Black Flag Brewing Co. in Columbia, Maryland, could close for good on Nov. 30 if a pending sale of the brewery falls through, founder Brian Gaylor told The Baltimore Banner. After about 10 years at 9315 Snowden River Parkway, the brewery’s fate now hangs on whether a buyer can get its financing together before the clock runs out. Bureau sensors picked up the distress beacon from orbit, and this is what the telemetry shows.
Why the Black Flag Brewing sale is in trouble
Gaylor wrote on social media Thursday that it was time to “discuss the worst kept secret in Columbia.” After the birth of his first child this year, he wrote, he realized he was “unable to give the brewery the attention it needs” as Black Flag neared the end of its 10-year lease. He decided to sell to a contract brewing brand based in Maryland, which he declined to name.
That deal now looks shaky. The Banner reported that the prospective buyers face hurdles getting the money together, and Gaylor said in a text message that “we are just watching the clock tick down at this point.”
It is very possible that this sale does not go through. It is very possible that 11/30 is our last day in business.
Brian Gaylor, on Facebook and Instagram, via The Baltimore Banner
Why he’s sounding the alarm now
Gaylor told the Banner he’s still hopeful. A few potential investors have contacted him since he posted the news, and he has been pointing them toward the buyer. He also explained the early warning: “There is a chance everything is fine but I don’t want to be wrong and wait and give people 2 days to find new jobs, use gift cards, visit one last time etc.”
He’s open to other offers, too. According to the Banner, Gaylor says he is keeping the price reasonable so Black Flag can stay in business and his current workers keep their jobs, and he describes the operation as having a “profitable sales pipeline” and room to brew more. He wouldn’t give a number, but said he’ll sell for “less than the price of a lot of new homes in Columbia.”
“A true neighborhood staple”
Kelly Dudeck, executive director of the Brewers Association of Maryland, told the Banner by text that the brewery “has been a true neighborhood staple in Columbia.” She added: “This is not something that can simply be replaced. I sincerely hope they are able to find someone to carry the brewery forward.”
Maryland brewers in “survival mode”
Pull the scanner back to the wider Maryland sector and the picture gets darker. The possible closing lands at a rough moment for the state’s beer makers. The Banner points to rising costs and falling drinking rates, and notes that Guinness’s parent company announced last week that it would close the brand’s Open Gate Brewery in Halethorpe.
“It’s really, really hard in the industry right now,” Caroline Sisson, director of marketing and hospitality for Heavy Seas and president of the Brewers Association of Maryland, told the paper while discussing the Guinness news. Every brewer she knows, she said, is “in survival mode.”
What Earthlings should watch
The key date is Nov. 30. Until then, the Bureau’s scanners stay locked on three signals: whether the Maryland buyer secures its funding, whether one of the new investors steps in, and whether Black Flag posts an update on its Instagram or Facebook pages. Gaylor’s stated reason for posting early, so people can use gift cards and visit one last time, doubles as the practical takeaway for human operatives in Howard County. The Beer Alien Journalistic Bureau will update this transmission log when the portal’s fate is known.
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