Agricultural and Food Science Technicians jobs in California

What We're About

At BrewBird, we believe in building a sustainable future in coffee. We’re developing a technology platform to scale the $100 billion specialty coffee market, while working with top local and national roasters to bring the highest quality cup of coffee to every home and office. BrewBird is backed by some of the world’s best venture funds (Sequoia Capital) and angel investors. We’re a passionate team of builders who use technology to craft elegant and delightful solutions to challenging real world problems.

What You'll Be Working On

Help us deliver barista-quality coffee in ~60 seconds—consistently. As BrewBird’s Taste Quality Technician, you’ll be the guardian of flavor, ensuring every brew meets our sensory, quality, and consistency standards. This early-career role is perfect for a process-oriented, detail-obsessed taster who loves owning a workflow end-to-end.

This role will be based in the company’s headquarters, located in San Carlos, CA. The hourly rate for this role is $25/hr, with meaningful to convert to a full time team member.

Role Type: Part-time, early career (1–3 years’ experience)

Core Responsibilities

Run sensory & cupping sessions: Set up, execute, and score daily tastings (cuppings, triangle tests, side-by-sides) to validate flavor, aroma, and extraction consistency.
Own QC workflows: Inspect incoming coffee lots and finished products/pods; track defects and variances; escalate issues with clear, timely documentation.
Calibrate and log variables: Maintain brew recipes and machine settings (grind, dose, temp, time, TDS); keep our sensory panel calibrated and our data tidy.
Partner cross-functionally: Work with Roasting, R&D, Operations, and Field teams to troubleshoot quality drifts and validate process changes.
Maintain SOPs & records: Update checklists, SOPs, and quality logs; summarize findings for weekly reviews.
Care for the lab: Keep tasting areas organized, sanitary, and audit-ready; manage supplies and basic equipment maintenance.

Desired Qualifications

Process-oriented mindset with strong follow-through and clean documentation habits.
Meticulous attention to detail—you notice the 1% shifts others miss.
Hands-on sensory tasting experience (formal or informal), with structured note-taking.
Self-starter who takes initiative and improves the workflow without being asked.
Comfort working autonomously in a lab/production environment.
Early career: ~1–3 years in QA/QC, sensory analysis, food & beverage production, or a similar lab/process environment (coffee experience is a plus but not required).
Coffee-specific tasting experience (cupping protocols, flavor lexicon familiarity).
Technical exposure to coffee machines (brew variables, water quality, calibration).
Barista experience (dial-in, espresso and filter fundamentals).
Coffee machine repair/maintenance familiarity (refractometer use, basic diagnostics).

Physical & Work Requirements

On your feet for tastings; lift/carry up to ~30 lbs occasionally.
Comfortable performing repeated tastings (reasonable accommodations available).
Standard weekday schedule with occasional early tastings or pilot runs.

Benefits

At BrewBird, we put our people first. In addition to a competitive compensation package with meaningful work experience, we provide our employees with flexible paid time off to relax and recharge. We also offer a generous 401k plan, flexible work environment, and a pre-tax commuter account for mass transit or parking.

BrewBird is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, and encourage all qualified applicants to apply.

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