As the world gears up to ring in the new year, you may have to toast at the countdown with something other than the traditional champagne you are used to. If you haven’t heard yet, champagne is toilet paper of 2021, as there is a major supply chain issue with the coveted fizzy beverage we all know and love. The pandemic strikes again!
If you have a hard time finding a bottle of your favorite champagne, this may or may not ruin your new year’s eve. Just don’t despair! Maybe grab your favorite flavors of White Claw instead?
Champagne sales were down $2 billion in 2020. Due to the postponement of wedding and large gatherings, in addition to shut down of bars and lessened dining out, champagne sales dropped drastically according to the Associated Press.
Anselme Selosse of Jacques Selosse Champagnes told AP:
Champagne has never lived through anything like this before, even in the World Wars. We have never experienced . . . a sudden one-third fall in sales. Over one hundred million bottles unsold.
Demand is back up, but that also complicates things. As things have slowly opened back up around the world, demand for champagne has risen, with champagne making up 17% of all wine orders in December 2021 alone.
Additionally, extreme weather has made this year’s harvest of champagne one of the smallest in decades, which is affecting the already strained supply chain.
Another shortage affecting the champagne supply chain is the lack of glass bottles. The pandemic has impacted the availability of glass bottles so wine and spirit distillers have to pick which size bottles consumers will get.
So what does this mean for champagne consumers? You may still be able to find a bottle of bubbly on the shelf, it may just not be the brand you are used to poppin’. Since champagne is specific to a regional area of France, you may have to settle for sparkling wine like Prosecco or Cava.
It is projected that champagne supply chain disruptions will last into 2023, so you may have to find some alternatives for your favorite drink. There are going to be a lot more sad queens at drag brunch in the new year!
Source: Associated Press, Fox Business
