Questions to Ask in a Brewery Interview
These are questions to ask in a brewery interview when the owner, head brewer or taproom manager hands the conversation over to you, written for anyone applying to the taproom, the cellar, the packaging line, the brewhouse or a sales route. They are grouped the way the decision tends to go: the job itself, the brewery and its direction, training and growth, safety, pay and hours, and what to settle before you decide. Every question carries a short note on reading the reply, and a few are marked for a single role such as beertender, brewer or sales rep.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
The job
What does a normal shift look like in this role, from the first task to the last?
Why ask it
Brewery work carries more routine than a posting lets on: a taproom shift includes glassware, restocking and checking the draft lines, and a cellar shift is built around tanks, hoses and kegs. The answer to hope for walks through the hours in order, dull parts included. If you hear only pouring or only brewing, ask what the closing hour involves.
How physical is the job: what would I be lifting, and how long am I on my feet?
Why ask it
Full kegs, sacks of grain and cases of cans are heavy, and production floors are usually wet. A straight answer names the loads and what is there to help, such as a keg dolly, a hoist or a second pair of hands. Be wary of 'you get used to it' with nothing after it, and ask about temperature too: a brewhouse in summer and a walk-in cooler are both hard places to spend eight hours.
How much of this job is cleaning?
Why ask it
On the production side the honest answer is usually most of it: tanks, kegs, hoses, floors and drains. In a taproom it is glassware, draft lines, tables and restrooms. A manager who says so plainly is describing the real job, and one who brushes the question aside may not be the person doing the scrubbing.
What makes someone good at this job here, beyond liking beer?
Why ask it
Almost every applicant says they love craft beer, so this draws out what actually separates people: showing up on time, cleaning without being asked, being easy with strangers at the bar, or keeping careful records. Whatever the interviewer names, offer an example of yourself doing it before you leave.
Is this job open because the brewery is growing or because someone left?
Why ask it
Growth has a cause you can ask to see: a new tank, extra taproom days, a canning line, a second location. If someone left, find out whether they moved up inside the brewery or walked out, and how many people have held the job in the past couple of years. Three in two years says more than whatever reason is given for the latest one.
Who would I report to, and who is in charge when they are not in the building?
Why ask it
At a small brewery it may be the owner for everything, or the head brewer on brew days and a taproom lead at night. Two bosses with different priorities is workable once someone says whose word wins. On a solo close or a weekend packaging run you also need a name to phone.
How busy does the taproom get, and how many people work the bar on your biggest day?
Why ask it
Ask about last Saturday in particular, since a manager remembers one real day better than an average. One person pouring, running the register and watching a full patio is a hard shift. Find out who changes the keg when one kicks mid-rush.
Does the taproom run food, trivia nights, private events or tours, and who looks after them?
Why ask it
Each of these adds a job to the job: running plates, setting up a room, or leading a group past the tanks and explaining how beer is made. Tours in particular often fall to taproom staff. If that appeals to you, say so, and if it does not, find out how often your turn would come around.
What size is the brewhouse, and how many batches would I be part of in a normal week?
Why ask it
For brewer and cellar candidates this sets the rhythm of the week: how many brew days, how many transfers, how many tanks to clean. Weigh it against the number of people on the production team, because many batches and few hands means long days. How much is done by hand matters as well. Shoveling out spent grain after every batch adds up over a week.
Is the beer canned or bottled in house, and what would my part be on a packaging day?
Why ask it
Some breweries own a line, some bring in a mobile canner, and some only fill kegs. Packaging days are repetitive and loud, and the stations differ: feeding empty cans, watching the seamer, checking fills, stacking cases. Ask which station a new person starts on and whether people rotate.
As a sales rep, which accounts and territory would I cover, and how much of the week is winning new ones?
Why ask it
Looking after bars and stores that already carry the beer is a different week from opening doors where nobody stocks it yet. Ask how many accounts the route holds now and how many days you would spend on the road. If the territory is new, find out what the brewery would count as a good first six months.
How much do roles cross over, such as taproom staff on the canning line or brewers pouring at festivals?
Why ask it
In a small brewery nearly everyone does a bit of everything, which suits people who want to learn the whole operation. Pin down how often, and whether a beertender's hour on the canning line is paid at the taproom rate. Festival weekends on top of a full week should come up now, not the week before one.
The brewery
How many barrels do you brew in a year, and is that number rising, flat or falling?
Why ask it
Volume tells you the scale of the workplace: a small brewpub system and a production brewery running several shifts are not the same job, whatever the title. Then listen to the trend. Rising volume can mean more hours and new positions. After a flat or falling year, a candid owner says what went wrong and what they changed. You are entitled to raise it, because a small employer's health is your job security.
Where does most of the beer go: across your own bar, or out to stores, bars and restaurants?
Why ask it
A brewery that sells mainly through its taproom lives on its front-of-house staff, and one that ships most of its beer leans on packaging, logistics and sales. Knowing which kind this is tells you how central your role would be. Ask whether the balance is shifting.
Do you deliver to accounts yourselves or go through a distributor?
Why ask it
This matters most for sales and delivery roles: with a distributor a rep spends time riding along with the distributor's people, and selling direct can mean taking the orders and driving the van. Whether a brewery may deliver its own beer at all is set by local law, so let them explain the arrangement they work under.
What are the plans for the next couple of years: more tanks, a second taproom, wider distribution?
Why ask it
The reply to trust says what has already been paid for or signed: a lease, a tank on order, a deal with a distributor. Plans that depend on a good summer are hopes. Ask which jobs the expansion would create, since those are your route to more hours or a different role.
Which beers pay the bills, and which are you proudest of?
Why ask it
Often they are not the same beer, and hearing an owner or brewer admit it is a good sign of plain dealing. For a production candidate the first answer is what you would make most weeks. For the taproom it is what you would pour most, so ask how they like it described to someone who has never tried it.
How often does a new beer come out, and who decides what gets brewed?
Why ask it
A fast-changing tap list means taproom staff are always learning new beers, and brewers get variety. If one person writes every recipe, ask whether anyone else has had a beer of theirs brewed, perhaps on a small pilot system. A plain no is fine to hear, because it tells you the job is making someone else's recipes well.
What sets this brewery apart from the others nearby?
Why ask it
Taproom staff and sales reps get this exact question from customers, so the answer is also your first piece of training. The useful version is concrete: a house style, a local ingredient, a part in the life of the neighborhood. If the interviewer cannot say, you would be making it up at the bar.
How many people work here, and how are they split between the taproom and production?
Why ask it
Headcount shows how thin the coverage is. With three people in production, one vacation changes everyone's week. With a dozen on the bar, a new hire may wait a while for the good shifts. Ask how many are full time, since that often decides who gets steady hours and benefits.
Who has been here longest, and how long do taproom and production staff usually stay?
Why ask it
Years in the same taproom or cellar suggest fair treatment and steady hours. A crew that is all new can mean growth or churn, and the interviewer knows which. Long tenure cuts the other way too: it hints at how long you might wait for a better shift or a move into production.
Training and growth
Who trains a new hire here, and what do the first two weeks cover?
Why ask it
The answer to hope for has a name in it and a sequence: shadow this person, work through this checklist, run a shift alone by about this date. 'You'll pick it up' can pass behind a quiet bar. For a production job, ask which tasks are off limits until someone has signed you off on them.
How do taproom staff learn the beers: tastings with the brewers, written notes, or on the job?
Why ask it
A beertender is asked all day what a beer tastes like and what is in it, sometimes by people with allergies. Regular sessions with the brewers and a sheet for each beer mean the brewery wants its bar staff to know the product. If there is nothing, ask who you would turn to when a guest asks about ingredients.
Do you support Cicerone or other beer certifications, and who pays for the exam?
Why ask it
The Cicerone program's first level is the Certified Beer Server exam, with harder levels above it. Find out whether the brewery requires it, encourages it or has no view, whether it covers the fee, and whether passing changes your pay. A manager who has never looked into it is no red flag in a small place, as long as they can say how staff knowledge gets built instead.
Which permits or certificates do I need before a first shift, and does the brewery cover them?
Why ask it
Alcohol server training, a food handler card and minimum ages for serving or working around alcohol all depend on where the brewery is. Ask which ones this employer needs, by what date, and whether the time and cost are yours or theirs.
Are the brewing and cleaning procedures written down, or do they live in someone's head?
Why ask it
Written steps for a cleaning cycle, a transfer or a keg wash let you check yourself on the day your trainer is off. Where it all sits in the head brewer's memory, you learn by watching and every correction arrives after the mistake. An experienced candidate can offer to help write them up, which most small breweries would welcome.
How is quality checked here, and would I take part in tasting panels or lab work?
Why ask it
Plenty of small breweries have no lab to speak of, so judge the routine and not the equipment: readings logged for every batch, more than one person tasting before release, someone with the authority to dump a batch. A seat on the tasting panel is where you learn to name what has gone wrong in a beer, so find out how staff get onto it.
What would I be trusted to do on my own after three months, and after a year?
Why ask it
For cellar and brewing roles the answer lays out the ladder: cleaning and keg washing first, then transfers, then running a brew. If the list at a year matches the list at three months, the role may not grow. That suits someone who wants steady work and frustrates someone who took the job to learn.
Can taproom staff move into the brewhouse or cellar here, and has anyone done it?
Why ask it
Plenty of people take a front-of-house job hoping to end up making the beer, and breweries differ widely on whether that happens. A name and a timeline, such as a beertender who began with keg washing two days a week, is the answer that counts. Where nobody has done it, treat the taproom job as the whole job and decide whether you want it on those terms.
Could I shadow a brew day or a packaging run while I work the bar?
Why ask it
A small request that tests a big promise: any brewery that means to promote from the bar can let you watch a brew day. 'Sure, come in next Thursday' is the reply you want. Offer to fit it around your shifts, and check whether those hours would be paid, since that varies by employer.
Where have people who held this job gone next?
Why ask it
Names and destinations mean the job leads somewhere: lead beertender, shift brewer, a rep with a bigger territory, a post at a larger brewery. If everyone who left went out of the industry, ask what wore them down.
Safety
What safety training do new staff get before working around chemicals, hot liquid and pressurized tanks?
Why ask it
Production breweries use strong cleaning chemicals, near-boiling liquid and vessels under pressure. Listen for training that comes before the task, written procedures, and someone who signs you off on each hazard in turn. 'You learn as you go' is the wrong answer in this one area, however friendly the place feels.
Which protective gear do you supply, and what would I buy myself?
Why ask it
Waterproof boots, chemical gloves, eye protection and ear protection are the usual list on a production floor. Who pays differs by employer and by local rules, so ask. On the walk-through, check whether the people working are wearing what the manager just described.
How do you manage carbon dioxide in the cellar and cooler, and does anyone ever go inside a tank?
Why ask it
Carbon dioxide from fermentation and from gas lines can collect in low or closed spaces, and a tank is a confined space. A prepared brewery mentions monitors or alarms and a firm rule about tank entry, often that nobody goes in. A blank look at this question matters more than a blank look at most others.
Would I ever be alone in the building, on an early brew day or a late close, and what is the plan if something goes wrong?
Why ask it
Solo early brews and solo closes are common in small breweries. Ask whether there is a check-in call, a rule about which tasks wait until a second person arrives, and who handles the cash at night. If nobody has thought about it, you would be the one writing the plan.
Who drives the forklift and moves full kegs, and what training comes first?
Why ask it
Who may operate a forklift, and with what certificate, is set by local rules, so let the brewery describe its own. The reassuring version has a course or a sign-off before anyone takes the controls. 'Everyone just hops on' is a fair guide to how the rest of the floor is run.
What was the last injury or near miss here, and what changed afterward?
Why ask it
Any place with wet floors and heavy loads has a story, and a manager who tells it along with what was fixed is one who pays attention. A claim that nothing has happened in years of brewing may mean incidents are not being written down. Give a reason for asking, such as wanting to know what to watch for.
When a beertender refuses to serve a guest, how does the rest of the team back that up?
Why ask it
Refusing service is hardest when you are new and the guest is a regular. A good answer is quick and concrete: the manager steps in, the decision stands, nobody pours for that guest at the other end of the bar. The legal duties around serving differ by place, so ask what training the brewery gives on them.
What are the rules on shift beers and tasting during work?
Why ask it
Tasting is part of the job in a brewery, which is why the line needs to be clear. Look for a rule that everyone follows and that keeps drinking away from the production floor, the forklift and the delivery van. Hearing that the place is pretty relaxed about it should worry you in a building full of hot liquid and machinery.
Pay and hours
What does this role pay, and is it hourly or salaried?
Why ask it
Ask early enough that neither side wastes a second interview. For production jobs on salary, find out how long brew days and weekend packaging runs are counted, since who qualifies for overtime is set by local law and by the employer. Write the figure down and check it against the offer later.
Are taproom tips pooled or kept by whoever poured, and does anyone outside the bar share in them?
Why ask it
Whether the base rate is a full wage or a lower tipped wage, and who may share a pool, depends on where the brewery is and how it is run. Ask for a rough idea of what tips add per hour on a quiet weekday and on a busy weekend. A manager who knows both numbers is one who watches what the staff earn.
Which shifts would be mine in a normal week, and how early does the schedule come out?
Why ask it
Taprooms are busiest when other people are off, so expect evenings, weekends and holidays, and ask how the best and worst of them are shared out. A schedule that comes out two weeks ahead lets you plan a life or a second job. Find out how swaps work, too.
What time do brew days and packaging days start, and how long do they run?
Why ask it
Production often starts early and ends when the work is finished, not when the clock says. Get two figures: a normal day and the longest one in the past month. On double-batch days, one person doing both brews is a very different job from a handover at midday.
How many hours would you guarantee me each week, and what happens to them in the quiet months?
Why ask it
Many taprooms rise and fall with the weather, tourist traffic or the local calendar. The figure to get is how many hours the newest beertender worked in last year's quietest month. If you need a minimum to pay the rent, say the number and see whether the manager will commit to it.
Is the sales job paid by salary, commission or a mix, and who covers the vehicle, mileage and samples?
Why ask it
A rep's real pay depends on the split and on what counts toward commission: new accounts, volume or everything shipped. Fuel, the phone and the beer you hand out all come from somebody's pocket, so settle whose. Where commission is a large share, find out what the previous rep on that route earned in an ordinary month.
What comes with the job besides pay: health insurance, paid time off, a staff discount?
Why ask it
Benefits at small breweries range from a full package to a discount on beer and merchandise, and often depend on weekly hours. The threshold is the thing to get, along with whether the schedule you are being offered clears it. A reply that leans on free beer when you asked about insurance or time off is its own answer.
When are raises decided, and what has earned one here?
Why ask it
A set review date and an example of a recent raise mean there is a system. In a small brewery it may simply be that you ask the owner, in which case find out what you would need to show: a certification, running shifts alone, taking on the ordering. Learning to run transfers or the canning line should come with a new rate, so check that it does.
Before you decide
Would you want me to work a trial shift or a brew day first, and how is that time paid?
Why ask it
A day on the floor is the best information either side can get, so say yes if it is offered. Pay for a trial is a matter of local rules and the employer's own practice, so settle it before you agree to one. Bring boots with a good grip, and notice how the team treats the newest person.
Could I see the brewhouse and cellar before I leave?
Why ask it
A walk-through answers questions nobody thought to ask. Look at whether the floors are kept clear, hoses are hung up, chemical containers are labeled and people are wearing boots and eye protection. It is also the natural moment for your safety questions, with the equipment in front of you both.
Could I talk with someone who does this job now?
Why ask it
The person in the role knows which parts of the manager's account hold up. Ask them what a bad day looks like and what caught them out in their first month. A brewery that happily hands you over to its staff is usually comfortable with what they will say.
What do you like most about working here, and what is the hardest part?
Why ask it
'I love beer' describes the whole industry, so wait for something particular to this employer: the crew, the owner, the freedom to brew what they like. Then let the silence run on the hard part. An interviewer who names long summers or thin margins is giving you the fairest picture you will get that day.
Is there a gap in my experience you would want to talk through before you decide?
Why ask it
A doubt raised in the room can be answered, and one raised after you leave cannot. If it is no bar experience or no time on a production floor, say what you have done that comes close and how fast you learned it. For a real gap, ask what would close it, such as a server course or a certification you could start this week.
What is the next step, and when do you hope to have someone in the job?
Why ask it
Hiring at a small brewery is often done by someone who also has beer to make or a bar to run, so a decision can drift. Get a date, and learn what stands between today and an offer: a second interview, a working shift, a word with the owner. If the date passes, one short message is reasonable.
How to use your questions in a brewery interview
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before the interview
Pick the questions for your role
A beertender needs the answers on tips, the schedule, how staff learn the beers and what happens when service is refused. Cellar and packaging candidates should put the physical work, safety and start times first. A brewer wants volume, recipes and quality checks, and a sales rep wants distribution, territory and how commission is worked out. Mark the ones that fit and leave the rest.
Know who is across the table
An owner can speak to the money, the plans and the past year. A head brewer knows the production week, the safety routine and what a new person is trusted with. A taproom manager knows the schedule, the tips and the busy days. In a very small brewery one person is all three, so start with whatever would decide the job for you.
Visit as a customer first
If you can, go in on a busy afternoon before the interview. Read the tap list, see how many people are behind the bar and how they talk about the beer. Then build on what you saw: 'There were two of you pouring on Saturday. Is that the usual number?' gets further than a question the menu board already answered.
Choose three to five and rank them
Your turn usually comes at the end and is short. Bring one question from The job, one from Safety or Pay and hours, and one from Before you decide, and start with the one you could not accept a bad answer to. Keep the others for a tour or a trial shift, where there is more time to talk.
In the room and on the floor
Use the tour
Brewery interviews often include a walk past the tanks. Questions about equipment, batch size, protective gear and carbon dioxide land naturally there, next to the thing you are asking about, and the interviewer tends to relax once they are showing you their own brewhouse.
Ask for a name or a date
'Can people move up?' gets a yes. 'Who last moved from the bar to the cellar, and when?' gets a fact. Do the same with raises, training and injuries: a brewery with a real practice can point to the latest example.
Say why you are asking about safety
Asked cold, a question about injuries or working alone can sound like an inspection. One line of context helps: 'I have not worked around caustic before, so I would like to know how you train people on it.' A careful brewer will respect the question. One who bristles is showing you how questions go over on the floor.
Raise pay plainly
For hourly taproom and packaging jobs it is normal to ask about the rate, tips and hours in a first interview. Ask once, clearly, after you have shown interest in the work itself, and note the figures as soon as you are out of the building.
Reading the answers
Look as well as listen
The building answers some questions for you. Hoses hung up, labeled chemical containers, clear walkways and staff in boots and eye protection back up what a manager says about safety. Clutter, puddles nobody is dealing with and bare forearms next to a cleaning cycle say something else.
Small is not the same as careless
A young brewery may have no lab, no written ladder and no one whose only job is staff matters. Judge it on whether routines exist at its own scale: someone trains new people, someone tastes each batch, someone decides the schedule in good time. Missing paperwork matters less than a missing habit.
Numbers over enthusiasm
Passion for beer is easy to find in this trade and tells you little about the job. Barrels a year, people on a Saturday shift, the start time of a brew day and the length of time the team has stayed are the answers to weigh. If you leave with plenty of warmth and none of those, ask again by email.
Measure it against what you want
A taproom job with no path to the brewhouse is a good job for someone who likes working a bar and a poor one for someone set on brewing. Early starts and heavy lifting suit some people well. Decide which answers matter to you before the interview, so a friendly hour does not decide for you.
Mistakes to avoid
Leading with the perks
Opening with shift beers or the staff discount tells the interviewer what you came for. Ask about the work, the training and the safety routine first. The perks question can wait for the end or for the offer.
Treating the taproom as a waiting room
Telling a taproom manager that you really want to brew can lose you the job you are interviewing for. Ask whether people have moved into production as a question about the brewery, and make it clear you want to do the bar job well in the meantime.
Assuming the rules are the same everywhere
Tipped wages, tip pools, server certificates, overtime, paid trial shifts and the age for serving alcohol all vary by country, state and employer. Nothing on this page tells you what applies to you. Have the brewery spell out its own arrangement, and check anything that matters with the local labor office or licensing body.
Skipping safety to seem easygoing
Candidates sometimes leave out the questions on chemicals, lifting and working alone so as not to look difficult. In a production job those are the ones that affect you every day. Someone who runs a careful floor will usually think better of you for asking.