So long, Sticky Paws.

Goodbye, Good Day IPA.

The owners of FH Beerworks, a brand with deep local cachet and more than a decade of history in Colorado Springs, have set Saturday as their final day of business — as a brewery, label and destination which grew to include a concept whiskey-focused watering hole on the city’s east side.

“It is with heavy hearts that we announce the upcoming closure of FH Beerworks and NEAT Whiskey House,” said Travis and Niki Fields in a joint statement posted Dec. 10 on the brewery’s Facebook page.

In their message, the couple pointed to the state of the industry, and said that the decision to shut the doors was “not made lightly.”

Ultimately, it came down to self-preservation.

“For the health and well-being of our family, it is time to close this chapter,” they wrote. “We are profoundly grateful for the unwavering support, friendship, and memories you have shared with us over the years.”

The two Fields opened the first iteration of their brewing venture, then known as Fieldhouse Brewing Co., in 2014 at 521 S. Tejon St. Four years later, they added a second location in a larger property along a frontage road off North Powers Boulevard. Pandemic budget shocks soon led them to dial back expansion plans, and focus on the east-side location, with the original FH digs on Tejon Street then passing to Red Swing Brewhouse. That operation closed in May, and the address now is home to location No. 2 of Urban Animal Brewing Co., which first hung its sudsy shingle in the Springs in the fall of 2022.

For those who’ve been keeping count, FH Beerworks is the fourth Springs brewery to close in 2024. The city also bid adieu this year to the aforementioned Red Swing, Batch Slap Brewery/Cidery, and Bell Brothers Brewing. Though the Pikes Peak Brewing Co. name — and its brews — are sticking around, the Monument craft brewery announced last month its impending acquisition by the Springs’ Goat Patch Brewing Co.

For the first year in nearly a generation, brewery closures nationwide have outpaced openings, said Matt Gacioch, staff economist for the Brewers Association, speaking Thursday as part of a webinar follow-up to the nonprofit’s recently released state of the industry report and look ahead to 2025.

“So far this year, our tracking team has tracked 335 openings and 399 closings. That’s the first time since the early to mid-2000s that closings are higher,” said Gacioch, whose Boulder-based trade group advocates for and supports the craft brewing industry. “We have been in this position before….”

This time feels different, though. Because it is.

This time, the competition and challenges are coming from all sides, said Robert Hemphill, of the Springs’ Cogstone Brewing Co.

When Hemphill and his business partner, Marc Malenfant, opened Cogstone in the Village Seven area in February 2016, the world felt like their oyster — and for a while, it was. By year two, Hemphill said they’d paid off the startup debt on their credit cards.

“From Cogstone’s point of view, we seemed to have an easy time when we opened up,” Hemphill said. “We were profitable, and 2018, 2019 were our best years.”

COVID arrived to hamstrung that upward trajectory for businesses of all kinds, especially the restaurant and brewing industries.

Finding an equilibrium since has been a constant struggle, Hemphill said.

Two “across the board” menu price increases in 2024 have likely led some Cogstone regulars to temper their tabs.

Those pricing increases haven’t come close to covering the increased costs, for supplies and ingredients, insurance, staff, and utilities, said Hemphill, who credited refunds from the Employee Retention Credit program — a grant-style benefit for businesses that required no payback — for allowing Cogstone to climb out of the pandemic slump.

“People will come, maybe have one or two beers, a pretzel and fries, but it’s not like it used to be where they would buy whole dinners and lots of beer and rack up big tickets,” Hemphill said.

“They’re watching their dollars now, and I don’t blame them.”

Another indulgence snagging critical pie? Marijuana.

“Now they — that segment of the population — have more choices to spend their money on, and that took a percentage away from the craft market as well,” Hemphill said.

“It’s just a tough deal … and kind of a perfect storm, after COVID.”

The Springs (and nearby environs) is home to 31 breweries.

“It’s great from a customer standpoint, because the customer has many more choices,” Hemphill said. “For a business, every time a new brewery opens, it takes a small piece of the pie away from us.” That doesn’t mean anyone wants to see a fellow brewer fail, he said.

Hemphill’s advice to his compatriots in suds who are struggling: Hang on.

Like the insiders at the Brewers Association, delivering their sobering update about the state and trajectory of the industry in 2024, the bad numbers came with a chaser of (mild) positivity from Hemphill.

“If anyone’s in debt or having problems now, just hold on. I am very optimistic and looking forward to 2025 for a turnaround,” he said.