Black Frog Brewery Closes Holland Taproom After 10 Years as Founder Retires

Chris Harris converted half his garage into a brewery before he ever pulled a pint commercially. That origin story, humble and familiar to anyone who's started a homebrew obsession that outgrew the kitchen, eventually became Black Frog Brewery on McCord Road in Holland. Now, after 10 years and more than 40 beers brewed entirely by his own hand, Harris is closing that inaugural taproom and stepping into retirement.

"I converted half the garage actually into a brewery. I couldn't drink all the beer, so I'd take it to work and give it to people. It just grew from there," Harris recalled. "I wondered what it'd be like to have my own brewery."

He found out. For a decade he was the sole brewer behind every Black Frog batch, the kind of single-operator setup that's genuinely rare once a taproom starts drawing a regular crowd. He cited two reasons for closing: health concerns and what he described as a slowdown in the craft beer industry. That slowdown isn't just his read. Trade reporting from Brewbound shows cans now represent 78% of Brewers Association-defined craft volume, with share growth slowing, and the industry has seen other strain this week, including Boston Beer laying off 66 workers tied to its Angel City operations.

The goodbye at the Holland taproom has been less spreadsheet and more group hug. Friends and regulars stopped in throughout the week, some making the drive from an hour away just to say farewell and leave with one last crowler or six-pack.

"I've made so many friends here," Harris said.

Customer Jan Juliette was among those who saw the closure announcement and made the trip immediately. "I knew when I saw the post that I had to get down here," Juliette said. "I had to get my hugs, and also bring some beer home." Another regular, Buchele, put it plainly: "We'll raise one tonight for him, more than one."

The Holland taproom's final day is this weekend. Black Frog isn't disappearing entirely: Harris's son will continue operating the Cleveland location, keeping the brand alive under family ownership even as the place where it all started commercially closes its taps for good.