On a college campus, caffeine carries as much weight as your room key or the designated community-friend-group vape. So it is no surprise that the Brew, Vassar College’s student-run coffee and tea cafe, is as popular as it is. It is also no surprise that, when the Brew closed for two weeks and left students strung out and resorting to The Crafted Kup, there were some questions. On our two-week Brew detox, my friends and I reflected on how habitual our walks to get a coffee or tea from the Winton Evans Bridge for Laboratory Sciences (the Bridge) had become.
My own caffeine addiction gives me an inherent bias, but it would be hard for anyone to try to argue that the Brew is not a key spot on campus. As a senior, I can recall when the Brew was a rolling island cart in the basement of the Old Bookstore and not the popular cafe in the Bridge it is today. I was curious to know how the Brew evolved into what it is now, and the direction it is heading after I graduate. I sat down with the current Brew manager and assistant manager, Zoe Hoiland ’26 and Ezra Graham ’27, to get some answers (and an iced dirty chai).
I started by asking about their own histories with the storied establishment. Hoiland, who is easily recognized by her piercings and frequently changing hair color, started working at the Brew during her first year at Vassar. Despite her initial dislike for the taste of coffee, she now finds herself responsible for crafting the Brew’s specialty drink menu. You can thank her for the Brewbai special (dark chocolate drizzle with pistachio syrup) and mango matchas. Graham, on the other hand, only started working at the Brew in his sophomore year. He expressed that he was nervous during his initial interview—“‘cause, it’s, like the Brew”—but he got the job and, after putting in some extra hours, found himself quickly rising to the rank of assistant Brew manager.
They both described balancing their time working and socializing at the Brew with their schoolwork as challenging. It is easy to find themselves sucked into the allure of fresh coffee beans mixed with even fresher gossip. Running the Brew requires more than the eight hours a week that Work Study covers, but for Hoiland and Graham, it is about more than just a paycheck. Thankfully, they were able to increase the amount of baristas by a third—divvying up some of the work—but they are still hoping to hire more next year. In terms of scheduling, the increased workforce presented a new puzzle of class schedules, extracurriculars and events; but, according to Hoiland, the passion is strong with the Brew Crew.
With three years of experience, I also wanted to know what Hoiland thought was the biggest difference between when she started and now. She said the biggest difference was that the Brew Crew represented a group of friends, not just coworkers. Compared to when she started, the vibe between the baristas is much more collaborative and friendly. As a customer, I have observed this too. Graham commented on the community as well, noting, “People hang out outside of [the Brew], and it’s just a lot more dynamic than just, we work together.”
In my opinion, the biggest difference at the Brew is the location. Compared with the Main basement setup, the Brew that greets incoming students now feels more like an establishment. Having a permanent space changed the vibe, too. “We can make decorations, we can actually customize the space, which we never had an opportunity to—which we’re taking full advantage of this year,” explained Hoiland. The next time you stop by the Brew, take a look at the “THE BREW” sign made out of customers’ used punch cards—maybe you will even spot the “days since Jeff Buckley has been played” sign.
Finally, I breached the big questions: Why had the Brew been closed and when would they reopen? At this point, they were not sure when reopening would occur, but I am happy to report they started up this past Monday. The reason for the wait? The team was waiting for the installation of a new espresso machine. After expressing how badly my housemates and I had been missing the Brew, Hoiland responded, “The community has felt it too.”
Sympathetic to students missing the Brew, Graham was also thankful that this interview would let students know why they had been closed. He told the same spiel about waiting for the installation of the espresso machine to two different passersby since we had sat down for the interview. The Brew Crew had been requesting a new espresso machine for a little over a year, after one of the steam wands on the old machine broke back during Hoiland’s first year at the Brew. They had finally gotten the new machine but were stuck waiting for the College to schedule the installation. Frustrated with the timeline but grateful to soon have a fully functioning machine, we moved on to my next question.
Unfortunately, despite my pleading, neither of them would answer my question of: “Who’s your favorite customer?”
We ended the interview looking toward what was to come. When asked what their hope was for the future of the Brew, the managers offered similar answers. Hoiland, who will graduate this May, is feeling content with how she will leave the Brew. Her main goal was to build the foundation up by creating more of a community and lots of collaboration for the future Brew Crew to inherit. It is clear she has succeeded and is passing the joint over to good hands. Graham, who will continue on as Brew manager next year, also reflected on the community they have established. He shared a story of a barista who graduated last year, stopping by the Brew when he visited campus right before break. To Graham, it speaks to the environment they have cultivated if a barista alumnus feels the desire to stop by and say “hi.” This is the reputation he hopes to keep brewing when he takes over the helm next fall.
Happy to hear they’re up and running again!!!