Sleepy Dog Brewing, one of Arizona’s older craft breweries—having opened in 2009—has closed their Tempe taproom.
A sign on the door of the Tempe brewery simply says, “Thank you for your support and we’ll see you soon.” No other explanation for the closure was given. The taprooom’s last check-in on Untappd was in January 2020.
I hope the taproom’s closure (which also doubled as their production site) does not signal the end for Sleepy Dog as a whole. Their Tail Chaser IPA was one of the more underrated IPAs in the valley beer scene. Likewise, their Feisty Chihuahua Mexican Lager put most of those other international lagers to shame. All of their beers continue to be checked into regularly on Untappd, so they are still available. For how long remains unknown.
The taproom, far removed from the zaniness of ASU’s campus and Mill Ave., always provided a quiet place to chill. It was never flashy…no huge TVs with deafening rock soundtracks. Just a good place to have a beer and forget about things for a while.
Sleepy Dog was purchased by Two Brothers Brewing of Chicago in 2017.
This closure marks the latest in a string of valley brewery and taproom closures over the last year and a half.
UPDATE: 3/28/20
While in a grocery store this week, I saw this:
When stores move product to “Clearance” status, that generally means they aren’t planning to re-stock it. Sleepy Dog’s website continues to be up and running, while also touting their new relationship with Illinois, home to Two Brothers. Feeling nostalgic, I snatched a six-pack and poured what I feared may be my last Feisty Chihuahua.
Prost! (in a sad sort of way…)