After more than two years in business, Better Half Brewing has closed its doors permanently.
Owner Mike Haseltine, who opened Better Half Brewing along with his wife, Rachel, in 2019, said in a Facebook post this week that the brewery’s final day in business was New Year’s Eve. He wrote that despite keeping doors open over the past few years in a pandemic, the challenges of running a small business mounted.
“Like all small businesses around the world we tirelessly worked to keep our doors open during the pandemic and received much support from our community. Unfortunately we have not been able to make it completely on the other side and are announcing we have closed our doors effective 12/31,” Mike Haseltine wrote. “We thank all our mug club members and our community for the opportunity to live out our passion and hope to continue many of the incredible friendships we’ve built over our time.”
Better Half Brewing opened at 59 North Main St., Bristol in Aug. 2019 after Mike and Rachel Haseltine felt stagnant at their corporate day jobs, according to the brewery’s website. More than 600 supporters reacted to the closing announcement on Facebook.
Haseltine said he and his wife opened Better Half Brewing to “pursue a dream we had designed together and to provide a common space for our community to join together.”
Before its closing, Better Half had live music, comedy acts and hosted fundraisers for local nonprofits.
