Brewery closure to leave hole in heart of West End pub scene

Brisbane’s Catchment Brewing Co has closed its venue in West End, joining a growing line-up of local venues falling to rising costs in an increasingly volatile industry.

The brewpub closed its doors and stripped the shelves of its Boundary Street venue, with a statement provided to this masthead confirming the venue would not reopen.

“The decision to conclude the lease was made jointly and respectfully, with both parties aligned in their vision for the future,” a spokesman for Catchment Brewing Co said.

“Catchment Brewing Co would like to sincerely thank the West End community, neighbours, collaborators and supporters who have been part of the journey.

“The group remains deeply fond of its time in West End and grateful for the relationships built along the way.”

The West End brewpub’s owners confirmed the 11-year-old Boundary Street staple had been burning a hole in their pockets as costs increased, but said the space had been left open for a new brewpub to join the vibrant West End bar scene.

While a thin layer of dust coats the shuttered brewery windows, the inside remains set up for a bar from beer taps to festoon light fittings.

Catchment Brewing’s closure follows a string of collapses on the West End strip, including Brisbane local music scene icon The Bearded Lady, which closed in May 2025.

Across the country, more than a dozen breweries have closed down permanently over the past two years despite being highly regarded in their local scenes.

In the wider Brisbane brewpub industry, Catchment joins much-loved venues, including craft beer trailblazer Newstead Brewing Co and Stone & Wood’s Fortitude Valley, which closed in March and August last year, respectively.

The breweries pointed to cost-of-living pressures on hospitality venues merged with pressures specific to the craft beer sector.

Among some of the main factors eating away at the industry are rising ingredient costs, an alcohol tax that rises with inflation, and rising venue costs including higher rents and electricity prices.

Big brands such as Coles and Endeavour Group have ramped up competition with their own craft beer lines Tinnies and Zytho Brewing.

Although Catchment Brewing called time on its flagship venue, the company promised big things for the brand later this year.

The company expanded in 2022 when it purchased Fortitude Valley Brewing Co, as well as the Tamborine-based companies offshoot brands, and again in early 2023 when it rescued Salisbury-based Ballistic Beer Co from liquidation.

A Catchment Brewing spokesman said the company expected to continue working with communities “across Brisbane and beyond”.

“West End will always hold a special place in the Catchment story, and the group looks forward to sharing what’s next in the near future,” the spokesman said.