The team-up pairs Huss, the state’s second-largest craft brewery, with the 12th largest, based on barrel production estimates compiled by the Phoenix Business Journal. The two brewers have united under a new parent company called Zonafide Beverages, LLC, which has a projected annual production of nearly 30,000 barrels.
Leah Huss, who launched her eponymous Tempe brewery with her husband Jeff in 2013, says the timing was right for this merger.
“We’ve always been open to change and partnerships,” she says. “I think that also is the nature of this industry, is that people are willing to work together, want to work together.”
The beers and their brands – Huss Brewing, Papago Brewing Co., PHX Beer Co., Sonoran Brewing Co. and Chestnut Sports Club – will retain their independent identities. Under the partnership, all brewing will move to Huss’ Tempe facility, with Jeff Huss overseeing production as brewmaster.
With that consolidation of facilities, PHX Beer Co. has closed its downtown Phoenix location on 30th and Washington streets. The taproom and brewhouse poured its last pints on Friday, says Steve Robbins, the brewery’s president.
The other locations of Huss and PHX Beer Co. remain open. Huss has taprooms in downtown Phoenix and at its brewery in Tempe. Huss is also Arizona State University’s official craft beer for the 2025-26 season “and beyond,” and will debut a bar called Huss Hideout at Mountain America Stadium for the Sun Devils’ fall football season.
PHX Beer Co. has a restaurant in Scottsdale and an outpost in Terminal 3 of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airport is already a place where customers can likewise find Huss beer on tap, Robbins says. Visitors to Huss and PHX Beer Co. locations going forward can expect to see more of these brands featured at their respective bars and restaurants.
PHX Beer Co.'s downtown brewhouse and taproom has closed, with its brewing operations moving to Huss' Tempe facility.
Huss Brewing Co. & PHX Beer Co.
“There’s a saying out there that goes, adapt or die. Like, we’re literally there,” Robbins says. “Craft beer has been there since it started. You can’t just sit on your hands and hope everything is going to be OK tomorrow. You have to work really, really hard.”
Arizona, like the rest of the nation, has seen consolidation of its independently owned craft breweries as well as brewery closures as consumers’ tastes and relationship with alcohol evolves. Still, those who have established their breweries feel there’s still room to grow in Arizona.
“If you read one side of the coin, it could be very negative, but this is very positive,” Robbins says. “There’s still a lot to be optimistic about when it comes to beverages and craft beer.”
Acquiring other breweries is also on the table, and gives the company more opportunities to shift with drinkers’ habits.
“With a bigger portfolio, we have the ability to change,” Robbins says.
Huss Brewing Co. is known for a family of beers, including Pagago Brewing Co.'s Orange Blossom. It and the other beer brands will retain their independent identities.
Huss Brewing Co. & PHX Beer Co.
PHX Beer Co. was established in 2019. Its beers include Bird City Lager, Arizona Gold golden ale and Zanjero Juicy IPA, as well as Sonoran’s White Chocolate Ale and the recently launched 90-calorie, low-ABV lager, Chestnut Sports Club.
Robbins says under Zonafide, those beers will continue to be what customers expect.
“The beauty of this is that the brands have depth, they have history, they have roots,” Robbins says. “All we’re going to do is emphasize those roots.”
