Weyerbacher Brewing Company in Easton, Pennsylvania, has filed its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition in the last three years.
On June 27, the craft brewery filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in an effort to reorganize its business affairs, debts and assets, while remaining in control of its operations.
According to the Morning Call, Weyerbacher’s 2022 bankruptcy filing said its 20 biggest creditors are owed about $1.5 million, with more than $80,000 owed to Denis Shusterman, “a former accountant who pleaded guilty in 2006 to bank fraud, wire fraud and bankruptcy fraud, among other charges, after he embezzled more than $10 million from a New York firearms manufacturer between 1997 and 2003.”
TV news station WFMZ 69 added that in total, Weyerbacher has 92 creditors, including the Internal Revenue Service (about $324,000), the Easton Area Joint Sewer Authority ($144,000), lease holder Premiere Properties of Easton ($120,000), and the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue ($52,000). The company also owes around $357,000 in loans and advancements, the outlet reported.
Weyerbacher previously filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April 2019 in order to restructure its debt.
Despite emerging from the previous bankruptcy, Weyerbacher remained hampered by financial struggles. The Morning Call cited a February 2020 court filing that showed the company owed around $80,000 in rent to its landlord at 905 Line St., an issue founder Dan Weirback was attempting to resolve. The company also posted a net loss in excess of $250,000 in December 2019 due to equipment breakdowns, according to court records.
In 2020 and 2021, Weyerbacher received two Paycheck Protection Program loans — each totaling $267,250 — from the federal government to pay 20 employees during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to ProPublica.
Meanwhile, Weyerbacher announced last week on its social pages that its taproom would be “closed until further notice.”
“This isn’t the scenario we were hoping for, but it does not deter us from our long-term goals,” the company wrote. “The good news is that we are still in production and working to keep our core brands on the shelves and available to you. Our brewers are also working on some exciting new offerings from our pilot system for when the taproom re-opens!”
The 27-year-old craft brewery wrote that the message was intended to provide “some clarity and reassurance.”
“There is no map for the changes we are making,” the company added. “Unfortunately, this has led to some bumps in the road over the past few weeks and we have had to make some quick decisions in the moment. Those decisions were necessary, but have also led to questions, rumors, and confusion. We apologize to anyone that has been inconvenienced.”
Those inconveniences may be in reference to unexpected taproom closures. On July 9, the company wrote that “due to circumstances out of our, um… control” that its taproom would be closed over that weekend. Although the company wrote that its taproom was now open with new hours on July 21, two customers wrote that they showed up to a closed taproom on Saturday, July 23.
Nevertheless, Weyerbacher wrote in the announcement of its indefinite taproom closure that the message was being sent “with optimism and enthusiasm for what the future holds!”
“Weyerbacher is in the midst of some big changes,” the company added. “Changes that we intend will rejuvenate our brand and carry us through another 27 years and beyond.”
A message sent to an email address listed on the Weyerbacher website bounced back.
Last year, Weyerbacher brewed 3,750 barrels of beer, according to the May/June issue of the Brewers Association’s New Brewer.