Wineries, breweries strained by glass shortages due to supply chain problems
As demand continues to outpace supply, experts say, Triad beer and winemakers are accommodating challenges
As demand continues to outpace supply, experts say, Triad beer and winemakers are accommodating challenges
As demand continues to outpace supply, experts say, Triad beer and winemakers are accommodating challenges
A perfect pint or a glass of wine comes as the result of careful planning and particular attention to detail. There is little room for error.
National supply chain problems, however, are adding concern to the wine and beer-making process due to a shortage of supplies, like glass. From glass bottles to glassware, the supply chain backups are directly impacting producers in the Piedmont Triad and beyond.
“It’s very, very heartbreaking for me,” said Joey Medaloni, of Medaloni Cellars, a Lewisville-based winery. “We’re a small, little place. We do 1,500 cases a year but everything is so hands-on, so boutique, down to the last detail. It has to be the correct paper, the right ink. We have another problem with the paper for our labels. They can get the paper but they can’t get the glue.”
Right now, supply chains are off. Haresh Gurnani is a professor of operations and supply chain management at Wake Forest University. He said, at this point in the pandemic, the output is struggling to keep up with a surge in demand.
“If we were to roll back 18 months, last year, to when COVID was first starting, there was a huge drop in demand,” he said. “Demand picked up faster than the supply could manage and that led to congestion in factories, in transportation.”
For Medaloni, the winery has struggled to get everything from barrels and bottles to the very ink they rely on to print the label's key to their brands.
“It’s really eye-opening,” he said. “It’s extra work, loaded work, more moving parts — and moving parts break. It took me two years to make that, I cannot have that wine just disappear.”
Learning to pivot as they pour is something Dan Rossow, of Wiseman Brewing in Winston-Salem, says has become an integral part of how they operate the brewery.
“We want to make sure that we have a consistent product and presentation. Whatever we can do to make it happen, we will,” he said.
And, he says, they did.
Despite ingredient shortages this summer on fruits and German malt, beer makers managed to make adjustments where needed. Rossow said the challenge now is keeping up with the amount of glassware they need in-house.
“Glassware is key in the brewery setting. We want everyone to have a beer in a glass that matches the beer style and gives the best experience, but we’re had issues getting the glassware we’ve been using since we opened," he said.
Still, he said, they are making do.
“We’re lucky in terms of how supply chain issues have impacted us,” he said. “It hasn't been easy but we haven't been crippled by it.”
For Medaloni, he’s anxious to see how long problems remain.
“It’s just a nightmare. I don't know where it’s going to end. Is this the middle? I hope to goodness this is not the beginning,” he said.
Despite the challenges, the process goes on, ending and beginning with each new glass.