Update on Trump’s tariff lawsuits
During 31 May’s newscast I reported that on Wednesday 28 May the US Court of International Trade ruled that the Trump administration had overstepped their authority by issuing blanket tariffs and that all tariffs that had been put in place under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were invalid. On 29 May the US Court of Appeals paused the suspension of tariffs. This week, on Tuesday 10 June, the US Court of Appeals ruled that the tariffs can stay in force while they consider the case. Both the Liberty Justice Center and the Trump administration are expected in court on 31 July to make their oral arguments to a full bench of active judges.
Two Canadian provinces lift US liquor bans
Back on 4 March Canada’s provinces banned imports of US alcoholic beverages and began pulling these products from their shelves and websites. As this left importers with millions of dollars of alcohol stuck in warehouses, most provinces allowed importers to sell through what they had. On Friday 6 June, the province of Alberta announced that they would allow imports to resume, albeit with a 25% tariff in place. On Monday 9 June, Saskatchewan followed suit.
While bans and restrictions on imports may be loosening, US exports to Canada are unlikely to recover. Charts on CBC illustrate data from the US Census Bureau showing that in November 2024 US alcohol exports to Canada were worth $54 million. In February 2025, before the ban took effect, exports had dropped to $23.1 million. Yvonne Martinez, president of the Alberta Liquor Store Association, was quoted as saying, ‘Here in Alberta, we definitely see people moving towards Canadian products … or made anywhere else but the United States.’ Given the strong ‘buy-local’ sentiment, combined with 25% tariffs on US imports, the US is unlikely to recover this market even with bans lifted.
Mapping old-vine vineyards
Our Alder Yarow has, once again, improved the Old Vine Registry. This time he’s added embedded maps. Now, anytime someone submits a vineyard to the Registry with a latitude and longitude value there will be a Google map page showing the location of the vineyard alongside all the previously available information such as planting dates, owner, size, elevation and a link to Wine-Searcher showing where wines from that vineyard are available for purchase. If you’re in the market for old-vine wine or simply curious about the oldest vineyards globally, I definitely recommend checking out the Registry.
Muscardin completes Tablas Creek’s goal
This week Tablas Creek released the US’s first-ever varietal Muscardin. Beyond being cool in its own right, this completes the company’s decades-long pursuit to create varietal bottlings of all of the grapes grown by Château de Beaucastel – a winery in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, in France’s Rhône Valley, that is owned by the Perrin family, part-owners of Tablas Creek. As Jason Haas, proprietor of Tablas Creek, points out on the winery’s blog, it’s likely that Tablas is the first winery in the world to varietally bottle 14 Châteauneuf-du-Pape grape varieties: Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah, Counoise, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Picpoul Blanc, Terret Noir, Clairette Blanche, Picardan, Vaccarèse, Cinsaut, Bourboulenc and Muscardin.
Treasury Estates' new NoLo facility
On 11 June, Treasury Wine Estates announced that they have opened a $15 million facility in the Barossa Valley dedicated to no- and low-alcohol wine production. They’ve also filed two patents for their aroma-processing techniques for de-alcoholised wine and have said that they believe that bringing the de-alcoholisation process in-house will improve the quality of their NoLo offerings. As someone who still hasn’t tasted a no-alcohol wine that comes close in aromatic and flavour complexity to wine that has not been de-alcoholised, I’m sceptical but hold out hope.
France's new glass recycling scheme
As of 12 June, people living in Normandy, Pays de la Loire, Brittany and Hauts-de-France will have the option to purchase glass bottles and jars with a return sticker. If returned, the customer will be credited €0.10 or €0.20. This government-sponsored trial, which will expand if it is successful, was created to help France meet its objective of achieving 10% reused packaging by 2027. In line with this goal, producers of wine, beer, soap, juice and soups are working on standardising packaging. This is excellent news!
ICE in your wine
At the end of May, Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, said that ICE – the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents – should be making 3,000 arrests a day. In response, ICE increased raids to round up undocumented immigrants. After invasive raids in downtown Los Angeles on 6 June, protests erupted nationwide. When the Trump administration deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles on 7 June, it served to inflame tensions.
Whether or not you’re concerned about the humanitarian issues at play here, I have some numbers for you. California is responsible for approximately 81% of the US’s wine production, more than a third of the US’s vegetable production and three-quarters of its production of fruit and nuts. 45% of all US agricultural workers are undocumented – and that number is higher in California, with some estimates as high as 75%. Almost half of the US’s undocumented immigrant population lives in California. Quite apart from any humanitarian considerations, stripping the US of an immigrant population that is overwhelmingly responsible for the country’s agriculture will disrupt the US food system – and that includes wine.
That’s all for this episode of the wine news. If you enjoy this newscast and would like to see it continue, please subscribe to JancisRobinson.com. And if you have breaking news in your area, please email [email protected].
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