A 'pointless' 'poker game,' say liquor shop owner and bistro GM on possible 200% wine tariff on EU

Record ID: 1983555

  • Title: A 'pointless' 'poker game,' say liquor shop owner and bistro GM on possible 200% wine tariff on EU
  • Date: 13th March 2025
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MARCH 13, 2025) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF FRENCH WINES ON DISPLAY AT WINESTOGO WINE & SPIRITS (SOUNDBITE) (English) OWNER-MANAGER OF WINESTOGO, MARIO DUTA, SAYING: “I really believe that this is a poker game. They (U.S. and EU) are playing poker. And I think they need to act like grown-ups, sit at the table and make things fair." SHELVES O
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: 200% Donald Trum[ EU French bistro tariffs wine
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: North America,Government/Politics,International Trade
  • Reuters ID: LVA001867613032025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday (March 13) threatened to slap a 200% tariff on wine, cognac and other alcohol imports from Europe, opening a new front in a global trade war that has roiled financial markets and raised recession fears.
    Trump's threat came in response to a European Union plan to impose tariffs on American whiskey and other products next month -- which itself is a reaction to Trump's 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports that took effect on Wednesday. The European Commission had no immediate comment on the move.
    Alcohol is shaping up to be a key friction point in the brewing trade war.
    The EU accounted for roughly 40% of all spirits exports in 2023, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, a trade group. Likewise, the United States accounts for 31% of EU wine and spirits exports, according to Eurostat.
    Trump said his alcohol tariffs would help domestic producers. But U.S. importers and distributors said it would lead to lost sales, layoffs and shuttered businesses.
    Amid rows of French wines, spirits, and sparkling beverages, the owner-manager of New York-based wine shop WinesToGo, Mario Duta, voiced his concerns about the escalating tariff tensions between the U.S. and the EU.
    Duta likened the tariff dispute to a poker game, calling for politicians to act responsibly and find a common ground.
    "I think they need to act like grown-ups, sit at the table and make things fair," he said.
    Duta highlighted the uncertainty that the tariff war has brought to his business. He explained that the pricing and inventory management had become challenging due to speculation.
    "This is not beneficial for anybody. We cannot price items. We cannot buy inventory based on speculations," he said.
    With a significant portion of his inventory being European imports, Duta expressed worry about the impact of potential tariffs on his business and on consumers.
    "I would say about 70%, at least, of our products are imported goods with at least 60% of those" coming from Europe, Duta revealed. He warned that potential tariffs would inevitably be passed on to consumers, who are already grappling with rising prices in other sectors.
    In a similar vein, Kevin Estrada, the general manager of French bistro Jacques Brasserie, pointed out the impact of the pandemic on the restaurant industry and how another blow in the form of increased tariffs on wine could lead to a further decline in consumption.
    "If they used to get a bottle of wine before, now they only get a glass. And if that happens, then maybe they'll just skip the wine," Estrada said.
    Estrada also highlighted the potential impact of a 200% tariff on their house wine, which currently costs $15.
    "I don't know, it would have to go up pretty considerably," he said, emphasizing that restaurants would be forced to pass on the added costs to customers in order to maintain their profit margins.
    Both Duta and Estrada called for a resolution to the tariff war, expressing the need for stability in the import sector.
    “It's kind of pointless, in my opinion. There's no need to do that. I think things are working fine the way they are right now," Estrada said.
    (Production: Andrew Hofstetter, Kyoko Gasha)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register