It's hard to work up too much sympathy for the owners of Pittsburgh Brewing.

They have thus far stiffed the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority to the tune of $2.5 million. Whatever amount of that sum goes unpaid is money that will have to be made up by the agency's other customers.

They hope to dump a retirement plan that is underfunded by $6 million on the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Board. If approved, that move would mean reduced old-age income or delayed retirement for the brewery's long-time employees.

They appear poised to seek givebacks from union workers, no more than six months after signing a five-year contract. That would represent the latest sorry chapter in a troubled worker-management relationship.

Nonetheless, Vice Chairman Joseph Piccirilli has said he hopes the company will emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization with current management intact. Well, that decision will be up to a federal bankruptcy judge after he hears from Pittsburgh Brewing's four dozen creditors. Documents produced as part of the bankruptcy filing should give both supporters and detractors a clearer view of the privately held company's financial position.

The picture, admittedly, is not all gloom. Pittsburgh is fortunate to have a strong small player in Pennsylvania Brewing Co., the maker of Penn Pilsner, and a changing cast of other brew pubs that produce their own beverages.

They augment what beer historian Lew Bryson calls a rare asset: The maker of Iron City is a city brewery with strong products, a loyal local customer base, national name recognition and, with its aluminum bottles, innovative and memorable packaging.

For those reasons, the Post-Gazette hopes that Iron City, Pittsburgh Brewing's iconic brand, will not be transformed into a name plastered on a beverage made elsewhere. That fate, sadly, has overtaken too many local brews. If that happens, not only would most of 200 local jobs be lost, but so would a 144-year-old tradition.

As we head into the holiday season, it would not be out of place for adults so inclined to raise a glass of Pittsburgh-made beer in a yeasty, supportive tribute to the region's brewing heritage.