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The
global supply chain issues that have caused shortages and price
increases on a host of products could affect wine and spirits in
some areas. The problems were sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic,
which officials said has led to bottlenecks in the distribution
network and labor shortages.
The Wall Street Journal reports that demand for liquor surged
during the pandemic and since some of it takes years to make,
some brands are now harder to find.
“The global supply chain is kind of like an orchestra,” said
Scott Moorad, the Chief Operating Officer of the alcohol
beverage company Hillebrand. “It is hard to turn the page when
things change and the world around us is getting so dynamic and
we are not nimble enough to always handle the different buying
patterns and what’s going on.”
Booze is a cash cow for the state, as Illinois is near the top
in the taxes placed on alcoholic beverages. The state taxes an
additional $8.55 per gallon on liquor, $1.39 per gallon of wine,
and 23 cents per gallon of beer.
A 2019 study from the nonpartisan Tax Foundation found that
Illinois garnered the sixth-highest amount per capita in excise
taxes during fiscal year 2016, before the state legalized
recreational cannabis. Excise taxes are a tax on a specific good
or activity and include “sin” taxes such as those on alcohol,
tobacco, marijuana and gambling.
Multiple states have reported supply issues since September,
with some like Pennsylvania instituting purchase limits to help
ration liquor supplies.
Moorad said the current bottlenecks in the supply chain may stay
in place for a while.
“How long is this going to last? None of us has that crystal
ball,” Moorad said. “I think we do know that the short-term
belief of it has gone away and this will be here sometime into
2022 and maybe even longer.”
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