Deadly California wildfires could hit Hong Kong wine supply, says importer shocked by ‘awful tragedy’
Flames destroy wineries in Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino counties, and with wildfires still raging, seller of Californian wine in Hong Kong warns imports could drop; industry figures on the ground hopeful supply won’t take a big hit
“It’s awful. It’s an absolute tragedy,” said Fifi Kirstein, managing partner of Golden Gate Wine in the city’s Sheung Wan neighbourhood. Kirstein imports and sells 500 to 800 cases of American wine each month, and 40 per cent to 50 per cent of that is from Northern California. Her top brands include Far Niente, Schramsberg, Cline, Coppola, and Freeman, which sell for between US$20 and US$400 a bottle.
“Looking at the fire maps, you’re talking about Calistoga, you’re talking about premium wine areas,” Kirstein says. “So those would also be less likely to have stockpiles … You’re not talking about mass production areas where you can kind of source from outside to make as much as you possibly desire.”
If the fires interrupt supply, Kirstein could run short of stock. That’s partly because Hong Kong’s high property prices make stockpiling wine more expensive than importing it. She normally keeps about 2,000 cases of US wine on hand. Under normal circumstances, that lasts three to five months.
With firefighters still battling the blazes, the supply picture remained unclear on Tuesday.
Fifteen fires began late on Sunday. Seasonal winds of up to 120km/h per hour drove the fires in Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino counties. Authorities said late on Monday the blazes were “zero to one per cent contained” and they continued to spread. Santa Rosa, home to many industrial wineries, was particularly hard hit.