Paul: raising a glass in Dublin

As the Coronavirus health crisis continues to unfold across the world, we’ve seen changes big and small impact our world—from the narrowing of our horizons to the changes in our shopping habits.

As someone who works in the Irish wine industry, I’ve witnessed the massive implications of COVID-19 play out with every business owner I work with. Everyone’s seen the well-documented stories about spirit producers pivoting to produce alcohol for hand sanitizer rather than their usual artisan products—but such inspiring stories have been less common in the wine industry.

I’ve had multiple conversations over the last few weeks with small business owners across Dublin wondering whether their wine shops will be allowed to remain open as government restrictions tighten here. At the end of the day, that probably depends on whether we see wine as an “essential” product.

Since the pandemic outbreak, growers in Italy, Spain, South Africa and beyond have reported delays or suspension of production. Global wine fairs that are hugely important to the industry, such as ProWein, have been postponed or cancelled. Importers and distributors in various counties have reported losses and closures as restaurants shut their doors and revenues dry up.

Working for a major Irish importer and distributor I supply a mix of restaurants, pubs (on trade) and independent wine shops (off trade). As things currently stand, less than 10% of my customers are able to remain operational based on current government advice.

It’s heart-breaking to see so many restaurants and other small businesses—which are often family-run and managed with extremely tight margins at the best of times—worry about their future prospects and whether they will survive. While some restaurants have switched to a take away model in an effort to weather the storm, wine doesn’t usually work like that.

This leaves off trade wine shops as being the only businesses I deal with that are able to keep their doors open. For the lucky ones, business is great with many owners reporting high volumes of sales—but what might the ultimate cost be? Opening their doors each day means taking a risk with their personal health and the health of their staff. Perhaps the future will see online order systems become the only option, which will mean smaller businesses need to get to grips with e-commerce tools and upload their products onto websites, fast.

Can we gauge the mood of the public by what kind of wine is selling the most? Champagne always sells best at Christmas, while Rosé becomes the drink of choice when the sun is shining bright in the sky. What kind of bottles do people reach for—with gloved hands—during a global pandemic?

The shop owners I’ve spoken to say that their customers are raising the bar in terms of the quality of their wine. Perhaps with restaurants closed and everyone confined to their home, there’s a tendency to indulge wherever it’s possible? An understandable way of keeping spirits up in these, the darkest of days.

Wine is a luxury and much as I’d like to think otherwise, it’s not essential for human survival. But what does unite everyone here in Ireland is the need for hope, to help us navigate these uncharted waters. If drinking a glass of something special at home with your fellow isolaters offers a glint of light at the end of the tunnel, that sounds pretty essential to me.