Island’s awash with booze

Vast quantities of beer and fresh meat will be consumed this Cup Match holiday.

For Gosling’s it’s the second busiest holiday of the year after Christmas and the firm has already ordered in a staggering 100,000 bottles of Corona for the  four-day weekend.

Shipping firms have seen a big hike in container numbers as food distributors stock up on ribs, chicken and fish in anticipation for the big event.

For many firms, preparation for Cup Match began several months ago.

John Burcher, Corona brand manager, said: “We would expect to sell around 100,000 bottles of Corona over Cup Match.

“So we order around 42,000 cases for the week.

“We would normally expect to order around half of that for the average week. It’s a very busy time.”

Andrew Holmes, Brand Director of Gosling’s Rum, added: “Cup Match is also the time when the most rum is in circulation.

“Most stores started increasing stock levels of Gosling’s Rum in early July anticipating the increase in demand for the Cup Match Holiday.

“With over 20,000, 9-litre cases of Black Seal consumed in Bermuda annually we anticipate 10 per cent of that [is consumed] around the Cup Match weekend.

“With the new addition of the Dark’n Stormy cans we have seen a spike in orders compared to last season when the cans had just hit the shelves.”

Containers crammed with fresh and frozen meat have been arriving in Hamilton since the beginning of the week with all three ships scheduled to get in before the start of the holiday.

Roger Lee, general manager of Viking Food Ltd: “Fish is an important component of Cup Match and we also make provision for extra supplies of ribs and chicken.

“We order in around double the amount we do for an average week.

“But we start our preparations and stock up earlier in the month, so we probably bring in an extra two or three containers of meats in the weeks leading up to the holiday.”

The increase in custom associated with Cup Match has also provided a welcome relief for the shipping firms too.

They have been hit by a gradual decline in container numbers in recent years brought on by the global recession. 

George Butterfield, manager of Meyer Freight, said: “Bermudians love to party and have a good time.

“Leading up to Cup Match, we do see an increase in containers that contain foodstuff, soft drinks and alcoholic beverages. This week we see a few chilled containers of watermelons and other fresh fruits. Containers of camping supplies and barbeques are quite popular this time of year.”

While Howard Pitcher, vice president of commercial operations for Container Ship Management Ltd, said: “On average we carry 40 refrigerated containers per week, this week we have 49 and last week we had 53.

“Last week would have been the frozen supplies including French Fries, bagged Ice, frozen meats, Ice Cream and such.

“This week is predominantly chilled cargos including fresh meats, and produce.”