The living wake of one of the oldest American craft breweries is a lot like any other mid-day Thursday afternoon. Anchor’s demise was hinted, then certain, then questionable, but standing in the literal middle of its taproom, a 30-foot tall Christmas tree beside me to recall its beloved winter seasonal beer, Our Special Ale, I am otherwise surrounded by a not-quite-sparse, but also pretty typical near-weekend crowd. It all makes the (Supposed? Likely?) impending closure of this American icon sort of … normal.
The emotional attachment of this business is real and justified after being open for generations. But I think I expected more sorrow. More reflection. Fewer … bangers on the sound system from Missy Elliott and Nelly Furtado and Sean Paul. Or maybe that’s the point. I missed the reflective service on Wednesday. Thursday is time to turn it up. The weekend is coming.
Early 2000s rap and pop blasts throughout the taproom as a table of middle-aged men drink and share what sounds like memories of high school basketball. The quality of a former teammate who may or may not have been a worthy starter at center is up for debate. Maybe this is how you say goodbye to a friend like Anchor, similar to any other life remembrance: Gather the ones you care about and look backward to find some laughs. I take another sip of my Anchor Porter.
The most significant signal of the brewery marking its final days are its cheap pours ($3 for an Anchor Steam) and pallets of discounted six- and 12-packs surrounding the seating area. “Packaged beer for to-go only,” patrons are reminded by signs that surround the stacks of beer, although this specific moment isn’t rowdy enough to make me think a rager is about to start if someone were to crack a sixer of San Pancho Mexican Lager.
These are all pleasant, mild reminders I’ll stow away for recall later in which I find myself at what I thought would be a series of real-time eulogies around bar tops and long tables. Next to me, a family of parents (Steve and Cindy) and their grown son (Jake) are more excited to share their tips for eating and drinking in San Francisco, although they remind me that Anchor is a key part of the list.
One thing I hope will embed Anchor in patrons’ memories, if only the storage of their cell phones: If you want free WiFi, just enter “SteamBeer,” a password for free access to the internet but also the reason we’ve all gathered, to commemorate a brewery known for a beer style of the past brought to the present, maybe soon to be gone forever from here, a signal disappearing with distance.
Words + Photo by Bryan Roth