a guideline than actually set in stone. The Brewer would have some real creative freedom with us.

[Saccharomyces]

If you want to be different, look at niche brewing. However, if you are yet another venue offering variations on the IPA theme and sours, you are going to find standing out to be very difficult because there is a lot of competition in that space. The problem with Millennials is that ale means IPA.  It is no different than previous generations where beer meant adjunct lager.  You need to find fast maturing styles that your competitors are not making.  If you are doing the brewpub thing, look at niche brewing pared with niche cuisine such as matching fast-maturing Belgian styles with Flemish and Wallonian dishes. It would be risky, but being an also ran in the IPA and sour world carries its own risk.

[HopDen]

If it were me, I would go old school style! Beer like a Grodziskie, Farmhouse, saisons, lagers and ales. I like traditional beers. Less is more. You can make killer beer with few ingredients. Keep things simple. IMHO, sours SUCK!! It is akin to brushing your teeth and then immediately drinking OJ.

IPA's have a respectable place in anyones brewery and I like when there are at least a couple of choices. Personally, I like flavor and aroma over a 100 IBU hop bomb. Just me though.

Did I say sours SUCK? Please, no more sours.

[deckerhand]

If. You want to stand out look at who is your Direct competitor see what they are offering then offer better.  Don’t me another brewery that’s offering all the range beers of the day. Go with the classic that work and work well.


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[Michael Brown]

We are a 7 bbl brewpub getting ready for our first anniversary.  Some considerations:

1.  I am sure you have already advertised on the commercial sites like ProBrewer and Brewbound but if not give it a try.
2.  You do really need to figure out what you are going to be brewing before you hire a brewer.  If you are going to be doing a lot of Belgians, Sours, or lagers for example you'll want to hire someone with that experience and desire.  Brewers look for that kind of thing when they look for work.
3.  When coming up with your beer options think real hard about yeast.  It can be a very big expense and takes on a much bigger role in commercial brewing than homebrewing.  If you have 4-6 beers and each need a different yeast you are going to have a hard time financially.  Yeast management and purchase drove a lot more of our production planning than I ever imagined.
3. When planning your beer lineup make sure you consider demographics.  Even "niche" farmhouse brewers end up brewing IPAs if they have enough hipsters sitting in the taproom.  IPAs are the #1 craft beer seller for a reason.  I would have at least one on tap and discuss making them as an interview point with a potential brewer. 
4. If you want a generic lineup that will be a good start 98% of the time I would go with an IPA, APA, Pale Lager, and something dark like a Stout. Note 3/4 of these can be made with one yeast like Chico or 007 and a lot of common base and specialty malts.  Commercial brewers have to think real hard about inventory management and cost so that should be another interview point.
5.  "Creative Freedom" will be a big selling point for a potential brewer so emphasize that.
6. Depending on your level of technical brewing skills you might consider an advanced homebrewer who wants to make the jump.  Big learning curve but you might get the perfect person who fits into your company.  Yours truly is a perfect example of that.

[ATField]

Is this position still open? I have a good friend that is a great brew master!  I would hire him myself in our brewery,but unfortunately we are full. We have a lot of orders lately due to the lockdowns with people drinking more than ever at home. I had to hire 40 more employees to be able to meet my production quota and deliver. A big issue was that we didn't have in place an actual program to schedule and check on people's shifts. I had to look for something simple to use like https://tracktime24.com which doesn't require cards and terminals. I can check that way how many hours exactly everyone worked.