In a sobering announcement to the San Francisco beer community, the much-loved City Beer Store declared it will close its doors after 18 years in business. The difficult decision, tinged with a note of melancholy, came as a surprise to many patrons and followers when the owners revealed it on their Instagram page. Citing a mix of insurmountable circumstances, the owners, Craig and Beth Wathen, expressed heartfelt thanks to their staff, loyal customers, breweries, importers, and wholesalers, with whom they've built strong relationships over nearly two decades.
With its beginnings in 2006, City Beer Store has hosted countless life events, from wedding showers to birthdays, and created a warm-imbued gathering spot for the local community. "This is not what we hoped for the little store we opened in 2006, and it’s not the choice we wanted to make, but it’s the choice we felt had to be made," the owners stated via KRON4.
The final days of service are set today and tomorrow, September 20 and 21, with limited operating hours from 3 PM to 8 PM, offering the community a chance to visit one last time and partake in a final shared glass. Amidst these bittersweet goodbyes, the establishment will also host a final cellar sale online, featuring their vintage offerings. The scheduled pickups for all online orders from this sale are on Tuesday, September 24, and Thursday, September 26, allowing for a last grasp at the exclusive selections that have been a draw for their customer base.
The farewell note on City Beer Store's Instagram captures the spirit of the shop, "City Beer has always been more than a bar and bottleshop, City Beer has been a home," celebrating the myriad of moments, big and small, that have woven into the fabric of the establishment during its tenure on Valencia Street. While the doors may be closing, the Wathens hope that this conclusion is simply the transition to a new chapter, "Like the platypus, City Beer is a sum of many parts, may this next part be a new opening, a new adventure," they conveyed to their patrons. Fans and regulars alike are encouraged to visit the store during its final days to raise their glasses in honor of the memories made and to bid farewell to a community staple that will surely be missed.
