Wages per barrel production. what do you think?

[GlassCityBrewer]

ok, give us your estimates at what you think the wages are for

Head Brewer
Brewer
Cellar
Sales Rep

By the yearly barrel production.

for instance, a brewer with a company doing about 7,500 bbls a year.

[pennbrew2]

At 7,500 barrels:

Brewmaster (what's with this "Head Brewer" title everyone uses?): $6 to $7
Brewer & Cellar $4 to $5 each
Sales Rep should be compensated for new business he/she brings in, anywhere from $5 to $10 per bbl.

So just these 4 people should cost anywhere from $19 to $27 per bbl.

[Sulfur]

incentive

The Brewmaster wages sound reasonable. I like the idea of coupling the wages with beer production, it gives an incentive and promotes optimism - at least in an upward market.

[pennbrew2]

Actually I don't think the Brewmaster's pay should be directly tied to volume. I simply divided what I think he/she should be paid by the 7500 bbls in the example.

Production volume is much more dependent upon the efforts of the sales team than it is the Brewmaster. A bonus for increased volume is a great idea, but linking someone's rate of pay to something he/she has little control over is not in anyone's interest.

In a profitable, growing business the sales guys/gals should be (or at least have the opportunity to be) the highest-paid employees. I know that's never a popular concept but, if they do their job well, sales is the most valuable function in any business.

[GlassCityBrewer]

Actually I was shooting for something along the lines of the new brewer format of <750 bbls, 751-1500 bbls, >1500 bbls, etc. But I did really dig the figures anyways.

I actually have a new question though, what about hiring salary for a sales rep or area manager in a new state for a regional brewery with a 350k barrel capacity? anybody got a guess for that? lol not like I'm asking about a specific place or anything.

[el_mocoso]

"Brewmaster (what's with this "Head Brewer" title everyone uses?): $6 to $7"

I believe Brewmaster is reserved for a graduate of a brewing school, i could be wrong.

el

[beertje46]

At 7,500 barrels:

Brewmaster (what's with this "Head Brewer" title everyone uses?): $6 to $7
Brewer & Cellar $4 to $5 each
Sales Rep should be compensated for new business he/she brings in, anywhere from $5 to $10 per bbl.

So just these 4 people should cost anywhere from $19 to $27 per bbl.

On a fully automated brewery or would there be 5 other brewers as well?

Or do you mean:
1 - Brewmaster
1 - "Other" Brewer
1 - Cellarman
1 - Sales Rep.

[pennbrew2]

On a fully automated brewery or would there be 5 other brewers as well?

Or do you mean:
1 - Brewmaster
1 - "Other" Brewer
1 - Cellarman
1 - Sales Rep.

Yup, good question.

I've worked in a 7500 bbl. per year brewery where it took 6 people just to run the bottling line.

I'm also very familiar with a brewery in Germany that produces 25000 bbl. per year with a total of 5 employees.

In any scenario, a brewmaster in a 7500 bbl. brewery should make more than 90% of 7500 bbl. breweries (in the US) are willing to pay.

---Guy

[brewbonghm]

Just remember the old adage
"If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys"

[Graydon]

Pay tied to production or profit

I believe that many of us are under paid in this industry, but only a very few should have their compensation tied directly to company performance. Both profit and volume can be minipulated and I have had to take an employer to the labor commission to get wages that were tied to profits(after I was fired). I believe that only those responsible for profit and loss should be compensated partialy based on profit. This way the employees are protected from many of the economic ups and downs seen by a company, and only those that can handle changes in their income have to deal with a paycheck that varys every month. If you find a good and honest employer be the most dedicated employee you can. I do believe that if a company is profitable the employees should recieve bonuses based on their contributions to that profit level.

Graydon Brown

[Whistlingjack]

"Brewmaster (what's with this "Head Brewer" title everyone uses?): $6 to $7"

I believe Brewmaster is reserved for a graduate of a brewing school, i could be wrong.

el

Yep, call me a snob, but I totally agree...

WJ

[mountainsun]

For Brewpubs

What are the wages for BBL produced for Brewpubs?

Thanks

[BMOOR]

IMO, that's hard to quantify at wage/BBL because it is dependent not only on system size but also other duties as assigned.
I have a 15 bbl system and make 600ish bbls per year. Oneish brews per week. If I had a 5 bbl system I would be firing up the system 3 times per week and possibly working harder for the same amount of beer. Also, some pub brewers (and production brewers too, I guess do staff training, tours, events and even bartending and managing.)
On a related note, I have a fellow pub brewer who makes 3000 bbls on a 10 bbl system. Shouldn't he make A LOT more than me? (he does, but probably not that much)
So, I haven't helped answer the question that was asked. But I think it would be better to look at the range of what most pub brewers make and then look to see what is expected of that brewer (hours, extra duties, etc) at that particular location and base it on that. (oh, don't forget how much help they will get from assistants)
My guess today is that 25000 is the low end for most head pub brewers and 50,000 might be the high end (with a few making less and a few making more) Of course that is a wide range and maybe somebody can adjust those figures. Mountainsun, if you are an owner/manager, my advice is pay them 50 and if you are a brewer, ask for 50
cheers

[Tash]

Brewmaster and Masterbrewer

Yep, call me a snob, but I totally agree...

WJ

When you go to school(Weinstephan, Doemens, VLB, Leuven, Herriott-Watt, UC Davis) and get a diploma you become a Master Brewer. This is a very big thing in Germany not so much here in the US, and most of us brewers have very little 'schooling'. The term Brewmaster and Head Brewer are basically the same thing. Of course most people who have a problem with this are people that have titles like cellar rat, keg boy, or bitch...

Personally it all comes down to one thing. Can you brew your way out of a paper bag??? If people pay for your beer and come back and pay for more I think you can call yourself a brewmaster. Of course if you get caught calling yourself a MasterBrewer, Dr. Lewis is going to come and kick your ass!


Tash

[big_al]

Yep, call me a snob, but I totally agree...

WJ

"Brewmaster" and "Master Brewer" are two different things:

one is a title and the other is a qualification.

A "Brewmaster" is the brewer ultimately responsible for the brewery production, recipes, QC etc etc and, in a big brewery, may have a number of Brewers and/or Master Brewers working under them.

A "Master Brewer" is someone who has completed the required exam and therefore has demonstrated a very high level of competency.

Allan