Metropolitan Brewing files for Ch. 11, may close this winter

Citing tepid retail sales, unsustainable debt and a yearslong rent dispute at its custom-designed taproom and brewery overlooking the Chicago River, Metropolitan Brewing has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Without reworking its debt, including more than $1 million owed in back rent and fees, the pioneering 15-year-old craft brewer said it will not survive the long Chicago winter ahead.

“The brewery will not be able to make it through the winter … without a comprehensive restructuring or sale,” Metropolitan said in its Oct. 3 bankruptcy filing.

One of Chicago’s oldest craft breweries, Metropolitan launched in 2008 out of a Ravenswood warehouse, building a following for its German-style lagers. In 2017, Metropolitan moved to a more expansive home, leasing space at Rockwell on the River, a commercial redevelopment near Belmont and Elston avenues in Avondale.

But Metropolitan, known for its flagship Krankshaft Kolsch brew and its picturesque patio views along the river,…