The Hay Merchant Dumps Karbach Brews After Anheuser Busch Acquisition

Yesterday’s news that Karbach Brewing was no longer an independently owned Houston brewery didn’t exactly go over well with some of the city’s biggest beer enthusiasts.

At The Hay Merchant, a purveyor of craft beers from all over the country, owner Kevin Floyd is pulling Karbach from its taps in a big way. In a statement posted to The Hay Merchant’s Facebook page yesterday, the bar announced that they would be clearing all the brews out and selling them “as cheaply as possible.”

Check out the statement in full:

Perhaps not surprisingly, The Hay Merchant’s post inspired some pretty lively debate in the comments. “You were going to dump it out? Now you've decided to make a profit on it.,” reads one comment. “Maybe you should take the money you make from it and invest in a pet friendly permit or whatever it takes.” In response, the restaurant pointed to Texas’ complicated liquor laws that make it illegal for bars to just give away free booze.

This isn’t the first fire sale that The Hay Merchant has held in response to a major acquisition. Last year, when it was announced that Chicago’s Goose Island had been purchased by Anheuser-Busch-InBev, the bar got rid of their remaining Goose Island stock as cheaply as possible.