"We hope it's definitive": Catalan wineries react to Trump's wine tariffs

BarcelonaThe Catalan wine sector has received with concern confirmation that its exports to the United States will receive tariffs of 15%, but celebrates that the trade agreement reached between Brussels and Washington serves to restore certainty to the market. "We would like it to be 0%, but we hope it's definitive," says Joan Huguet, president of the Penedès Designation of Origin (DO), regarding the new tax.

The sector has been unsure of what to expect for many months, firstly whether Donald Trump would win the presidential elections last November and, once the magnate returned to the presidency, due to the various changes and threats he has introduced regarding the final tariff level on European goods. This uncertainty has also affected the American clients of Catalan wineries: "European wine importers [in the US] have been very uneasy," Huguet explains in the ARA.

The main fear for the sector is whether Trump's back-and-forth on trade matters might lead to new changes in the future. In fact, during his first term, the US president already imposed a 25% tariff on European wine. "We had a ship going to the US, and when it arrived, it found the tariff," Huguet recalls. Finally, with Joe Biden's entry into the White House, tariffs on European imports were lowered in most cases.

In any case, the sector has not received the news of the tariff well, confirmed this Thursday by the European Commission. "The impact is negative because there are tariffs. It's no longer an open market like the European one or like it was under Biden," Huguet adds about the US. However, some companies and appellations in the sector still hope to reverse the situation through talks with EU authorities. Sources from the Cava DO assure that they are still working "with European institutions to ensure that the tariffs do not affect wines and cavas." While the talks are ongoing, the DO still "must assess how the new tariff rate will affect" the situation.

Important market, but not key

The US market is very important for Catalan wine exports. According to data from the Catalan Food Promotion Agency (Prodeca, the agri-food promotion agency of the Generalitat), wine exports to the US grew by 10%, making it the leading foreign market for Catalan producers, a fact also due to the drop in sales in Germany.

It should be noted, however, that wine exports to the US do not represent a significant proportion of Catalan companies' total exports to the country. Specifically, in 2024, Catalan wineries sold still and sparkling wines worth €78.8 million to the US market, representing 13% of Catalan wine exports outside of Spain and 2% of all Catalan exports to the United States, according to Prodeca.

Another element to keep in mind is that some large companies based in Catalonia will be able to avoid tariffs without too much trouble because they already have wineries in the US, so their presence in the North American market is largely covered by local production and, therefore, exempt from tariffs.

is the US wine epicenter in northern California, while Freixenet has had the Gloria Ferrer wineries in Sonoma, the neighboring county, since the 1980s. Torres also has a foothold in Sonoma with the Marimar winery.

from tariffs.