After Seven Years, Bookhouse Brewing Prepares To Close at the End of Year

Vaughn Stewart opened the doors to Bookhouse Brewing at 1526 W. 25th St., in 2018, a neighborhood brewery and taproom that served as the antithesis to cacophonous beer halls. Here, sturdy wooden beams, fine carpentry, exposed brick walls and stocked bookshelves lend a cozy vibe in which to enjoy Stewart’s wonderful brews.

Sadly, all that ends “on or around” New Year’s Eve, according to Stewart.

“We’ve had a good run with Bookhouse and I’ve been really fortunate to be able to do it,” says the brewer-owner.

Opening two years prior to the pandemic, Stewart had no idea what lay in store for him, his business, and the industry in general, he says.

“I think what a lot of people still don’t grasp about food, beverage, hospitality post-pandemic is that everything is so totally different and those intervening years were so similarly unpredictable,” he explains. “Everything was just gone as far as any kind of structure, predictability.”

Stewart encourages his fans to visit and say their goodbyes through the rest of the year.

“We’ve got a good amount of product on hand and I also have three new beers in the tanks to help close things out,” he says.

What makes this transition so hard, he adds, isn’t the loss of business but rather the separation from his clientele.

“The work of craft beer has been so challenging and for so long,” he says. “But I never want to come across as undervaluing or not appreciating the people who have been our huge fans. That’s the part that is hardest to move on from – moving on from those relationships and those connections. The liquid is secondary and it always has been.”

Stewart says that he has “some irons in the fire” for his next move. And as for that beautiful old space in Ohio City, a building dating back to 1866, there are a few irons as well.

“We’re incredibly optimistic that the space will live on as a public gathering place – as a place to appreciate all the history and character of the building,” Stewart hints.

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