‘It would put us out of business’: Restaurants, importers brace for 200% European wine tariff

When asked if she wanted to discuss the 200% tariffs that the Trump administration is threatening on wine imported from the European Union, Chris Stauffenegger said she’d really rather not. 

But she did anyway. In her 35 years in the wine industry, Stauffenegger thought she had seen it all.

Stauffenegger owns Vigneron Imports, an Oakland-based importer of French wine.

Given the president’s record, it’s impossible to know what will happen, whether the proposed tariffs will be approved or just a threat. That uncertainty has put those in the wine world on edge, as these tariffs would change the industry as they know it.

“It’s beyond asinine and insane, but as usual, it’s so unpredictable and it’s just a massive bully move,” she said. 

Should the tariffs go through, “It’s very likely it would put us out of business,” she said. “It’s terrible for the wine business in general. No one wants this.”  

Chris Stauffenegger, owner of Vigneron Imports, said a 200% tariff on European wine would be “terrible” for the industry. Credit: Chris Stauffenegger

President Donald Trump first suggested the 200% tax on all wine and spirits imported from the European Union on March 13 in response to the EU’s plans for a 50% tax on imports of U.S.-produced whiskey, which is itself a counter-blow to Trump’s tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports to the United States. Trump labeled the whiskey tariff “nasty,” and said the EU is “hostile and abusive” and “formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States.”

U.S. wine importers spent $6.8 billion to bring wine into the U.S. in 2024, according to Axios. European Union producers make up 80% of those imports, according to the American Association of Wine Economists, and somewhere between $450 million and $600 million of that was bought and consumed in California.

Stauffenegger is in constant communication with the French wine producers whom she imports and sells. They are small family winemakers and growers who largely depend on the U.S. market for their livelihood. Unsurprisingly, “they’re livid and furious,” she said.

“This is going to hurt them so badly,” she said. “Already, they’ve been dealing with terrible weather conditions that have impacted their harvests and yield, and they’re scrambling to make ends meet.”

One need not be an oenophile to understand that for those who love a French Burgundy, a California Pinot Noir won’t do.

“They’re not interchangeable,” Stauffenegger said. “It’s not like you can just replace one with the other. You can’t say, ‘Oh I’m not going to buy a Dior handbag because I can buy one from Michael Kors.’” 

Most importers have wine shipments underway right now, as does she, she said, and if the tariffs go into effect next month, they won’t be able to sell the wine that’s currently en route.

While it is possible to store it and see if things change, the producers still need to be paid.

Given the financial uncertainty many Bay Area residents are facing now, Stauffenegger said those who will regularly pay $18.99 for a bottle of French wine won’t buy that same bottle for $45.

“We couldn’t absorb a 200% increase and pass it on to our customers,” she said. “It would be impossible.”

In addition to worrying about the producers and winemakers she represents, Stauffenegger is worried about her own employees, too. She has four office staff in Oakland, five representatives in Northern California and 16 who sell wine for her throughout the state. Then there are more who work for her distributors in other states.

“This will put more people out of business, and more jobs will be lost,” she predicted. “There will be a trickle-down effect, where restaurants and wine shops will be affected, too. It was terrible the first time around, and could be much worse now. We’re in a really bad place.’ 

The “first time around” Stauffenegger referred to is the first Trump administration’s 25% tariffs on European wines, liquor and cheese imposed in 2019.

East Bay restaurant and wine shop owners agreed that the increased costs will flow down to them, and, ultimately, customers. 

“Daunting,” “terrifying” and “devastating” were some of the adjectives Brian Stapleton, wine director at Oakland restaurant À Côté, used. The wine list at the Rockridge business is mostly comprised of European producers.

“It would be devastating for a place like À Côté,” he said. “Showcasing these unique wines is a central part of our identity as a restaurant. It’s an essential part of what we’re known for.”

Given that the restaurant carries a wide range of niche wines, he said, “these are the ones that are the least able to bear the brunt of this. We would experience a real loss of diversity.”

Stapleton, who is also a sales representative for Danch & Granger Selections, an importer of Eastern European wines based in Los Altos, said that no matter which angle you look at it from, a 200% tariff is “essentially a ban.”

“Could we share the costs with our winemakers?” he asked. “They’re essentially small farmers. Even if we share it and absorb 100% each, we can’t work with this at all, we would have to pass it on to the consumer.”

Given that it takes about four months for European wines to reach the U.S. – and that’s with no hold-ups, like port strikes and other circumstances that delay shipments – uncertainty about the future is already impacting the business, he said. Importers are afraid to bring more shipments over, not knowing if they will still be able to sell it in a few weeks.

“In some ways, the damage has already been done,” he said.

Max Davis, co-owner of Oakland Yard Wine Shop in Temescal, estimated 80% of his store’s inventory came from E.U. countries. Maybe his business could survive, he said, but it would mean only offering domestic wines.

“I don’t think anyone would bring any European wines in,” he said. “It would completely change our business. Most of the people we deal with are European importers who would be out of work.”

Davis said he feared that many distributors and shops would be stuck with cases of wine to sell that their customers can no longer afford, and also referenced the tariffs that were imposed in 2019.

“A lot of us are now expecting that some tariff will be imposed, where a bottle will go up a few dollars instead of being three times as much,” he said. “I hope that’s the case, because then, at least, we could carry on as we did the last time.”

But the 200%  tariff is “hard to imagine,” he said. “No one we do business with would exist anymore.”