With glass bottles in short and sporadic supply, Albany Distilling has moved to an 8.500-square-foot space in West Albany, N.Y. It’s old facility was 1,400 square feet.
The larger space has been a plus: Sales have jumped with many drinkers saying they prefer non-Russian vodka. Co-owner John Curtain told the Albany Times-Union that he’s hearing from bars and restaurants, including many in New York City, that patrons are purposefully avoiding Russian, or what they think is Russian, vodka in favor of brands from other countries, including domestic lines like ALB.
Glass bottles used to come from China. But trade disputes and pandemic-related cost increases made Chinese bottles unsustainable. Sharp increases in teh cost of shipping containers would add $1 to the cost of each empty bottle.