BarSight Brewery Onboarding Guide
BarSight Brewery Onboarding Guide
Welcome to BarSight! This guide will walk you through setting up your brewery account and getting your first products ready to sell.
Getting Started: Essential Setup
Before you can start tracking batches and selling beer, you need to complete a few essential setup steps.
Step 1: Activate the Brewery Module
- Navigate to Brewery Settings (accessible from the main menu)
- Click Activate Brewery Module (owner-level access required)
- Your brewery features are now enabled
[SCREENSHOT: Brewery activation screen]
Step 2: Create Your First Facility
A facility represents your physical brewing location. You need at least one facility to use the brewery features.
- Go to Brewery Settings → Facilities
- Click Add New Facility
- Enter your facility details:
- Facility name (e.g., "Main Brewery")
- Address and location information
- Contact details
- Click Save
[SCREENSHOT: Facility creation form]
Step 3: Set Up Your Equipment
Now add the essential brewing equipment to your facility. At minimum, you need:
- One Brewing Vessel (Brewhouse) - where you brew your wort
- One Fermentation Vessel (FV) - where beer ferments
- One Conditioning/Bright Tank (BT) - where beer conditions before packaging
To add equipment:
- Go to Brewery Settings → Equipment
- Click Add New Equipment
- For each piece of equipment:
- Select equipment type (Brewing, Fermentation, or Conditioning)
- Enter a name (e.g., "Brewhouse 1", "FV Tank 1")
- Enter capacity (in barrels or hectoliters)
- Assign to your facility
- Click Save
[SCREENSHOT: Equipment list showing all three types]
Step 4: Configure Basic Settings
Configure how you want to track and measure your brewing operations:
- Go to Brewery Settings → Brew Log Settings
- Set up your preferred units of measurement (UOMs):
- Volume (barrels, hectoliters, liters, gallons)
- Temperature (Celsius, Fahrenheit)
- Gravity (SG, Plato, Brix)
- Configure which measurements you want to track during fermentation:
- Temperature
- Gravity readings
- pH levels
- Other custom measurements
- Click Save Settings
[SCREENSHOT: UOM configuration screen]
Foundation Setup: Building Your Inventory System
With your facility set up, it's time to build out the foundation of your brewery operations.
Step 5: Create Inventory Categories
Organize your ingredients and supplies into logical categories:
- Navigate to Brewery → Inventory
- Click Categories tab
- Create categories such as:
- Hops
- Malt/Grains
- Yeast
- Adjuncts
- Packaging Supplies
- Cleaning Chemicals
- For each category, set the inventory type:
- Production - ingredients used in brewing
- Resale/Deposit - items sold separately (merchandise, kegs with deposits)
[SCREENSHOT: Inventory categories list]
Step 6: Add Your First Vendors
Track where you purchase your ingredients:
- Go to Brewery → Purchases → Vendors
- Click Add Vendor
- Enter vendor information:
- Company name
- Contact person
- Email and phone
- Address
- Payment terms
- Click Save
[SCREENSHOT: Vendor form]
Step 7: Set Up Payment Types and GL Accounts
Configure how you track payments and expenses:
- Go to Brewery Settings → Payment Types
- Add common payment methods:
- Cash
- Check
- Credit Card
- EFT/ACH
- Account Credit
- If using accounting integration, link each payment type to a GL (General Ledger) account
[SCREENSHOT: Payment types configuration]
Step 8: Create Your First Inventory Items
Add the ingredients you'll use in your recipes:
- Go to Brewery → Inventory
- Click Add Inventory Item
- For each ingredient, enter:
- Item name (e.g., "Cascade Hops", "2-Row Pale Malt")
- Category (from categories you created)
- Unit of measurement (lbs, kg, oz)
- Current stock quantity
- Alert threshold (when to reorder)
- Cost per unit
- Supplier
- Click Save
Repeat this process for all your common ingredients (hops, malts, yeast strains, adjuncts).
[SCREENSHOT: Inventory item form with example ingredient]
Product Creation: Recipes and Packaging
Now for the fun part - creating your beer recipes and defining how you'll package them.
Step 9: Define Product Types and Styles
Set up your beer categories:
- Navigate to Brewery → Recipes
- Click Product Types tab
- Add beer types such as:
- Ale
- Lager
- Sour
- Cider
- Mead
- Click Styles tab
- Add specific styles under each type:
- IPA → American IPA, New England IPA, West Coast IPA
- Lager → Pilsner, Helles, Märzen
- Ale → Stout, Porter, Pale Ale
[SCREENSHOT: Product types and styles configuration]
Step 10: Create Your First Recipe
Build out a complete beer recipe:
- Go to Brewery → Recipes
- Click Add Recipe
- Enter basic recipe information:
- Recipe name (e.g., "Cascade IPA")
- Product type and style
- Target batch size
- Target ABV
- Target IBU
- Target SRM (color)
- Add ingredients from your inventory:
- Grain Bill: Select malts and specify quantities
- Hops Schedule: Add hop additions with timing (60 min, 30 min, flameout, dry hop)
- Yeast: Select yeast strain and quantity
- Adjuncts: Any additional ingredients (fruit, spices, etc.)
- Add brewing steps and instructions:
- Mash schedule (temperature and time)
- Boil time and additions
- Fermentation temperature and timeline
- Conditioning requirements
- Click Save Recipe
[SCREENSHOT: Recipe creation form with ingredient list]
[SCREENSHOT: Recipe brewing steps section]
Step 11: Set Up Package Groups and Pricing
Define how you'll package and price your products:
- Navigate to Brewery → Recipes → Package Groups
- Click Add Package Group
- Create package groups such as:
- Kegs: 1/6 BBL, 1/2 BBL (half barrel), Full BBL
- Cans: 12oz 4-pack, 12oz 6-pack, 16oz single
- Bottles: 22oz Bomber, 750ml
- For each package group:
- Set the container size and type
- Define deposit amounts (for kegs)
- Set wholesale price
- Set retail price
- Click Save
[SCREENSHOT: Package groups list with pricing]
Step 12: Assign Pricing to Your Recipe
Link your package groups to specific recipes:
- Go back to Brewery → Recipes
- Select your recipe
- Click Price Lists tab
- Assign prices for each package group:
- Select package group (1/2 BBL Keg)
- Set price for this recipe in this package ($120)
- Set deposit if applicable ($30)
- Repeat for all package types you plan to offer
[SCREENSHOT: Recipe pricing configuration]
Start Brewing and Selling: Core Operations
You're all set up! Now let's walk through creating your first batch and selling it to customers.
Step 13: Create a Customer Profile
Before you can take orders, you need customers:
- Navigate to Brewery → Customers
- Click Add Customer
- Enter customer details:
- Business name (for wholesale) or individual name (for retail)
- Contact information (email, phone)
- Billing address
- Shipping address (if different)
- Tax ID (for wholesale customers)
- Payment terms
- Customer type (Wholesale, Retail, Distribution)
- Click Save
[SCREENSHOT: Customer creation form]
Step 14: Plan Your First Batch
Create a batch from your recipe:
- Go to Brewery → Planning
- Click Create New Batch
- Select your recipe (e.g., "Cascade IPA")
- Enter batch details:
- Batch name/number (e.g., "IPA-001" or "Cascade IPA Batch 1")
- Planned brew date
- Batch size (use recipe default or adjust)
- Assign to brewing vessel (your brewhouse)
- Review ingredient requirements:
- System auto-calculates ingredient amounts from recipe
- Ingredients will be reserved from inventory
- Click Create Batch
Your batch is now scheduled and ingredients are reserved!
[SCREENSHOT: Batch creation form]
[SCREENSHOT: Batch planning calendar view]
Step 15: Brew Day - Execute Your Batch
On brew day, track your batch progress:
- Go to Brewery → Planning → Active Batches
- Select your batch
- Click Start Brewing
- Follow recipe steps and log:
- Mash temperatures and times
- Boil start time
- Hop addition times
- Original gravity reading
- Volume transferred to fermenter
- When complete, assign batch to fermentation vessel (FV Tank)
- Click Transfer to Fermentation
[SCREENSHOT: Batch execution screen with brew log]
Step 16: Track Fermentation
Monitor your beer as it ferments:
- Navigate to Brewery → Planning → Fermenting Batches
- Select your batch
- Log daily/regular measurements:
- Date and time
- Temperature
- Gravity reading
- pH (if tracking)
- Visual observations
- System tracks progress toward target final gravity
- When fermentation is complete, click Move to Conditioning
- Assign to bright tank/conditioning vessel
[SCREENSHOT: Fermentation log with gravity chart]
Step 17: Package Your Finished Beer
Convert your batch into sellable products:
- Go to Brewery → Final Products
- Click Package Batch
- Select your completed batch
- Choose package groups to fill:
- 10x 1/2 BBL Kegs
- 4x 1/6 BBL Kegs
- Enter packaging details:
- Package date
- Lot number (auto-generated or custom)
- Expiration/best-by date
- For kegs, assign keg IDs/numbers for tracking
- Click Package Batch
Your batch is now inventory stock ready to sell!
[SCREENSHOT: Package batch form showing split into different package types]
[SCREENSHOT: Final products inventory view with package counts]
Step 18: Create Your First Order
Sell your beer to a customer:
- Navigate to Brewery → Orders
- Click Create Order
- Select customer from dropdown
- Enter order details:
- Order date
- Delivery/pickup date
- Order type (Sale or Presale)
- PO number (if applicable)
- Add products to order:
- Select product (your packaged beer)
- Select package type (1/2 BBL Keg)
- Enter quantity
- Price auto-fills from pricing list
- Add deposit if kegs
- Review order total
- Click Create Order
[SCREENSHOT: Order creation form]
Step 19: Process Payment and Fulfill Order
Complete the order:
- From order details, click Record Payment
- Select payment method (Cash, Card, etc.)
- Enter payment amount
- Click Save Payment
- Order status changes to "Paid"
- On delivery/pickup, mark order as Fulfilled
- Inventory automatically decrements
[SCREENSHOT: Order detail view showing payment and fulfillment options]
Next Steps: Advanced Features
Congratulations! You've successfully set up BarSight and completed your first sale. Here are some powerful features to explore next:
Payment Processing Integrations
Accept credit card payments directly in BarSight:
- Square: Full payment processing with customer management
- Moneris: Canadian payment processing
- Chase: Enterprise payment solutions
- Clover: POS integration
To set up:
- Go to Settings → API & Integrations
- Select your payment processor
- Click Activate and follow OAuth connection flow
- Configure payment settings
- Start accepting card payments on orders and invoices
[SCREENSHOT: API integrations dashboard]
QuickBooks Online Sync
Automatically sync your sales, expenses, and inventory to QuickBooks:
- Go to Settings → API & Integrations
- Find QuickBooks Online
- Click Connect to QuickBooks
- Authorize BarSight to access your QuickBooks account
- Map your products to QuickBooks items
- Map your payment types to QuickBooks accounts
- Enable automatic sync
All orders, invoices, and expenses will now sync to QuickBooks automatically.
[SCREENSHOT: QuickBooks integration settings]
Inventory Management Best Practices
Get the most out of your inventory tracking:
- Set alert thresholds: Get notified when ingredients run low
- Track lot numbers: Ensure traceability for all ingredients
- Regular audits: Periodically verify physical inventory matches system
- Purchase orders: Create POs to track incoming ingredient shipments
- Vendor management: Track supplier performance and pricing history
- Multi-location: If you have multiple facilities, track inventory separately
Access the built-in inventory tutorial: Brewery → Inventory → Tutorial
Yeast Management
Track yeast harvesting and reuse:
- During batch fermentation, mark yeast as harvested
- System creates yeast inventory item
- Track yeast viability and generation count
- Use harvested yeast in future batches
- Reduce ingredient costs through yeast reuse
Navigate to Brewery → Yeast Management to get started.
Advanced Batch Features
- Batch blending: Combine multiple batches into a single product
- Batch splitting: Divide a batch into multiple final products
- Recipe scaling: Automatically adjust ingredient quantities for different batch sizes
- Cost tracking: Monitor per-batch costs including ingredients, labor, and overhead
- Equipment scheduling: Visual calendar of tank utilization and availability
Customer Portal Access
Give your wholesale customers self-service access:
- In customer profile, enable Portal Access
- Customer receives login credentials
- Customers can:
- View product catalog with pricing
- Place orders online
- View order history
- Track deliveries
- View account balance and statements
Reporting and Analytics
Track your brewery's performance:
- Sales reports: Revenue by product, customer, time period
- Production reports: Batch yields, efficiency, costs
- Inventory reports: Stock levels, usage rates, reorder needs
- Customer reports: Top customers, sales trends, account aging
Navigate to Reports to explore available analytics.
Video Resources
[VIDEO PLACEHOLDER: Complete BarSight brewery onboarding walkthrough (15-20 minutes)]
[VIDEO PLACEHOLDER: Advanced batch planning and fermentation tracking (10 minutes)]
[VIDEO PLACEHOLDER: Setting up QuickBooks and payment integrations (8 minutes)]
Need Help?
If you run into any issues or have questions:
- In-app tutorials: Look for tutorial links throughout the brewery module
- Support documentation: Visit your BarSight support portal
- Contact support: Email or call your BarSight representative
Happy brewing! 🍺