Vero Beach’s Orchid Island Brewery made the announcement that they would be closing their Vero Beach taproom. In a bit of good news, the brewery also announced that they would still be brewing and would also be making investments into the brewery.
From Orchid Island Brewery:
Dear Friends & Family,
On February 1st of this year, our understanding of CoVid-19 was that the US had only 11 confirmed cases and the East Coast had its first.
Wow, what a difference six months can make! No question, we are living in unprecedented and unimaginable times. One day we will look back on what was the worst of times relative to the virus. We don’t know how different they will be any more than we knew back in February how different they would be now.
Every day since has presented the question of what pathway we (OIB) should walk, how sustainable will it be, and what will be the outcome? To that end in light of the current circumstances, we’ve made the very difficult decision to let our beloved taproom go. If your reading this you’ve most likely shared in very exciting and warm memories in our pub cultivated together over the last 6 years.
We will hold on to the original brew house room (remember when?) and carry forward our pursuit of crafting world-class citrus-infused beers. We are infinitely grateful to the countless number of people who have supported us along the way. It has been a very challenging decision to put it lightly.
In the same breath, we’re also very excited to share that we’ve invested in a Wild Goose canning line! We anticipate its completion in late November. It is our hope that we can continue to be a part of great memories albeit in a different way. Please look for us to continue reaching out more & more about getting you freshly canned OIB beer.
In the end, we will all have unique perspectives and memories of what happened in the last 6 months. Some of those memories will be of tragedies witnessed or experienced, but some will also be of magical moments spent secluded with loved ones that would otherwise not have presented themselves. Seize the moment to create the memories that when you look back, you will cherish remembering. Hoping this weekend becomes a part of that for you. Make it a safe one!
What Orchid Island is going through is similar to so many other craft breweries in Florida and beyond. While many are adjusting to the new reality of COVID, many more will be making tough decisions on the road ahead. The good news that we see here is Orchid Island Brewery continuing their standard of world-class beer and bringing Florida’s citrus history to many through Star Ruby and the rest of the OIB lineup.