President Trump Lashes Back at EU With Threat of 200% Tariff on Wine, Champagne, and Spirits

The tariff fiasco between the European Union (EU) and the Trump administration is heating up.

In a Thursday post on Truth Social, Trump threatened to hit all wines and other alcoholic imports from Europe with a 200 percent tariff if the EU follows through with its recently proposed 50 percent tax on American whiskey.

“The European Union, one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the World, which was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States, has just put a nasty 50% Tariff on Whisky,” the post reads. “If this Tariff is not removed immediately, the U.S. will shortly place a 200% Tariff on all WINES, CHAMPAGNES, & ALCOHOLIC PRODUCTS COMING OUT OF FRANCE AND OTHER E.U. REPRESENTED COUNTRIES. This will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.”

The threat comes on the heels of a back-and-forth ignited by U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. The EU hit back on Wednesday, claiming that it will impose counter tariffs on $28 billion worth of American exports, starting with whiskey, motorcycles, and motorboats. The European Commission plans to put the new tariffs in place by April 13.

According to Reuters, the EU representatives claimed that the political union remains open to negotiations. However, Trump just upped the ante, and is choosing to fight fire with fire.

Concerning Trump’s comment on the measure improving “Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.,” the U.S. doesn’t technically have a domestic Champagne business at all. All wine labeled Champagne must be made in the Champagne region of France. (There is one loophole due to a 2005 agreement between the EU and the U.S., though, stating that American sparkling wines labelled as “Champagne” prior to March 2006 can hold their respective titles — even though they aren’t officially Champagne.)

Europe’s wine exports to the U.S. amounted to 4.9 billion euros (roughly $5.3 billion USD) in 2024, representing 29 percent of the EU’s total wine exports. If Trump’s proposed tariffs go into effect, they could prove to be a crippling blow to the EU’s alcoholic export market.

“The U.S.-EU spirits sector is the model for fair and reciprocal trade, having zero-for-zero tariffs since 1997,” Distilled Spirits Council president and CEO Chris Swonger said in a statement. “The U.S. spirits sector supports more than $200 billion in economic activity, 1.7 million jobs across production, distribution, hospitality and retail, and the purchase of 2.8 billion pounds of grains from American farmers. We urge President Trump to secure a spirits agreement with the EU to get us back to zero-for-zero tariffs, which will create U.S. jobs and increase manufacturing and exports for the American hospitality sector. We want toasts not tariffs.”

In response to Trump’s post, Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, secretary general of the Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins (the committee that represents the EU wine industry and trade) shared a similar statement on LinkedIn later on Thursday, pleading both sides of the tariff dispute to come to an amicable agreement and claiming that wine isn’t relevant to the aluminum and steel taxes that ignited the debacle in the first place.

“If the proposed 200% tariffs on EU wines are implemented, it would effectively shut down the US market for EU wines,” the statement reads. “We urgently call on both the European Commission and US governments to find a resolution on the steel and aluminium dispute and put an end to the threat of these tariffs once and for all…. and until then, leave wine out of unrelated disputes and any retaliatory list of products!”

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