Impact of Trump’s Tariff Threat on Italian Wine Exports
Recently, an emphatic all-caps social media threat from President Trump regarding a potential 200 percent tariff on European wines sent shockwaves through the Italian wine industry, particularly in Tuscany. This renowned wine-exporting region is now facing significant disruptions, with countless bottles of Brunello, Chianti, and Prosecco languishing in wineries and storage facilities.
Tiziana Mazzetti, the sales and marketing manager at the Old Cellar winery in Montepulciano, expressed her concerns as she surveyed the boxes of wine that were slated to ship to the United States this month. “Everything is stopped,” she lamented, underscoring the immediate impact of the tariff threat. “The damage is already here.”
As of now, Trump’s threat remains just that—an unfulfilled promise. However, it has instilled enough apprehension among American importers to halt new orders, fearing the financial consequences of impending tariffs. If these tariffs were enacted and subsequently passed on to consumers, a bottle of wine that typically retails for $20 could skyrocket to an astonishing $60.
In conjunction with France and Spain, Italy is particularly vulnerable to the ramifications of American tariffs on wine. Industry experts warn that a 200 percent tariff would have devastating consequences. For nearly 15 years, the United States has been Italy’s largest export market for wines, with approximately a quarter of Italy’s wine exports—valued at around $2 billion—shipped to American consumers each year.
