Brew Lab Ends On-Site Production, Pivots to Taproom-Only Model in Overland Park

Brew Lab, the downtown Overland Park taproom that grew from a brew-on-premises shop into a full production brewery, has brewed its final batch and halted on-site production, with ownership describing the move as a pivot rather than a closure.

The brewery at 7935 Marty has begun selling off its brewing equipment to other facilities around the region and is preparing to repurpose the production space. The taproom will stay open, and Clay Johnston, who co-founded Brew Lab alongside Justin Waters, Kevin Combs, and Matthew Hornung, said the beer selection isn't going anywhere — it's just being brewed somewhere else.

"Closing down brewing operations does not mean closing down business," Johnston said. "We are devoted to the neighborhood."

Two compounding pressures drove the decision. Construction of downtown Overland Park's new farmers market pavilion effectively walled off Marty Street over the past year, severing the foot traffic that a taproom depends on. "When your foot traffic — and general traffic — decreases by about 100%, people have to really want to find you," Johnston said. "That really kind of forced us to examine a lot of our internal operations."

The second pressure is broader and harder to solve with a construction timeline. "Craft beer is on a decline," Johnston said. "People's preferences are changing, and people are just drinking less in general. All of those trends were going to come home to a lot of businesses sooner or later." Shawnee-based Pathlight Brewing has already closed its doors, and other area breweries have quietly moved to outsourcing production to larger facilities rather than carrying the overhead of an in-house brewhouse.

Brew Lab is still working through what its reimagined tap list will look like, but Johnston said customers will find a substantial lineup of local and craft beers on tap. The menu already includes Lawrence-based Free State Brewing Co., along with Strange Days Brewing Co. and KC Bier Co., both of Kansas City, Missouri. "We are definitely committed to great local and craft beers, without a doubt," Johnston said. "We've been serving guest taps and stuff like that as well for the last several years, and that's something we've really enjoyed."

The pivot closes a chapter that Johnston himself once framed in expansive terms. When Brew Lab moved into the 7935 Marty location in early 2017, trading its previous lease at 8004 Foster for a former drugstore space at the base of the Overland Park Farmer's Market, Johnston described the vision as a "brewing playground" where customers could drink the house beer, watch batches being made, buy grain and supplies, and brew their own beer alongside the head brewer. That brew-on-premises model had already been running for three years before the 2017 expansion added a taproom and full production brewery to the mix.

What happens to the freed-up production space remains undisclosed, as do the identities of the regional breweries acquiring Brew Lab's equipment. Both are questions the business has yet to answer publicly.