![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Instagram-cactuslandbrewing.jpg\")
San Antonio craft-brewing operations such as Cactus Land Brewing say selling beer alone isn\u2019t a winning strategy in the current economic environment. Credit: Instagram \/ cactuslandbreing<\/p>\nSan Antonio craft-brewing operations such as Cactus Land Brewing say selling beer alone isn\u2019t a winning strategy in the current economic environment. Credit: Instagram \/ cactuslandbreing<\/p>\n
Whether it be city construction, tariffs or changes in consumer drinking habits, the past few years have been anything but easy for San Antonio breweries.\u00a0<\/p>\n
More than half a dozen Alamo City breweries have closed shop or scaled back operations since the start of last year, and even the survivors and stalwarts are revamping. Longtime presence Freetail Brewing Co. stopped its retail distribution, for example, while Alamo Beer Co., the city\u2019s largest brewing operation, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s extremely tough,\u201d Alamo Beer owner Eugene Simor told the Current. \u201cIt\u2019s always been tough, but what we\u2019re seeing now is kind of all the increasing costs building up to a point where businesses are having to make some very difficult decisions. Increases in property taxes, costs of goods all continue to go up and really haven\u2019t normalized since COVID.\u201d<\/p>\n
Indeed, Simor said he\u2019s selling Alamo Beer to a new investor group and will release more details to the public next month.<\/p>\n
However, other San Antonio craft brewers said that despite the continued economic headwinds, they\u2019re hopeful the worst is over and the breweries that weathered the storm are likely here to stay.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The ones that have remained in operation survived by evolving with the times, said Dustin Teague, owner of Cactus Land Brewing Co. in the San Antonio suburb of Adkins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was such a boom in the industry between 2012 and 2014. Everybody and their grandma wants to open up a brewery because it was the cool thing to do,\u201d Teague said. \u201cWhat happens is that not everybody can either financially do it well or have somebody who knows what they\u2019re doing as far as beer goes.\u201d<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t necessarily just the saturated market that forced the slew of recent closures, though. A dramatic change in consumer habits followed the COVID-19 pandemic.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCOVID kind of changed how people spend their money, and they became pickier in the sense that they want more experiences,\u201d Teague said. \u201cPeople nowadays want more. They\u2019re spoiled.\u201d<\/p>\n
Teague calls it the \u201cAmazon effect,\u201d or the sense that consumers want something new and exciting \u2014\u00a0and they want it immediately. Breweries could no longer just be places where enthusiasts came to grab a craft ale. Instead, they had to become destinations that catered to everybody, including families.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To evolve, Cactus Land now features a playground, live music, food trucks, craft cocktails and frozen wines in addition to its house-made suds.<\/p>\n
San Antonio\u2019s K\u00fcnstler Brewing also evolved with the times.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we got into the business, we wanted to just be a brewery and serve beers and a few snacks. But, I think after 2020, people wanted more,\u201d K\u00fcnstler owner Vera Duckard said. \u201cI think what keeps us going is that we continuously try to think outside the box and create fun events that people like to go to. More than anything, what lures people out are events.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although special gatherings and expanded venues have helped keep some SA breweries in business, owners are also trying to combat new obstacles, including a change in drinking habits and President Donald Trump\u2019s on-again-off-again tariffs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A 2023 Gallup survey found that just 62% of U.S. adults drink, a measurable decline from 72% two decades ago. What\u2019s more, non-alcoholic beer sales jumped 9% in 2024, according to beverage industry analysis firm IWSR.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI do think that we have a generation that\u2019s starting to look for what I call the \u2018better for you\u2019 beverages,\u201d Simor said. \u201cAs a result, the drinking of all alcoholic beverages, not just beer, is showing stress.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the same time, breweries are struggling to make sense of Trump\u2019s erratic trade war and keep costs down while paying more for ingredients. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a little more difficult getting European hops,\u201d Deckard said. \u201cSo, we\u2019ve had to pivot and find hops that we can substitute that still work in my recipes. Prices have gone up, and it\u2019s difficult for us to pass it on to the consumer, because the consumer doesn\u2019t understand, and I still have to make it approachable for them to come out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both Deckard and Cactus Land\u2019s Teague noted that smaller breweries can pivot more easily than larger ones. Bigger operations need to scale up their production to avoid significant cost overruns.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve noticed that things have gone up here and there,\u201d Deckard said. \u201cBut, it\u2019s not enough to really force a closure or anything. We\u2019re not big enough to see a big impact. If we were mass production, distribution, that kind of thing \u2026 then it might be different.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although the brewing industry may have bottomed out, the best way folks can ensure that their favorite Alamo City beer producer stays in business is by shopping and drinking local, Simor said\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best we can do as small businesses is continue to get people to support local and hopefully, at some point in time, we see a dramatic increase in it,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Subscribe to SA Current newsletters.<\/a><\/p>\n Follow us:\u00a0Apple News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>| Twitter<\/a>\u00a0| Or sign up for our\u00a0RSS Feed<\/a><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tThe move comes after the pioneering local craft-beer business placed itself up for sale last year and ceased retail distribution. \t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761093914_461_Screen-Shot-2025-10-21-at-10.58.31-AM.png\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
![\"All](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761093914_330_JJM_SABF2025-65-2.jpg.webp\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761093914_881_Jaime-Monzon-.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n