We are not the betting types, and you will not find us at a casino more than once in a blue moon. But, if we had placed bets on the next two Bosque Brewing taprooms to close, we would have just won something.

Bosque announced today (Tuesday) on social media that they have closed, effective immediately, the San Mateo and West (former Lava Rock) taprooms. The former, by all accounts of those who patronized it, was plagued with problems from the get-go.

As for the latter, well, we recall how Lava Rock struggled over there. In particular, Lava Rock had an issue with staffing. The westside location was surrounded by single-family homes, not exactly full of the type of people who can afford to just live off tips as servers or off line cook salaries. We do not imagine that Bosque had it any easier trying to staff that spot.

Here is the full statement that Bosque shared to Facebook:

As we continue our Chapter 11 restructuring process that began in October, we have made the difficult decision to close San Mateo Public House and Bosque West locations in Albuquerque, effective immediately. This step allows us to focus our resources better and support the long-term health of the organization.
Our employees have been an important part of the Bosque community, and we are grateful for the energy, professionalism, and hospitality they brought to our guests every day. We are meeting directly with affected team members to provide information and support as they navigate this transition.
San Mateo and Bosque West were meaningful parts of our Albuquerque presence, and we are thankful to the guests and neighbors who supported these public houses over the years. While these locations were not able to continue operating sustainably, the relationships built there will always be part of our story. We remain deeply rooted in Albuquerque and Las Cruces and continue to operate in both cities.
We are committed to navigating this restructuring process with care and transparency, enabling us to build a stronger, more sustainable future for our teams and the communities we serve throughout New Mexico.

So where do things go from here? Well, as we wrote last week, we have no idea. Bosque is now down to the following locations:

• Bosque North in Bernalillo, the main brewing hub (even if brewing activity there has all but ceased), where a majority of the off-site licenses are tied into the small brewer and winegrower (for cider) licenses.
• Bosque Cottonwood, the second location with small brewer and winegrower licenses, with a handful of the off-site taprooms linked to (though we will have to check on which of these may be left). This is also the spot where Smothered now serves up its brunch dishes during the day.
• Bosque Heights off Eubank. By all accounts from our friends who live nearby, this location has been more successful than San Mateo was, hence its survival (for now).
• Bosque Nob Hill. The first taproom seems to still be going strong.
• Restoration Pizza in Journal Center.
• Bosque Public House in Las Cruces, across from New Mexico State University.
• Bosque Telshor in Las Cruces.

Bosque continues to brew their core canned lineup at Marble for distribution statewide. If anything changes there, we will be sure to update everyone.

Our condolences to the employees who lost their jobs nine days before Christmas. Here is hoping that this is the end of the bad news out of the Bosque corner of our local brewing scene, at least for 2025.

— Stoutmeister