Originally founded by Cork publican Shane Long in 1998, the Franciscan Well was a pioneer of what in late years would become a buoyant, homegrown craft beer industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mr Long started the brewery at the brewpub on North Mall, which is unaffected by the closure announced this week.<\/p>\n
Its impressive early growth caught the eye of many large brewers, with an already award-winning brand portfolio offering what appeared to be a lucrative opportunity for an international buyer looking to establish a foothold in Ireland.<\/p>\n
In 2013, US brewer Molson Coors acquired the company for an undisclosed sum, outlining immediate plans to expand the company\u2019s output. The transaction marked one of the first big deals by a drinks multinational for an Irish craft beer brewery.<\/p>\n
Brewery founder Shane Long said:<\/p>\n
\n When I sold the brewery back in 2012, I could have gotten five times more money, but I chose Molson Coors because of their values \u2014 they were a family-run business, like ourselves.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it would help the brand live on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Molson Coors did get behind the Franciscan Well brands, and production moved to a larger premises in Cork’s docklands, as the company looked to make a wider impact in the Irish and UK market.<\/p>\n
The entire craft brewing industry also flourished. A niche field until the 2010s, the industry started to take off in 2014, as reflected in the number of microbreweries claiming relief from Alcohol Product Tax (APT).<\/p>\n
Figures from the Revenue Commissioners show that there were just five claimants of this relief in 2005. This number swelled to 53 less than a decade later, in 2014, and then soared once more to 90 in 2020.<\/p>\n
However, a challenging market, plagued by rising business costs and changing consumer habits, has seen a shift in the industry\u2019s upward trajectory, which is being felt across Ireland and further afield.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The industry has been under serious pressure in recent years. \u201cBreweries are closing all over \u2014 it\u2019s a really tough time for the drinks industry as a whole,” Mr Long told the Irish Examiner.<\/p>\n
Revenue figures show \u20ac46m in tax relief has been claimed under the microbrewery relief scheme over the past six years but there are now just 74 companies claiming the relief, 16 fewer than at the 2020 peak, as changes in the craft industry are more apparent.<\/p>\n
Despite heavy investment in the Franciscan Well brewery by Molson Coors, which included its rebrand in 2022, new product developments in 2023 and the launch of its Docklands Series in 2024, the company said it had not been able to grow the brands to the level needed to sustain the brewery as part of its Britain and Ireland production network.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is with a heavy heart that we announce we will cease production of the Franciscan Well brands early in the New Year and as a result, propose to close our Franciscan Well brewery in Cork,\u201d said Molson Coors said.<\/p>\n
It added that the decision \u201chad not been taken lightly\u201d and was made in the face of a challenging craft beer category, as well as other economic pressures impacting its customers.<\/p>\n
Some 15 jobs will be lost as a result of the closure. A consultation process has begun for impacted staff, with Molson Coors seeking redeployment for all displaced employees where possible.<\/p>\n
![\"Shane](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/4869576_11_articleinlinemobile_EOHOriginal04.jpg\" "\\"Shane")
Shane Long (left) at Original 7 beverage company based at the Franciscan Well brew pub on Cork’s North Mall, with Steve Guiney (right). Mr Long started the brewery at the brewpub on North Mall, which is unaffected by the closure announced this week. Picture: Eddie O’Hare<\/p>\n
This is not the first brand to be cut from Molson Coors\u2019 portfolio. Recent years have seen the company, which also produces brands such as Coors, Aspall and Carling, offload several breweries across the US, shutting down its own craft label too.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings are so tough right now across the drinks industry, Molson Coors themselves have sold off several brands in the US,\u201d Mr Long tells the Irish Examiner.<\/p>\n
Across Ireland, the industry is contracting. In July, Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company confirmed it would cease operations following the unsuccessful conclusion of its examinership process.<\/p>\n
Despite initial success largely underpinned by US interest, the brewery and distillery underwent a significant extension in its later years, establishing a state-of-the-art facility in Fossa in 2021.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But a challenging few years marked by the pandemic, construction overspends and the threat of tariffs led to the eventual closure of the company after it failed to secure a crucial investor.<\/p>\n
This year also saw the closure of Roscommon\u2019s Black Donkey, known for its Sheep Stealer and the Underworld series, after 11 years in business, with the owners citing commercial pressures and legislative constraints in their decision to cease production.<\/p>\n
Announcing the Franciscan Well\u2019s closure, Molson Coors, which is headquartered in Chicago and Montreal, said it \u201cunderstands the special place the brewery and brands have in the local community\u201d, adding that it \u201cremains open to conversations with interested parties about the future of the brewery and brands\u201d.<\/p>\n
Molson Coors had previously returned ownership of the microbrewery on North Mall, part of the Franciscan Well bar, to Mr Long, which he says is \u201cbusier than ever\u201d producing its Original 7 range that includes its Revolution IPA, Hazy Pale, and Wonderland drinks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re brewing more now than we did when we first sold back in 2012,\u201d said Mr Long.<\/p>\n
\u201cThankfully, the bar is performing really well \u2014 it\u2019s been an incredible November, so I suppose we\u2019ve been lucky that way.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
While Molson Coors are open to finding a buyer for Franciscan Well, Mr Long admitted he is not hugely hopeful. \u201cBelieve me, I would only be delighted if someone came forward with an offer. I\u2019ve put my life into this, and I would love for it to continue,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings are so tough right now across the drinks industry. Molson Coors themselves have sold off several breweries in the US. I\u2019m not hopeful that they could find a buyer \u2014 I just can\u2019t see it. I think this is the end of the brewery\u2019s era.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With their bright colours and modern logo designs decorating the bar taps of Cork\u2019s busiest pubs, Franciscan Well…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":153759,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[5658,72,4257,61,60],"class_list":["post-153758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-irish-examiner-instagram","tag-business","tag-cork-business","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=153758"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153758\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/153759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=153758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=153758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=153758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}