SYRACUSE, NY -- Clark's Ale House, one of Central New York's pioneering craft beer bars, will close at the end of business today.

The closing comes almost two months ahead of the bar's previously announced timetable. In July, founder Ray Clark announced the business was for sale and said the ale house would close Nov. 1 if no buyer was found before then.

Clark's, at the corner of Salina and Washington streets, has 32 beer taps, but on Friday the number being used had started to dwindle. Food supplies also started running low.

A manager confirmed the closing.

Clark's opened at the Salina Street location in November 2014, four years after it had shut down its original location at 122 W. Jefferson St in the Landmark Theatre building. During its 18-year run on Jefferson Street, beginning in 1992, it was frequently listed in travel guides and beer publications among the best beer bars in America.

The reopening was eagerly awaited by long-time ale house fans. Since the reopening, however, it's been plagued by slow sales, in part due to a surge in the number of competing craft beer-centric bars downtown and a lack of nearby parking, Ray Clark said in July.

Don Cazentre writes about food, beverages, restaurants and bars for syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Contact him by email, on Twitter, at Google+ or via Facebook.