This episode is about wine, tariffs and trade relations.

Public policy expert and business commentator on the Canadian wine industry, Karen Graham (KMG Strategy and www.winedrops.ca) joins Tania to discuss:

• How tariffs levied by the United States on Canadian goods may affect the wine and alcohol beverage industry and consumers (both in Canada and the US).

• Potential knock-on effects of counter-veiling measures which Canadian levels of government may take in response to US tariffs.

• The different approaches taken (to date) by Ontario and BC regarding American alcohol products in response to potential US tariffs.

• Possible “silver linings”, including whether tariffs threatened by the US could instigate the dismantling Canada’s inter-provincial trade barriers.

• Consequences of potential US tariffs levied against the EU, and the role of the WTO (if any) in bilateral trade wars flowing from US tariffs.

Camaraderie around wine is borderless. And ultimately no one wins with tariffs.

It’s a time to look back at the history and rationale of free trade. But it’s also a time for Canada to look forward and unleash more of its own innovation, productivity and potential.

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References & Articles from this episode:

• For more on Karen Graham, go to www.winedrops.ca

• BC Liquor Distribution Branch Quarterly Sales: Q3 2024-25 Liquor Market Review December 2024

• Eric Asimov article, American Wine Trade Steels Itself for Possible Tariffs, Nov 13, 2024, New York Times.

• California Wine Institute Statement Press Release: Wine Institute Urges Resolution of US-Canada Dispute, Feb 2, 2025

• WineDrops post on the Comeau Supreme Court of Canada decision: One ticket for 354 bottles of “imported” beer, September 2017.

• WineDrops post: WTO Wine Trade Challenge Implications, February 2017.

• TT Wine Explorer Podcast - Episode 10: Blocking Our Own Wine - What Happened to Free Trade in a Federation? (Mark Hicken, WineLaw.ca): https://ttwinecounsel.com/podcast/episode-10-blocking-our-own-wine-what-happened-to-free-trade-in-a-federation-the-legacy-of-prohibition-part-2-with-mark-hicken/

• TT Wine Explorer Podcast - Episode 18: Cross-Border Crush: Importing Grapes & Moving Forward (Alison Moyes, Solvero Winery): https://ttwinecounsel.com/podcast/episode-18-cross-border-crush-importing-grapes-moving-forward-alison-moyes-solvero-winery-okanagan-valley/