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This brewery manager never gets tired of beer

May 8th, 2019  |  Published in New York Sits Down to Dinner 2019, Uncategorized

Gun Hill Brewery tap room manager Jeff Spychala isn’t a picky eater, but there’s one thing he won’t eat: fish. Other than that, he’ll eat whatever his wife puts on the table — along with a cold beer, even after 10 hours of being surrounded by it.  

Before being promoted in March to tap room manager at the brewery in Laconia, Bronx, Spychala worked as a bartender at its tavern in Mott Haven. In that role, he closed the bar four nights a week, so he rarely saw his wife Kristi, a teacher with an earlier schedule. Now, with their schedules more in sync, he doesn’t care what’s on his plate — he’s just grateful to eat with her.

The brewery section is blocked off when brewers are making beer. Photo: Christine Chun.

Kristi likes to experiment with different flavors and cuisines, inspired by cookbooks, shows and family recipes. “Everything is delicious,” Jeff said, whether it’s black dal with basmati rice or marinated chicken with sliced almonds.

“There are a lot of times where we’ll finish eating, and I’ll be like, ‘wow, that was really good. By the way, what did I just eat?’” said Spychala, who married Kristi in 2017. But not fish. “It’s just too fishy to me.”

Around noon, Spychala, a New Jersey native, rolls into work after a hilly bike ride from his Riverdale home. A tall, bald 30-year-old with a thick beard and medium build, Spychala says his 25-minute commute is a good form of exercise on top of his usual running routine. Once he arrives, his first job is to get the grill going outside for 100 dry jerk chicken wings, sold on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Spychala grills 100 dry jerk chicken wings. Photo: Christine Chun.

While the grill heats up, he checks in with Chris Prout, the head brewer, who is handling shipments of kegs, and Laura Smock, a bartender who cleans the countertops and checks out the new cash register.

The brewery, which opened in 2014, is a rustic, open space decorated with American flags and a Revolutionary War-era decor. The front pull-down gate opens up to the tap room on the left with five tall tables for eight and eight counter seats.

On the right and through the back is the brewery, with massive vats of beer brewing, as well as rows of barrels and kegs. There’s also outdoor seating with barrels used as tables. Gun Hill makes 35 kinds of beer for distribution, and the tap room has 14 of those on tap that changes almost daily, save for its four signatures — Gun Hill Gold, IPA, Void of Light and Spirit 76.

Formerly a fourth grade teacher, Spychala has two important meals during the day: the dinner with his wife and a big lunch he brings to work. He used to skimp on a proper breakfast or lunch, he said, noting he’s not a morning person.

“I tried to treat coffee as a meal, which, it isn’t. It’s lovely but not a meal,” he said.  

In 2018, after six years of working in education, Spychala realized that was not his passion, quit his job and started exploring.

“I did the thing where you say, ‘I’m going to do something I enjoy,’” he said.

He channeled in his interest for beer and cold-called “all the breweries in the city” – but no bites. After a period of unemployment, he tried again, this time offering to work as a volunteer. Gun Hill owner Kieran Farrell responded immediately and hired him as a barback, or a bartender’s assistant, at the tavern, where he started in August 2018.

Spychala brings his lunch, usually sandwiches like chicken and provolone or ham and brie. While on some days he gets enjoy a real lunch break, a lot of times he takes bites in between serving beers, organizing growler caps and other tasks.

No matter what the meal, he usually drinks beer — even at dinner with food typically paired with wine, like charcuterie. At work, he and Smock sample the beers on tap, when new ones join the draft list.

“I have to try all these new things because when we’re open and people ask me, I have to know what it is,” Smock said.

Spychala tries the new batch of Pink Bazooka, a brew that Smock helped make in collaboration with Pink Boots Society on International Women’s Day, and gives her a thumbs-up.  

“Part of the job is being like, ‘We don’t have that, but you like X, so you should try this,” he said.

In the tap room, customers can play board games, order in food and even bring their dogs. Photo: Christine Chun.

Customers like Carlos Nieves appreciate this kind of familiarity, as well as the friendly environment.  

“They make you feel like home, like in ‘Cheers,’” said Nieves, a city department of transportation employee who visits the brewery every other week.

Working at a brewery makes Spychala more appreciative of the craft. “With thousands of different breweries, you have to set yourself apart from the crowd somehow,” he said. “You can only do so much in the same style of beer,” so it’s interesting to see what others come up with.

He recently had his own idea for a beer: a gravy IPA, which his wife called a “terrible” combination since IPAs are usually light. Although it never materialized, one of the brewers “didn’t hate the idea,” according to Spychala, who admits it probably wasn’t a good one.

“I don’t know how well it’d actually work. I’ll let them do their thing back there,” he said. “Seems better that way.”

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