Week 4 - One down and more to come

Image from Google Images

The past few weeks have been interesting to say the least. Let me start with my volunteer work. I have been going over to Hooker at least once a week to help out around the brewery. A few people asked for pictures but I failed. Sorry, beer people. I forgot my camera yesterday but it's probably a good thing as I had to ride home in a constant rain. In my short time I have already determined which jobs to avoid. I'm not getting paid so I try to push keg washing and filling to the interns. After all, they're just there to make a buck and don't really care what they are doing as long as they get a free case at the end of the week. As for my work, I enjoy the bottling line and filling the kegs although, nothing beats standing around talking shop with the master brewer while taking in the hop aroma that permeates the air on brew day. Overall, working at Hooker is like witnessing a large home brew operation. Sometimes I think it's amazing that small packaging breweries can make in the industry. There are so many limitations that a small brewery has to face.  Maybe the staff limitation will work to my benefit at the end of the summer. The interns have to go back to school and Hooker will need someone to man the bottling operation if they plan to bottle everything in house. Not my dream job but a step in the right direction.  

Now for real job information. I had my first industry interview last week at a craft brewery in Vermont. The interview was for a Sales Rep position working Connecticut and Western Mass. In my opinion, there is no better way to spread the word of craft beer than selling craft beer itself. The interview went very well. I went to Vermont planning to only meet with the Sales and Marketing Director and ended up meeting with 8 people over four hours including the master brewer, CFO and the CEO. I was feeling pretty confident after the interview as the CEO sent me an email telling me he was impressed by my "know how" and passion for craft beer. As it turns out, the job came down to me and another candidate who had extensive experience working with Connecticut distributors. He/she got the job. I was obviously disappointed but I respect their decision. I chalk it up as a learning experience. Now I know what to look for and expect in future interviews. I'll be in good shape next time the phone rings!   

Overall, I'm happy with where things stand. I'm getting great industry experience working at a brewery and I've already had one industry interview. I've learned so much over the past 4 weeks and I'm positive that I made the right career choice. 

Other than pictures, let me know if there is anything you want to know about the brewery or any of my experiences. I'm heading back to Hooker next week and I'll take a few pictures of the operation.