Presdient Trump's tariff regime, which celebrates its first anniversary April 1, had as a major objective to shift producton of all sorts back to the U.S from overseas.

That certainly is what's happening in the wine trade. European exports of wine, spirits and aperitifs to the U.S. along were valued at about $10.4 billion in 2024. Many producers held off price increases when tariffs were first announced, initially at a 15% rate, later at 10%. One reaason: The rise of alternatives such as cannibis drinks. Another, a perception that drinking habits are shifting.

"The pressure to pass through costs is mounting," Lance Emerson, SVP of Commercial Finance at Republic National Distributing Co. told Reuters. He added the shift was more pronounced in wine, whereas spirits makers have ‌greater ability ⁠to absorb tariffs in their margins.

Retail pprices of imported wines are already up 5-12% this year, and further increases are expected. Restaurants are moving toward lower-cost solutipons, while retailers are cutting back on the range of products they sell and balancing imported options with domestic alternatives. Zach Poelma, SVP of Commercial Intelligence at Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits, said. SGWS imported wine voklume was down 8% between October and January while domestic wines were off only 3%.

Josh Cellars (Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits) saw sales rise 8.3% in the 13 weeks through mid-March, while wine overall was down 3.6%. "The sweet spot in America is a $10-$12 glass of wine," he said, adding if you edge above that you get knocked out of menus because many consumers don't want ⁠to pay," Dan Kleinman, chief marketing officer at brand owner Deutsch, said . "They want ​you at those certain prices."