Staff Brewer/Cellar Person

Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Cinderlands Warehouse, 2601 Smallman St.

Employment type: Full-time, hourly, non-exempt (overtime eligible)

Compensation: $19.00–$23.50 per hour, based on brewing and cellar experience

Reports to: Head Brewer

Start date: Immediately

About Cinderlands

Cinderlands Beer Co. in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania seeks a passionate, diligent, detail-oriented brewer to join our production team at the Cinderlands Warehouse. Our brewing staff operates a 15 BBL brewhouse with 15 BBL and 30 BBL fermentation vessels, brite serving tanks, lager tanks, a centrifuge, and a canning line in an urban brewpub setting. Our target this year is 6,200 BBLs of draft and packaged beer, roughly 3,500 of it brewed in-house on this system. Most of our volume goes into self-distribution and wholesale distribution, with the remainder served on-site at our brewpubs and suburban taproom.

The Cinderlands Warehouse is a 300+ seat brewpub that opened in May 2019, just 1.5 miles from the original Cinderlands Foederhouse brewery and its Long Story Short retail concept. Both pubs have inventive, professional kitchen teams led by talented chefs who are our partners in delivering exceptional experiences to our guests. Cinderlands was named one of the best new breweries in the country in 2018 by USA Today and Hop Culture Magazine, and one of the ten best breweries in the country in 2019 by Hop Culture Magazine. We have won two gold medals and one bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival, and three gold medals at the World Beer Cup.

About the Role

This is a hands-on production role covering brewing and cellaring, reporting to the Head Brewer. You will brew, rack, harvest, dry hop, clean, and keep records alongside a small, experienced team, and you will be trusted to run the brewhouse and the cellar without someone standing next to you.

This seat is open because we promoted the brewer who held it into our Head Brewer position in August 2026.

We have a talented, skilled production team in place, and we are hiring for capability we can put to work now. This posting is looking for someone with professional production experience — specifically, hands-on time on a brewhouse of at least 10 BBL and command of the full range of small-brewery cellar functions. We have run searches in the past that welcomed applicants at any level of experience; this one does not.

What Matters Most to Us

Beyond the experience floor, three things matter more to us than anything else on a resume:

1. A deep, abiding passion for beer such that it is clearly and evidently among the important facets of your life.
2. Non-stop pursuit of new knowledge in the discipline of beer production through reading, listening, and conversation.
3. Rock-solid character, some of which may look like: firmly high standards for production and sensory, high levels of motivation, a growth mindset, steadfast dependability and follow-through, a burly work ethic, high efficiency without sacrificing accuracy or thoroughness, and open, effective communication without defensiveness.

If you have those three things and the production experience described below, we'd love to talk.

What You'll Do

Brewhouse

• Mill grain; mash, boil, whirlpool, knock out, and chill wort
• Execute the daily brew schedule set by the Head Brewer, including double-brew days
• Brew to both quantitative and sensory targets, following approved recipes and SOPs

Cellar

• Rack beer between fermentors and brite tanks
• Harvest and pitch yeast; dry hop
• Clean and sanitize tanks, hoses, fittings, and other brewery equipment
• Monitor beer in tank by sensory evaluation and measurement, including daily gravity readings
• Manage carbonation, brite tanks, and lager tanks through to the handoff to packaging

Packaging, kegs, and materials

• Clean and fill kegs, including transporting kegs for cleaning
• Support canning-line runs and centrifuge operation as assigned
• Receive, organize, and pack shipments; unload pallets of grain and sugar
• Transport materials and finished product between brewery locations and off-site storage
• Count and record inventory thoroughly and accurately

Records, systems, and communication

• Keep accurate, timely, and legible records, and enter brewing activity promptly in Ekos and the quality spreadsheets
• Follow production SOPs and contribute to their ongoing development
• Communicate promptly and effectively within the team and across departments, using Slack as our primary tool
• Communicate with the Head Brewer to understand and fulfill your responsibilities, and report safety, maintenance, or beer quality issues without delay

Facility, safety, and representation

• Work safely and efficiently, and maintain safe conditions for other employees and visitors
• Maintain high standards of cleanliness and orderliness in the production area — this is a working brewery inside a busy brewpub, and guests can see it
• Maintain and repair mechanical equipment to keep production safe and on schedule
• Represent Cinderlands Beer Co. in a positive way, and avoid actions, statements, and situations that are not reflective of our culture, standards, and good standing in the community
• Occasional assignment to on- and off-site consumer-facing events outside of normal working hours — trade shows, beer dinners, beer festivals
• Other duties as assigned

What Success Looks Like

• Brews and racks land on plan without needing to be checked behind you.
• Tanks, floors, hoses, and fittings are clean and orderly to a standard a guest could look at.
• Ekos entries and quality-sheet records are complete, same-day, and legible.
• Gravity and sensory problems get caught and reported early, not discovered at brite.
• The Head Brewer can build a weekly schedule around you without hedging.

Experience and Qualifications

Required

• Professional experience operating a brewhouse of at least 10 BBL — mashing, boiling, whirlpool, knockout, and chilling, performed without supervision. We brew on a 15 BBL system and need someone who can step onto it with orientation rather than instruction.
• Demonstrated proficiency across the full range of small-brewery cellar functions: racking, tank and line CIP and sanitization, yeast harvesting and pitching, dry hopping, carbonation, brite- and lager-tank management, and in-tank gravity and sensory monitoring
• Ability to demonstrate repeatable, unsupported proficiency of complicated and sensitive tasks after training, practice, and feedback
• Proficiency in, or ability to quickly learn, Google Sheets, Google Drive, Google Docs, Slack, and Ekos
• A valid and current driver's license, and the ability to load, unload, and locally drive a commercial van or truck (no CDL required)
• 21 years of age or older

A bonus, and worth telling us about

• Packaging line operation, particularly canning
• Centrifuge operation
• Ekos or another brewery ERP
• Formal brewing, fermentation-science, or food-science education
• Forklift, HACCP, GMP, OSHA, or lockout/tagout training

Desirable traits

• Growth-oriented mindset with a willingness to openly communicate mistakes and gaps in knowledge
• Demonstrated ability to make intelligent decisions in difficult, rapidly evolving circumstances
• Functional interpersonal skills, self-awareness, verbal and written communication, and emotional intelligence
• Ability to trust and earn the trust of teammates, engage in productive conflict, commit to decisions in the best interest of the company, hold others and be held accountable, and focus on delivering results
• Exceptional curiosity and analytical ability
• Desire and ability to engage with teammates, customers, and industry peers from all walks of life
• Ability to thrive in systems that empower employees and hold them accountable

How We Work

We work hard every day to sustain a healthy culture, and ours is specific enough to be worth describing before you apply.

We start from a point of trust and honesty. From there we disagree passionately about ideas, because the purpose of the argument is to take a problem apart and examine it from many angles. Once that discussion has happened and a decision is made, the whole team owns it — there is no snickering in the hall and no undermining a decision after it's made. We know we often decide with imperfect information and unknown outcomes, so we work hard at executing the strategy we agreed to, and we hold ourselves and each other accountable to keep that foundation of trust intact. When we come up short, we pick the effort apart and learn together. When we succeed, we celebrate together and reward it.

Our expectation is that you handle the problems that arise in your own work and tell us about them before we hear it from someone else. Tell us what you're struggling with and how you think you can get through it, and you'll get advice and support — along with the authority and responsibility to do what you need to do.

Schedule

• Expected hours are 30–45 per week, typically between 6 AM and 7 PM, Monday through Friday, with occasional weekend assignments.
• Start times follow the production plan. Double-brew days generally begin at 7:00 or 7:30 AM; standard days begin at 9:00 AM.
• Daily gravity readings are required every day of the week, including weekends. Weekend coverage is traded off between brewers — you and the Head Brewer will share that rotation.
• Reliable transportation to our primary work premises at 2601 Smallman St. is required.

Physical Requirements

The role requires the ability to lift and carry 55-pound bags, and to lift them above shoulder height; climb ladders; push and pull 165-pound kegs along the floor; unload 2,500-pound pallets of grain and sugar 50–55 pounds at a time; work in tight spaces with low clearance for extended periods; work in extreme hot and cold temperatures for short periods; work with hazardous chemicals and wear personal protective equipment; and travel by car, train, and airplane.

Reasonable accommodations will be provided for qualified individuals with disabilities.

Compensation and Benefits

• $19.00–$23.50 per hour, based on brewing and cellar experience. Overtime is paid at one and one-half times your regular rate for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.
• Health insurance with 50% of the premium covered by us for you, and 25% for a spouse and dependents, across any plan we offer — currently UPMC Health Plan Gold PPO plus two lower-priced options. Dental and vision available.
• Two weeks (10 days) of paid vacation plus one week (5 days) unpaid, with one additional paid day for each year of service up to five additional days, 15 total.
• Paid sick leave (5 days).
• Free draft beer, free four-packs to go, occasional free kegs, free on-shift meals and discounted off-shift meals at our locations, and semi-annual merchandise credit.
• Support for ongoing brewing education, job-related travel and training, and advancement.

How to Apply

Send a resume and a cover letter discussing your qualifications by using the Apply Now button.

It helps us most if your cover letter tells us:

• The brewhouse you've run, its size, and how long you ran it
• A cellar process you own end to end, and how you know it's right
• A quality, sanitation, or equipment problem you diagnosed and fixed

You do not need to meet every bonus qualification to apply.

Cinderlands Beer Co. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable law. In addition to federal law requirements, Cinderlands Beer Co. complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.