Between the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus and the duties imposed by Trump, the wine market has collapsed: the winemakers are selling their product
Good Alsace white wine, quality wine, sold to make hand sanitizer. It is happening in France: the producers, folded by economic crisis caused by coronavirus, together with duties that the Trump administration imposed in the trade war with Europe, they are selling their valuable product. The wine market collapsed: even though, during the lockdown, many citizens bought more bottles than usual, they did not compensate for the big losses due to the closure of restaurants, pubs, bars and wine bars. The New York Times reports: thousands of famous and lesser-known winegrowers are facing this difficult situation.
Jérôme Mader, a 38-year-old winemaker whose fine Rieslings and Gewürztraminers are shipped to trendy restaurants and shops on both sides of the Atlantic lost half of its sales from December. "Covid is a catastrophe for us," he explained. Part of its white wine, a wine of high commercial value, will eventually become hand sanitizer. Like other winemakers, Mr. Mader he has no space in his cellar to store unsold wine. The wine tanks must be emptied for new production.
The Domaine Borès company in Reichsfeld sold 30% of its production: 19,000 liters. "It's like saying goodbye to someone who is very dear to you," explained the owners. «This is not exactly the purpose we had in mind when we produced this wine. Which will end up in the steel silos of the nearby Romann distillery, where it will be reduced to alcohol. Only in Alsace, over six million liters of wine will end up like this. "We continually distill," explained Erwin Brouard, director of the distillery. «It is something very sad for winemakers. Their stocks are too abundant. They have to make room French man ?.
Even 150 million liters of Italian wine they will be transformed into disinfectant gel or bioethanol: Coldiretti announced it. The so-called "crisis distillation", Funded by the European Union, also aims to free up space in the cellars in view of the next harvest. But if, in our country, the conversion will only concern common wines with a minimum alcohol content of 10 °; in France it is also possible to transform those with designation of origin. Including, of course, champagne.
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