Fort Worth's Fort Brewery & Pizza closes in style with half-off sale
Fort Brewery & Pizza
A popular craft beer and bites spot in Fort Worth is closing: Fort Brewery & Pizza, which has been plying its namesake pizza and beer since 2018, will close its location at 2737 Tillar St., on Sunday December 29.
Owners Corrie Watson and Will Churchill say that they're closing the taproom in order to focus on their burgeoning beer business.
"Over the years, our distribution has grown like crazy," the duo says in a statement. "We went from being found in just our tap room to over 175 retail outlets throughout DFW - and people are screaming for more."
"To scale like we need to, we will be closing our tap room and restaurant effective Sunday, December 29th, so we can focus our energy and attention on private events and growing the Fort Brewery brand across our great State of Texas," their statement says.
Watson and Churchill, who are also the twin great-grandchildren of iconic Fort Worth car dealer Frank Kent, first opened Fort Brewery in 2018 with a vision of bringing exceptional craft beer, great food, wine, and live entertainment.
They were originally located at 1001 W. Magnolia Ave., where they built an avid following for their irresistible combination of pizzas and pints, plus live music. In 2020, they relocated to the former Parker Candy factory on Tillar Street, which boasted ample space for the restaurant and brewing operation. It was a multifaceted space with brewery, restaurant, outdoor patio with live music stage, lawn games, and retractable roof.
Churchill, who is also one of the owners of Heim Barbecue, says that, despite recent upheavals and closures in the craft beer world, Fort Brewery has enjoyed growth at an exponential rate.
"When we go back and look at the distribution side over the last three years, the sales of our beer doubled from 2022 to 2023, and then doubled again from 2023 to 2024," he says. "We reached a point where we realized we needed to get more serious about the distribution side."
They've enjoyed brisk demand from retail stores for signature beers such as Clara, their blonde ale; Los Muertos, their hugely popular Mexican-style lager; and especially Fort Lite, their recently debuted light beer.
"There's been a lot of growth in premium light beer, and that has been a real driver," he says.
They're executing the closure in style by hosting a "fire sale" of their extensive wine selection with 50 percent off all bottles until gone. And in a classy gesture, they're also offering anyone with unused gift cards the opportunity to convert them to a Heim BBQ card. They'll occupy the space until February or so, fulfilling private events that were already scheduled.
They thanked their employees, calling them "the true rockstars of our Fort Family," and said that "we can't wait for you to see what our brew team will serve up next."
