Caught In Tariff War, U.S. Distillers Fear Losing Out On Global Whiskey Boom

|

July 5th, 2018

Amir Peay recently opened a distillery in Lexington, Ky., at the site of the James E. Pepper distillery. About 10 percent of his revenues come from exports, and Peay worries that the European Union’s tariffs will hurt his overseas business

John Ydstie / NPR

U.S. whiskey distillers are fretting over the steep new tariffs they’re facing around the world. They’re being punished as U.S. trading partners retaliate against the Trump administration’s tariffs on steel and aluminum. Now, the distillers fear that a long boom in U.S. whiskey exports could be coming to an end.

Kentucky bourbon has experienced a huge revival over the past decade — thanks in large part to U.S. trade initiatives that have opened up global markets, says Eric Gregory of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association.

“The free-trade agreements and the lowering of tariffs that we’ve received in the past generation have really put bourbon on an equal playing field with our friends in Scotch and Canadian whisky, and other whiskies around the world,” he says.

Top Stories