Cambridge Brewing Company (2024)

This sucks.

People look at me crazy when I tell them CBC is my favorite brewery in Boston but IYKYK.

Hope they have some kind of farewell event so I can get one last Blunderbuss from before I could legally drink and some buffalo fingers

 

There goes my last chance at another Bannatyne's Scotch Ale, and another tie to Boston. CBC helped welcome me to that city.

 

It’s my favorite brewery in Massachusetts. It’s a little brewery that’s had a big impact on American beer. Hopefully Will continues brewing elsewhere.

 

Honestly kind of devastated. One of my favorite places anywhere, not just boston/cambridge. The beer, the food, the fests, the dog friendly patio…one of the handful of places that closes and can’t really be replaced.

 

It sucks. It really does. It feels like the death of a beloved relative who I wish I could spend more time with.

 

Have they not been canning beer for a while? Haven't seen any around, there's virtually none shown on their IG, and their website only shows bottles to go right now.

 

They didn’t can great pumpkin in 2023, so I think potentially around this time last year was when they stopped.

 

Anecdotally I can say it was very slow over the past 6 months to a year that I went. And this was at times you’d think it would be busy.

If I had to guess, it’s simply because a brewpub/restaurant style brewery fell out of vogue to give rise to the tap room. Because it’s not as if the quality of their beers went downhill. If anything their beers got better.

 

There’s a thread on r/Boston that suggests the landlord is pricing out everybody.

 

I think I saw something here talking about that - possibly in the Lord Hobo thread, but I'm not positive. Maybe it was on Facebook on one of the foodie / restaurant groups I'm on.
It was somewhere, a few months ago, talking about one of the other restaurants in Kenmore Square that was closing because of the landlord. He was looking to get the current lessors out - possibly to redevelop the building to something else.

BUt this is definitely and end of an era here - and OG brewpub, so many good memories - striped bass fest, all the beer ones. Hair of the Dog after the Extreme Beer Fests, staying in town.

 

I read on the other thread here that their landlord isn’t the issue it’s the owner being older and wanting to retire. That’s what was said there

 

Smoke Shop closed recently too. But Kendall is a weird place now. Very developed but also feels dead with limited foot traffic when I’ve been over there after work. Biotech and tech guys don’t drink the way they used to.

 

I haven’t worked in Kendall in many many years, but agree it has changed a ton.

 

I worked there 15-20 years ago. I'd argue that Kendall has always been a weird place. You're just seeing a new breed of weird come in there. If weird stayed the same over time, it wouldn't be weird.

There are still some gems there. But, it would be nice to have MeadHall and CBC there forever.

 

This just sucks. For me - CBC is the only lifeline to the beggining of it all -- home-brew class at Modern Brewer circa 1991 -- then CBC after for beers and good/cheap pub chow. And that mural -- classic/unique. I was impressed early on w/the GABF medals that hang above the bar -- for a young homebrewer who knew little about beer -- it gave the place a little more cred than all the other pop up brewpubs and small craft breweries around town and in NE. I went to Barleywine fest this past winter and while the place was packed on Sat night -- you could tell the pre/post crowds were not there - it just didn't make sense to me -- all that amazing/one of a kind beer - and thousands of craft beer nerds within spitting distance. Planning multiple pilgrimage between now and Dec.

 

Smokeshop closed? Must have been fairly recent.

 

The Bon Me over there also closed

 

Burger and kölsch tasting great as always. As someone who lived in Kendall square for a few years (I live in Boston now), this place will be missed.