In June, brewpub owner Kurt Bach announced he would be accepting offers on his Barrio Logan business, Attitude Brewing. According to Bach, several interested parties reached out, but none presented an offer that was to his liking. So, he has decided to operate the business through the end of July, then close it permanently.
A Pacific Northwest transplant, Bach opened Attitude in a corner spot in the Mercado del Barrio development on National Avenue in February 2019. Over its four-plus years in business, the venue perpetually pumped out beer, but struggled to land a consistent culinary partner to run the brewpub’s restaurant side.
In May 2021, Bach expanded the business twofold, leasing a combined brewery and tasting room suite at North Park beermaking collective, Craft by Brewery Igniter, while also securing a former event hall to convert to a kitchen-equipped tasting room in Chula Vista. Located on Third Avenue, the latter opened in March 2022, but lacked proper permitting to continue operating and was forced to shut down before later reopening. Issues between Bach and his landlord soon arose and escalated into a civil suit brought on by the former which forced another closure of the venue earlier this year.
A high point for Attitude came in 2021, when its hazy IPA, Blissed, was awarded a bronze medal at the country’s most prestigious brewing competition, the Great American Beer Festival. Bach was unable to parlay that impressive feat into increased brand awareness or revenue generation. Also unsuccessful was a foray into distribution that led Bach to sign on at the Brewery Igniter facility in order to meet projected increased product demand which never came. Last December, he began subleasing that suite to GOAL. Brewing, which opened its doors last Saturday.
“A 5 year journey to make great beer and friends has come to it’s [sic] beer manufacturing end. However, the memories and friendships made will last a lifetime,” wrote Bach in a post shared on Attitude’s social-media platforms. “We’ll be operating until the end of the month. Merchandise will be 50% off, so if you’ve been waiting for a t-shirt deal with Attitude written all over it, bring cash!”
Attitude Brewing is located at 1985 National Avenue in Barrio Logan