Len Panaggio, Beverage Consultant
By Len Panaggio
Well, the summer is behind us. I think we can agree that despite rising gas and energy prices, it was a solid season for hospitality businesses. September is here and with it there are a few items that will affect your business.
The first day of fall is on Sept. 22, and with its arrival, daylight begins to wane and the weather will start to transition from summer heat to the chill of autumn. This means that traditionally, our guests will be switching up their favorite alcoholic beverages to more seasonal selections: white wines to reds, clear spirits to brown, and lagers to ales.
Obviously, not everyone follows these traditions, but nevertheless you should be prepared. Clearly the biggest change in my opinion is the arrival of Oktoberfest beers in August and the onslaught of pumpkin beers pretty much at the same time. I keep mentioning that the window for Oktoberfest beers closes about Columbus Day weekend while the pumpkin beer depletions continue to rise straight through the holidays. My advice is to watch your inventories for both these styles as you won’t be able to sell much Oktoberfest after the Columbus Day weekend, and pumpkin beer will only last through the holidays.
In addition to all the seasonally flavored beer, some wineries are now creating pumpkin flavored wines, much to my chagrin. We’ve all seen the orange wine trend, but the thought of a pumpkin wine is repulsive – so really know your audience if you are entertaining purchasing these wines for the season. You could wind up sitting on unsellable inventory. Spirits are also on this flavor bandwagon with many flavored vodkas, cream liqueurs, whiskeys, spice packs, pastes, and more. Again, be mindful of your inventory, as pumpkin will fall out of fashion before we ring in the new year.
From a fall trend perspective, things haven’t changed much. Alcoholic beverages remain on the decline, albeit starting to level off. I did see that some of the breweries are making a non-alcoholic Oktoberfest and pumpkin beer, which is worth a try. The bright spots continue to be RTDs and low or no-alcohol beverages so again, be prepared. Talk to your salespeople about both of these trends and what currently is hot in the market.
Beyond seasonal flavors and trends, we need to be prepared for the biggest impact to business in New England – weather systems. Weather plays a huge role in New England and September is the most active month for hurricanes in the Atlantic basin. In my last column, I urged everyone to create a hurricane plan if you don’t have one in place. I put that call out again; it’s vital to your operations. Local meteorologists are making their predictions, and it looks like the waters off New England are warmer than normal. Caution and preparedness should be top of mind.
In addition to storms, be prepared for those occasional cool to cold days and nights that will affect your outside bar and dining and schedule accordingly. With the exodus of college students last month and high school students this month, support staffs will feel the crunch. It’s easier to call folks out then to call them in.
That said, labor continues to be a problem. I’m not sure the good old days of plentiful staffing will ever return as there is so much flux in the labor force these days. But one thing remains apparent, they sure don’t love working nights, holidays and weekends – all critical in our business.
As we look ahead, autumn is one of the nicest times in our region and planning for the season with care and understanding will go a long way with staff and guests.
Len Panaggio’s career in food and wine spans more than three decades as an owner and as a beverage director at some of the top restaurants in Rhode Island. Currently a hospitality consultant, Len is a graduate of the University of Rhode Island and has attended the Culinary Institute of America Master Sommelier program and the Sterling School of Service and Hospitality.
