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A set of huge beer fermentation tanks destined for the Genesee Brewery in Rochester via the New York State Canal on barges at the Port of Coeymans near Albany.
(Genesee Brewery)
UPDATE: The tentative schedule has been announced.
ALBANY, NY -- The set of huge beer tanks destined for The Genesee Brewery in Rochester are expected to begin their week-long journey over the New York Canal System on Friday.
The Genesee Brewery, Rochester, N.Y., Friday, March 4, 2016. Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.com
The 20-foot by 60-foot tanks, too large to be trucked down the state Thruway, have been held up for about a week in a port on the Hudson River south of Albany. The delay was due to high water in the canal system caused by recent record rainfall.
Barges carrying the tanks will enter the state canal system at the Waterford lock north of Albany at 11 a.m. Friday. The trip to the Genesee Brewery on the old "Erie Canal" is expected to take six to seven days.
Genesee Brewery is encouraging fans of its beers to toast the tanks as they float down the canal, and soon will release an estimated timetable showing when and where they can be seen.
The tanks are a key part of a $49 million renovation and modernization at the Genesee plant on St. Paul Street in Rochester, the state's oldest brewery. They will help make beer production at the brewery more efficient, Genesee officials have said.
The tanks were manufactured in China, and the 225-mile trip down the canal will be the final piece of a 6,000-mile journey. Genesee solicited bids for all parts of the modernization project and the company says most of the work is being done by American companies.
Genesee, through its parent company North American Breweries, is spending $40 million of its own money on the project, and will receive another $9 million in state aid of it meets certain goals. That includes adding 128 jobs to the current staff of 600 at the brewery. North American Breweries is owned by the Florida Ice and Farm Co. of Costa Rica, the maker of Imperial brand beer.
Don Cazentre writes about craft beer, wine, spirits and beverages for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.