EU tariff threats are crushing craft whiskey distillers like me

America’s arrogant past arsenic 1 of the world’s apical whiskey-producing nations is successful sedate information from the commercialized warfare betwixt the U.S. and European Union. If it wasn’t capable for Canada to rip our products disconnected shelves, the EU’s menace of 50% tariffs connected American whiskey, acceptable to instrumentality effect on April 13, present jeopardizes decades of advancement and marketplace enlargement successful Europe.  

President Donald Trump is right: We indispensable commercialized with the satellite successful a just and reciprocal manner. That’s a exemplary that has served the spirits manufacture good for decades. Small whiskey distillers similar maine are present counting connected the president to onslaught a woody to guarantee zero-for-zero tariffs connected American whiskey, starting with the EU.  

Much is astatine stake, including jobs, section agriculture and centuries of advancement and pridefulness successful our craft. So ingrained is whiskey successful American past that George Washington himself became a large distiller of rye whiskey aft his presidency. But ne'er has our bequest arsenic a federation of distillers been arsenic robust arsenic it is today.  

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In the past 20 years, an detonation of distilleries nationwide — from 50 successful 2005 to much than 3,000 contiguous — has taken the assortment and estimation of American whiskey to caller heights, expanding this subtle creation to tiny towns specified arsenic Swisher, Iowa, wherever I run my family-owned trade distillery. From these communities, our distinctive products person earned an planetary fanbase. 

Jeff Quint is laminitis and CEO of Cedar Ridge Distillery successful Swisher, Iowa, and shaper of Cedar Ridge Iowa Bourbon. 

Chief among those distinctive products is bourbon, which by explanation tin beryllium distilled successful immoderate authorities successful America, not conscionable Kentucky. American whiskeys, specified arsenic bourbon, were exported from 37 states successful 2024. In caller years, bourbon has go a sensation successful overseas countries, earning a spot alongside different nationalist categories similar scotch (a distinctive merchandise of Scotland) and tequila (a distinctive merchandise of Mexico).  

These planetary markets are indispensable for the maturation of tiny distilleries. Here successful the U.S., determination is lone truthful overmuch bourbon we tin sell. A 50% tariff connected bourbon successful the EU would hike prices sharply and curb request conscionable arsenic it is taking off. Many American distilleries volition beryllium forced to halt exporting, which could pb to bourbon overcapacity successful America.  

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I person experienced the sting of tariffs firsthand. In 2016, my trade distillery — Cedar Ridge — started the arduous but breathtaking process of establishing our marque successful the EU. It takes 3 to 5 years to find overseas organisation partners, beforehand your marque and combat for support abstraction successful a caller marketplace earlier you spot a dime of existent profit. 

We were devastated when, successful 2018, conscionable arsenic we were getting our oversea legs successful Europe, the EU retaliated against U.S. alloy and aluminum tariffs with a 25% tariff connected American whiskey. Our concern became collateral harm successful a commercialized quality that had thing to bash with us. The prime was either to rise our prices to screen the tariffs, devour the outgo ourselves and instrumentality the loss, oregon propulsion retired of the marketplace entirely. We made the achy determination to propulsion out, arsenic did galore others.  

At the time, the EU was the largest American whiskey export market. But betwixt 2018 and 2021, our exports plunged 20%, from $552 cardinal to $440 million. The EU suspended its tariffs successful 2021, enabling exports to surge backmost adjacent higher — to $699 cardinal past year. But galore tiny distilleries similar excavation stayed retired of the marketplace owed to uncertainty implicit whether these tariffs would beryllium reimposed.  

That uncertainty is kryptonite for a tiny business. It leaves america paralyzed, incapable to embark connected a three-to-five-year concern travel erstwhile we cognize the rug could beryllium pulled retired astatine immoderate moment. This hurts not conscionable our household and our 65 employees, but the section Iowa farms we bargain our grains from, the American manufacturers who marque our barrels and bottles, and the different downstream industries that enactment us.  

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We’re counting connected this medication to combat for america and reconstruct certainty successful our commercialized relationships, archetypal with the EU earlier the April 13 deadline, and past successful Canada and different important markets. There are besides galore markets wherever we bash not person just and reciprocal trade, and we anticipation that the Trump medication volition unfastened those doors for our large American products.  

On the enactment is thing little than America’s whiskey bequest — centuries aged and aged to perfection.