COVID19 EFFECT ON WINE PRODUCERS GLOBALLY:

The Wine Industry during the Coronavirus Pandemic. 

"In 40 years in this business, we've been hit with wildfires, earthquakes, floods, economic downturns and bugs that threatened to wipe out the vineyards. This feels like getting hit by all those things at the same time."—Doug Shafer of @ShaferVineyards. There is a range of ways the Coronavirus is affecting the international wine community. Luckily, many large retail wine chains, and famous actors, as well as wineries (from small to large) are doing everything they can to help this industry survive this crisis. Although that is its own topic of its own, we move on from this to talk about how wine producers are fairing, and possible ways to support your local food and beverage companies!  The good news for the wine producers is that,  even if they can't have clients visit, production hasn't slowed too much. "The life of a farmer doesn't slow down in times like this," said Lisa Mattson, director of marketing and communications for Jordan Winery in Sonoma. "The grapevines don't stop growing, and the cows still need to be fed." " Shafer echoed that. "If you only spent time in the vineyard, you'd never know anything unusual was happening," he said, noting that they just finished pruning and budbreak has begun. In the cellar, most vintners reported working with limited crews but needing to keep up with topping barrels, blending, and or emptying tanks and barrels for bottling and to prepare for the next harvest." - Wine Spectator.

The northern hemisphere is not currently in the middle of harvest in the way the southern hemisphere is during the spring. Every country and region has new and carrying regulation regarding COVID19, but most have considered the wine industry to be "essential" and the CDC has created a new health standard within the cellar and vineyards to abide by. Harvest could have been effected worse in the southern hemisphere, but luckily harvest came earlier than usual and most have finished the intense labour before the regulations hit too drastically. The largest negative effect seems to be the prohibition of sales in certain wine regions during quarantine. In the US alone, one report estimated $400 million in coronavirus-related losses for wineries occurred last month. Also, "hosting visitors is at the core of a winery's identity, and often a substantial source of revenue—more than a third of sales for many small wineries". It is important to recognize the little men in this industry, and make sure they survive this quarantine. You can do so by buying direct to consumer on their online websites (within the USA), or find online wine retailers (like Fibonacci) who buy from small boutique wineries, and will be aiding their the survival. We must ensure we can keep the authentic part of this industry, the family estate producers, alive during this crisis. Please contact us for references to wines of interest wether it is from our Portfolio or another companies!

Here are the links to some recommended articles to read:

https://www.winespectator.com/articles/how-do-you-harvest-grapes-and-make-wine-in-a-pandemic

https://www.winespectator.com/articles/would-you-like-some-romanee-conti-with-your-fries

https://www.winespectator.com/articles/after-covid-19-closed-tasting-rooms-west-coast-wineries-face-uncertain-future

https://www.winespectator.com/articles/wineries-pull-out-all-the-stops-for-covid-19-relief-unfiltered