The Wine Merchant issue 102

Page 1

THE WINE MERCHANT. An independent magazine for independent retailers

Issue 102, May 2021

Dog of the Month: Trixie Stainton Wines, Cumbria

Indies face long delays as wine shipments creak under strain A combination of factors, including Covid and Brexit, mean that merchants are facing huge supply chain disruption

T

he pandemic, global logistics issues and Brexit are all

conspiring to disrupt UK wine

supplies, with shipments from the US a particular pinch-point.

Several suppliers have identified

cross-Atlantic freight as a major cause for concern, though delays to volume transit from the EU and niggly issues with duty

demands on sample bottles are also being experienced.

reports that he placed an order from

numerous regions for varied reasons.

there was a Brexit-related element.

are stuck,” he says. “The whole global flow

California in November that was expected to hit the UK in mid-May and suggested “The world’s largest shipping line is

avoiding the UK because of all the delays at the deep-sea UK ports,” he says.

Matt Douglas of North South Wines says

the company has experienced delays from

“There is a shortage of empty containers

in all parts of the world as many containers has been disrupted and there are fewer

ships circulating the empties, mainly due to port and ship manpower issues related to

Continues page 8

Delays to US shipments are being blamed

on a combination of factors, including a

global shortage of refrigerated containers, the toll taken by Covid on staff levels in

the freight industry stateside and the Suez Canal blockage.

Peter Mitchell MW of Jeroboams reports

“current delays of around 12 weeks for shipments – meaning a total shipping

time of around 22 weeks – with the wine waiting in storage in Oakland”.

He adds: “This delay has come down

from four months for orders placed in November last year.

“We have been told it is because of a lack

of physical containers to put the wine in, coupled with general congestion in the

ports owing to a lack of capacity, lack of

healthy workers and increased spending on consumer goods in the US.”

Daniel Lambert of Daniel Lambert Wines

The Riddling Rack in Newton-le-Willows is one of hundreds of indies delighted to be welcoming back customers to enjoy wine on the premises. Read more about the company’s renovations on page 2, and see what ther independents are saying about their own return to table service in The Burning Question on page 21.


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