October keeps taking breweries. The Roadies Brewing in Vista poured its final service on October 18, just 18 days after a rushed comeback that was supposed to save it. The investor group behind the relaunch walked away on October 15, leaving the brewery with no path forward.

A comeback that collapsed

Owners Diane and Sean Hilz closed The Roadies Brewing at the end of August. Then new partners arrived with a plan: a quick relaunch on October 1 to get the taps flowing again while a longer-term turnaround took shape.

It did not take shape. The investors pulled out on October 15 after failing to secure additional capital, according to reporting by Brandon Hernandez at San Diego Beer News, and the brewery served its last beers three days later. There is no confirmed plan to reopen.

The 18-day second act is one of the more dramatic stories in a rough year for San Diego beer. Comebacks happen in this industry, but they usually get more than two and a half weeks.

A brutal stretch for Vista and beyond

The Roadies is not alone. Prohibition Brewing in Vista is also shutting down this month after roughly 15 years in business, once the last kegs are drained. Earlier in October, the Rincon Band of Luiseno Indians announced it was closing Rincon Reservation Road Brewery at Harrah’s Resort SoCal, ending nearly a decade of tribal-owned brewing.

Statewide, the numbers tell the same story. California’s craft brewery count fell from 987 in 2023 to 939 in 2025, according to Brewers Association figures, and this month has been especially unforgiving in San Diego County.

What comes next

There is at least one bright spot on the calendar. San Diego Beer Week arrives in mid-November, with events already announced including Ocean Beach Brewery’s Hoppy Beer Gear 10th anniversary on November 14 and Pure Project’s Stout Sunday on November 15. After a month like this one, the county’s beer scene could use the celebration.