4204 Main Street closing beer distribution operations
The realities of COVID continue to hit the brewing community both nationally and locally.
Here at home, 4204 Main Street Brewing Company has announced that due to current conditions, it needs to “get back to our roots,” and is shutting down its beer distribution operations and closing its distribution brewery.
“We will continue operating the restaurant and brewpub at our original location, and we will continue to host banquets and weddings at the event center,” wrote the brewery on social media on Wednesday. “The restaurant will remain open AND operating.”
4204 Main Street Invests $3M
In 2017, 4204 Main Street was the top growing brewpub in the Midwest, and owners made the choice to pump $3 million into the opening of the brand-new brewing and banquet location at 6435 W. Main Street in Belleville.
“We had huge aspirations when we opened the distribution center in 2017,” wrote the Brewery on Facebook. “In retrospect, we grew faster than we should. And with Covid, everything changed. When restaurants closed, our draft sales plummeted. On shelves, our products were no longer moving as they did in the past.”
“We will have lots of beer to package, that we will be selling to the public from our restaurant. Once that beer is sold, package beer will be gone permanently.”
From there, ownership plans to reset. They will focus on limited small batch beer and seasonal selections, instead of brewing large batch production only recipes. The idea here is that brewers can enjoy more creativity and freedom in recipe creation.”With less moving parts, we can go back to basics and improve the restaurant experience for all of our guests,” said the brewery on Facebook.
“We appreciate everybody, and all of the support that we have had over the last 7 years. We’ve met great people, and we made great memories. And we look forward to continuing to do that, but only at the restaurant moving forward. Our focus will be on the restaurant/brewpub and event center. We will continue to brew at the restaurant, create great food, and host outstanding events.”
