Like many local businesses, Goat Island Brewing has had to change the way it operates during the state’s measures to stop the spread of COVID-19, but the brewery will soon be offering a new option for those who may be “wine-ing” about staying at home. 

For a limited time only, Goat Island will begin offering wine by the bottle beginning in the next few days, said Goat Island co-owner Mike Mullaney.

He said Goat Island already sold wine by the glass, and while many people had asked for it to be sold by the bottle, the brewery originally didn’t have any plans to do so.

Now that sales have had to move to to-go only, bottled wine will be sold, beginning with the popular strawberry wine — featuring local strawberries from Kress Farms — and more wines will be rolled out one at a time in following days, Mullaney said. 

Goat Island remains open during the COVID-19 outbreak, and along with the upcoming wine selection, the brewery is offering beer in cans and growlers that people can take home to drink. 

Mullaney said Goat Island has two sides to its business, taproom sales and distribution to stores and restaurants around the state and Florida panhandle, and both of those sides have been affected by the statewide stay at home order.

With its offerings of cans and growlers, taproom sales at Goat Island have seen a decrease of around 20 percent as more people have tried to stay at home, but the brewery’s other side of business has seen a bigger impact.

Distribution sales have seen a steeper drop-off of around 60 percent because many restaurants and bars have had to close their doors or move to only to-go orders, Mullaney said.

“The problem is all of our keg sales are pretty much gone,” he said.

Mullaney said Goat Island just added its canning line at the end of 2019, and that has paid off both in the taproom and in distribution.

“If we didn’t have that, we would really be in trouble right now,” he said. “Because as far as the distribution side goes, it’s 100 percent of our sales right now.”

Goat Island hasn’t laid off any employees during the COVID-19 restrictions, and employees have spent the past month continuing to can and brew beer and doing work some needed work around the facility. 

Some that work has also included setting up a new lab and office space for the business’ newest brewer. 

James Schumacher will be moving to Goat Island after spending more than a decade working for Maritime Pacific Brewing in Seattle, Washington, and everyone is Goat Island will be happy to welcome him and his family to Cullman when they arrive in two weeks, said co-owner John Dean.

“We’re excited about that,” he said. “That’ll carry us on after we get through this hiccup.”

Goat Island’s four-year anniversary of opening was also last week, and while a celebration isn’t possible at the time, it will be celebrated as soon as it is safe to do so, Dean said. 

There are a few causes for celebration on the horizon, and no one at Goat Island is planning to go anywhere while times are difficult, Mullaney said. 

“We will definitely get through this,” he said. 

Mullaney said January was Goat Island’s best month that it has had since it opened, and everyone there is looking to continue that trend once everything gets back to normal. 

“We’re looking forward to getting back in the swing of things,” he said.