Fifty West Brewing Co. will not renew the lease on its Chillicothe taproom, ending a six-year run at 1 North Paint Street that began as an ambitious bid to help revive the city's downtown. The Cincinnati-based brewery announced the decision via social media, and it will close the location by the end of 2026.
Fifty West cited financial difficulties as the reason for walking away from the lease, according to WKRC. In a follow-up statement, the brewery went out of its way to clarify that the building's landlords were not raising the rent, instead praising them as supportive partners who had invested heavily in bringing the brewery to downtown Chillicothe, according to Hopewell Heritage Headlines. The message made clear the closure stemmed from Fifty West's own internal financial realities rather than any dispute with its property owners.
A $2 Million Bet on Downtown Chillicothe
The Chillicothe taproom occupied a former Huntington Bank building, and its opening followed a $2 million renovation project Fifty West announced back in April 2019 as part of an effort to help revitalize downtown Chillicothe. Construction delays pushed the project's soft opening into late 2020, with the full public debut arriving in January 2021, per the same Hopewell Heritage Headlines account. The site sits roughly 80 miles east of Fifty West's Cincinnati headquarters along U.S. Route 50, making it the company's most distant satellite location and its only taproom outside the Greater Cincinnati metro area — a drive of nearly two hours, per Adena Health.
When Fifty West first announced the Chillicothe project in 2019, the brewpub was projected to create up to 30 local jobs. The company has confirmed all current staff have been notified of the closure, while operations continue through the end of 2026; discussions about post-closure plans for staff and the facility remain ongoing, the report notes.
From a 1827 Speakeasy to a Cincinnati Craft Beer Powerhouse
Fifty West Brewing Co. was founded in 2012 by managing partner Bobby Slattery inside a historic 1827 roadside building along U.S. Route 50 in Columbia Township, a structure that once served as a Prohibition-era speakeasy, according to the University of Cincinnati. That original site remained the company's sole location for eight years before it began expanding. In 2020, Fifty West pivoted by opening a family-friendly outdoor Burger Bar concept on Wooster Pike, a shift the university says doubled company revenues during COVID-19 hospitality restrictions and led Fifty West to replicate the format at later expansion sites.
With Chillicothe closing, Fifty West will continue operating two Greater Cincinnati locations: its original Wooster Pike campus in Columbia Township and a taproom inside The District at Deerfield development in Mason, where the brewery serves as a primary anchor tenant of the $150 million project, according to the Slatts Group. Fifty West's expansion into Mason previously drew notice in Hoodline's coverage of the Deerfield development, which highlighted the brewery's role as an entertainment anchor in the suburban Cincinnati market.
Statewide Headwinds for Ohio Craft Beer
The Chillicothe closure lands amid broader turbulence for Ohio's craft beer industry. Industry data from the Ohio Craft Brewers Association shows the state had more than 430 active craft breweries in mid-2025, yet roughly 30 breweries closed statewide that year as consumer spending shifted and taproom markets became saturated, according to figures shared on Facebook. National beer production among small craft brewers also declined over the same period.
Fifty West has faced additional regulatory pressure this year beyond ordinary market saturation. In March, Fifty West and Urban Artifact filed a lawsuit against Ohio state officials seeking to block new Senate Bill 56 restrictions on hemp-derived THC beverage sales, arguing that losing the product line threatened severe taproom revenue losses, as Hoodline reported in its coverage of Cincinnati breweries battling the state's THC drink crackdown. The lawsuit named state liquor and cannabis superintendents as defendants.
Even with Fifty West's exit, downtown Chillicothe won't be without craft beer. Old Capitol Brewing, located just down the street at 79 North Paint Street, remains in operation, and both breweries had been featured together on Ohio University's regional brew trail. Fifty West, meanwhile, remains one of Cincinnati's largest craft breweries even as it narrows its footprint back toward its Greater Cincinnati core.
