Most of you will have heard the news last week that Edmonton’s Blind Enthusiasm is closing its highly regarded restaurant Biera and Market brewery, at the end of December (you can read their statement here). Many expressed surprise at the announcement that the 7 year-old operation is ceasing. I will admit I wasn’t one of them. Not that I saw this coming – I didn’t. But conversations with owner Greg Zeschuk and other brewery people in the province in recent months had given me hints that not everything was right.

I need to say upfront that Blind Enthusiasm is still a going concern, with their spontaneous fermentation arm, The Monolith, still fermenting at full speed. It is only the brewpub and “clean beer” arm that is closing (although calling Biera a “brewpub” seems unfair given that its high-end menu, delicious dishes and astoundingly classy and elegant style and approach far outstrips the term). I am also told that they have batches of still-aging barrel-aged beer made at the Market brewery that they will slowly release over the next year – so Market fans will still be able to get their fix for a while yet. However, the regular line-up will disappear when current stocks run out.

The reasons for the closure are complex but originate in the shifts caused by COVID-19, followed quickly by rampaging inflation. All restaurants were hammered during the restrictions phase, and all restaurant and bar owners have been reporting that customers have not returned to pre-COVID levels even today. Zeschuk highlights that in addition to people just staying home more (to save money, because they have gotten into that routine, etc.), there is increased use of take-out and app-based delivery services – something Biera was not well-suited for.

On the beer side, reduced sales at the restaurant increased pressure to move product in liquor stores and other retail outlets. However, that side of the business saw increased competition and price squeezing that cuts into margins. A double whammy of sorts.

Zeschuk (who also owns Ritchie Market where Biera and three other businesses are located) says his goal is to find a buyer for the operation who will utilize both the restaurant and the brewhouse. The design of the space makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to disentangle the two and so it likely requires someone willing to re-imagine the brewery/restaurant combo.

Many of you will know all this already. My purpose with this post is to also examine what this significant closure says about the state of beer in the province.

Well, it says things aren’t going well.

I can now say with utmost certainty (to be honest, I have been for a while) that the expansion phase of Alberta craft beer is now well behind us. We are in a period of stagnation with the prospects of falling into contraction in the near future. Looking just at the numbers, the industry may already be contracting. In 2024 (with 6 weeks to go in the year), we have seen 10 brewery closures in the province and only 4 openings (with one of those being a re-purposing of a closed space). This is the first time since 2000 that there have been more closures than openings.

However, I think it is still premature to declare a period of retrenchment. The last couple years have been very difficult. Inflation (and interest rates) hammered bottom lines. There is no question people are consuming less beer, meaning fewer mouths for a growing supply of beer. COVID-era loans came due, creating liquidity issues for many breweries. It has been ugly.

Yet through that most breweries are still hanging on, some are even expanding. Alberta still has, by my count, 131 breweries, a far cry from the 22 a decade ago. Most of those breweries are here to stay. There are rough waters ahead, but it is too soon to scramble for the lifeboats.

Will we see more closures in the months ahead? Yes. Are we seeing the dreaded “oversaturation” people have been predicting for years? Absolutely not. This is a combination of maturation and some rough economic conditions. I won’t predict how many breweries there will be at the end of 2025, but I will go out on a limb and say those that are left will be feeling a bit more bullish about their prospects, having weathered the storm.

I will miss Biera a lot. Great food, fantastic beer, one-of-a-kind atmosphere. It sucks but it is not an omen. At least not yet.