Now that restrictions are being lifted in New York and concerts can be held at full capacity for those fully vaccinated, what's the fate of Saranac Thursdays in Central New York this summer?

F.X. Matt Brewery has held the Saranac Concert Series for more than 20 years, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the United Way of the Valley and Greater Utica. It was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. "We hope we will be back for the 2021 season and look forward to having a beer with you then," the Brewery said in an announcement.

But that's not likely to happen. Fred Matt says it's doubtful Saranac Thursdays will return for 2021. "Likely no, but we'll see."

The decision to not bring back the summer concert series has nothing to do with capacity limits or COVID-19 restrictions. "We don't want to take away business from the bars and restaurants downtown who have struggled over the past 14 months and desperately need it," said Matt.

Instead, the focus at the brewery is on the $35 million expansion to the brewhouse and tank farm. There's also plans to invest another $11 million. "Our business diversification strategy, along with investments in the brewery have resulted in tremendous growth in our business."

With all that growth, the brewery is looking to hire 25 to 30 workers immediately. If you're interest, you can visit saranac.com/job-postings.com to apply.

The new state-of-the-art brewhouse and tank farm doubles brewing capacity from 5-6 brews per day to 10-12 per day.

FX Matt Brewery Expansion

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