The Covid -19 outbreak is a health and personal disaster. One can but hope that that no-one else will suffer from the virus but I fear that worse is to come. My condolences are offered to anyone who has suffered. It could easily be me next, my wife or a member of my extended family, in the UK or France. I already know someone who has died of the virus.
For the wine industry this is also a disaster. It is an industry that thrives on personal contact, whether it is in the vineyard, the winery or the wine shop. Drinking a bottle of wine with friends with a good meal is part of conviviality, this is now gone, and we will all be leading lives in separation for perhaps months to come. Soon we will be denied the simple pleasures of visiting a cave or a wine store to discuss and taste the wine and buy it.
The future looks bleak. It is possible that automation and artificial intelligence will be used to achieve economies across the industry to save it.Wine making and delivery and vineyard work will be become de-personalised. At least, I shall be sharing my wine with friends and family. The good times will return one day.
We are all affected by the struggle against the virus, but, even so, most of us are lucky enough not to be involved in a real war which is much worse.
Tonight my wife and I will drink a glass of wine to wish good luck and good health to all those involved in the industry wherever they are.
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