Australian Gourmet Traveller - (06)June 2020 (1)

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SUPPLY AND DEMAND

“YouknowthesongKillingMeSoftly? That’sthesoundtracktomyliferight

now,”saysPatMcInerney.Theco-founderofWillietheBoatmanhashad

a quietdayofsalesathisbreweryinSydney’sInnerWest.Likesomany

wholesalerswhotypicallysupplytheirbeveragestohospitalityvenues,

thebreweryhasexperienceda massiverevenuedeclinesincea Federal

Governmentedictforcedpubsandclubstoclose.Pre-Covid-19,thebrewery

serviced 200 pubsa monthacrossNewSouthWales.“Kegswerea bigpart

ofourbusiness– theydrivevolume,andkeepeveryoneemployed,”says

McInerney.He’snowrelyingonretailsalestostayafloat.

Wholesalewinesuppliers,too,haverapidlyshiftedtheirfocustoretail.

Thehospitalityindustryis anecosystem– whenfrontlinevenuessuffer,the

dominochainofsupplierswhodependonthemalsofalls.CampbellBurton’s

eponymouswinesupplybusiness,whichheco-ownswithhiswifeCharlotte

Ryan,hasdropped 95 percentinthepastfewweeks.“It’sclosetoa trickle,”

hesays.“Ina month,we’vesoldalmostnothinginwholesale.”Wineimporter

GiorgioDeMariaagrees.“Fromonedaytoanother,literallytherewereno

moreorders,”hesays.Heusedtosupply 150 restaurantsacrossAustralia

throughhisbusinessGiorgioDeMariaFunWines.Now,he’sopeneda

home-deliveryserviceforthefirsttime.InmetroSydney,ordersaredelivered

byDeMariahimself;in Melbourne,they’redeliveredbyRaffaeleMastrovincenzo,

GT’s SommelieroftheYearfor2016.

Thesesuppliersarethankfulforthosewhohavesupportedthemthus

far.McInerneysayscustomerswhotypicallybuyfour-packtinniesare

nowbuyingbeersbythecase.Burtonsaysdeliveringwinetocustomers’

doorstepssatisfieshisneedforface-to-facecontact.“Anyopportunityto

talkaboutwineI’llabsolutelytake.”

Fornow,theywantthosewhocanaffordit, tosupportthem.DeMaria’s

andBurton’sbusinesseshavesometop-shelfdrops,manyintheorganic,

chemical-freeandwild-fermentationcategories,formid-tierprices.

Meanwhile,WillietheBoatmanhasjustreleaseda limited-edition“Sexon

theBeach”sourale.“Thisis notgoingtolastforever.Wewillsurvive,and

everyonewillgotonormalagaininsixto 12 months,”saysMcInerney.“And

whenthathappens,theybetterbloodycomeoutwitha beerinhand.”

THREE OF THE BEST

COFFEE DELIVERY SERVICES

1

Industry Beans

If you miss popping into the Sydney, Brisbane

and Melbourne outposts of this slick, minimal café

and roastery, sign up for their Ongoing Supply service.

There are no fixed delivery dates or intervals, so you

cancustomiseit tosuityourpersonalcaffeineneeds.

500gm,$28-$32,industrybeans.com

2

StAli

Trustingtheexpertsis partofthemagicofthis

subscriptionservice.Eachmonththeirroaster

willselectanoutstandingsingleorigin– justchoose

yourroastandgrind.Theyalsohaveblendsavailable

andNespresso-compatiblecapsules.

500gm,$40,stali.com.au

3

StitchCoffee

ThisSydney-basedspecialtycoffeeroasterwill

sendoutbothblendandsingleorigins.If you

optforfortnightlydelivery,you’llreceiveyourfirstbag

free.Youcanswitchtheblendororiginatanytime,

meaningyoucantasteyourwaythroughtheirfull

caffeinatedspectrum.

250gm,$16.20-$19,stitch.coffee

26 GOURMET TRAVELLER

WORDS YVONNE C. LAM (SUPPLY AND DEMAND).

Giorgio De Maria

(and friend).