Harbottle Brewing Company is closing the doors of its South Tucson taproom, telling customers the move marks its biggest pivot yet as the brewery shifts toward wholesale distribution and contract brewing. The brewery says it will keep brewing beer even as the public-facing space at 3820 S. Palo Verde Road, Suite 102 winds down.
The news broke via an Instagram post Wednesday afternoon, as reported by Tucson Foodie. Harbottle described the closure as its biggest pivot to date, and insisted it is not walking away from the business entirely. “This is not the end of Harbottle Brewing, this is the first step towards something bigger!” the brewery said in its announcement.
According to the outlet, Harbottle said it built the company to pivot quickly as the market shifts, and called the day bittersweet even as it looks ahead. The brewery invited regulars to stop in one more time before the taproom shuts for good, writing, “So stop by and send us into the next evolution with a bang!”
No Closing Date, No Details Yet
As of Tucson Foodie's report, Harbottle had not announced a final day of taproom service, nor had it shared specifics on which wholesale accounts or contract brewing clients it plans to work with, or when that shift will take shape. The brewery pointed customers to its Instagram for updates on final taproom hours and the next phase of the business.
Harbottle's roots in Tucson's South Side go back to February 2018, when it opened at the southwest corner of Palo Verde and Ajo, per the same report. The taproom launched with a nine-foot shuffleboard table and poured its flagship Harbottle IPA alongside releases like its Muddy Udders pastry stout. In 2022, the brewery hosted the Smashed in the Desert beer festival, bringing together breweries from across Tucson.
From Flux Brewing to Harbottle
The brewery wasn't always called Harbottle. It started as Flux Brewing Company before a name change prompted by trademark issues, according to a 2017 report from tucson.com. At the time, the founders explained the stakes of the rebrand plainly, saying that if they couldn't trademark the name, they would have no potential for growth outside the Tucson market.
Tucson Foodie's history of the brewery states that Michael Figueira and Sam Kroack co-owned Harbottle in 2018, launching it with head brewer Andy Schlicker. The earlier tucson.com report, however, listed three owners at the time: Figueira, Andy Shlicker, and Kroack. The two accounts differ on the full ownership roster, and the dossier does not resolve which is accurate.
A Rough Stretch for Craft Beer Nationally
Harbottle's pivot lands amid a difficult period for the craft beer industry at large. U.S. craft beer production fell to 23.1 million barrels in 2024, a 4% drop from the year before that Axios called the largest decline in industry history outside the pandemic, as reported by Axios. The outlet also noted that the number of small, independent U.S. breweries shrank for the first time in 20 years, with 501 closures against just 434 openings.
Axios reported that 2024 marked the industry's third consecutive year of negative growth, driven by market saturation and shifting drinking habits, especially among younger consumers. Arizona Craft Brewers Guild executive director Andrew Bauman told the outlet the industry has been battling a barrage of external market forces since the COVID-19 pandemic, with many breweries that borrowed during that period now stuck making loan payments while absorbing inflated prices on ingredients like barley and hops.
Other Breweries Making Similar Moves
Harbottle isn't the only brewery rethinking its taproom model. Another longtime Tucson operation, Brick Box Brewery, formerly known as Thunder Canyon Brewery, was set to close its doors on Nov. 29, according to tucson.com. After that, Brick Box's owners planned to continue their contract brewing obligations with Ray Ray's Sonoran Spirit Tea, with the outlet citing a drop in business and sharp jumps in operating expenses, particularly energy costs, as reasons behind the closure.
A similar pattern is playing out beyond Tucson. Yellow Springs Brewery planned to close its Columbus taproom on Dec. 23, the Dayton Business Journal reported, while continuing to operate its original Yellow Springs taproom and event venue and keeping its beers on shelves and taps at Columbus-area bars and retailers.
For now, Harbottle hasn't said what comes next beyond the promise that brewing continues. Customers hoping to catch one last pour at the Palo Verde Road taproom will need to watch the brewery's Instagram for word on final hours.
