(Winemag) - In October 2019, a U.S. government-implemented tariff increase directly impacting most European wine and spirits exports took effect. This added a 25% cost to what those importers pay for wines from numerous European countries.

The Office of U.S. Trade Representatives (USTR) recently announced an intention to implement new, higher tariffs (potentially as high as 100%) on additional European items including olive oil, cheese and single-malt Scotch, and to include both still and sparkling wine in that group, regardless of alcohol level. This could take effect very soon.