CTV News reports Kentucky bourbon exports to Canada down 42% amid tariff dispute
Canadian retaliatory tariffs on U.S. bourbon have cut Kentucky whiskey shipments sharply, but industry impact remains contested.
What to know
- Kentucky bourbon exports to Canada fell 42.4% year-over-year (US$43.7M to US$25.2M), a measurable impact of Canadian retaliatory tariffs.
- Commenters debate whether CTV's focus on a single small distillery fairly represents the broader Kentucky industry, with some citing full parking lots at major distilleries.
- Beyond tariffs, discussion surfaces shifting consumer habits—cannabis legalization and post-pandemic lifestyle changes—as competing factors in bourbon sales decline.
- The tariff dispute extends beyond bourbon to other American branded goods becoming scarce in Canadian stores, broadening the trade friction narrative.
The dispute Whether the 42.4% export decline reflects genuine tariff damage or whether CTV's sampling method (one small distillery) masks a healthier industry picture evident at major producers. · positions read across 19 posts and comments
Tariffs are genuinely hurting Kentucky bourbon exports and deserve focus as a real trade dispute impact.
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“It is because of the tariffs. That's a real measure hurting us. The talk about 51st state is insulting, but just talk.”
Euler007 · Reddit ↗
CTV's reporting method—focusing on one small distillery—misrepresents the industry; larger producers show strong visitor traffic.
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“Or why not profile a bunch of different bourbon companies instead of going to one tiny distillery and implying that they represent the entire industry and state?”
Gunslinger7752 · Reddit ↗
Shifting consumer habits—cannabis legalization, post-pandemic lifestyle changes—explain bourbon sales decline as much as or more than tariffs.
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“California sober and not drinking anywhere I used to post-pandemic, and bourbon used to be my primary. Now it's the occasional, single beer at the soccer match or even rarer visit to an actual brewery. Think they need to pivot and scale…”
audihertz · Reddit ↗
CTV News Reporting outletKentucky Distillers Association Industry group
How it unfolded 5 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlespostscomments
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Commenters highlight related tariff effects on other U.S. branded goods in Canada
Discussion expands to include anecdotes about other American branded products becoming unavailable in Canadian stores due to tariffs, linking the bourbon story to a broader trade dispute affecting consumer choice.
“I went to Loblaws the other week and couldn't find French's, only Heinz. I was honestly a little mad…”
— Teleconferences -
Oh my god. Read the numbers. Canada not buying bourbon as much reduced the overall Bourbon sales by $18 million according to you. Total bourbon sales were $5.2 BILLION in 2024. So the reduction in Canadian sales was 0.3% of all bourbon sales When your sales go down 0.3% your business barely notices it. The Bourbon industry problems are not a…
2 more of the top 3 · 11 posts in this stretch
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You’re not talking about wine??? You posted an article about lost wine sales I’ve already shown you that the Canadian Bourbon buying is tiny relative to the total market. In other words even if 70% of our buying dries up it’s nothing in the grand scheme of things. Quit posting 59 articles and read one of them. Do some fucking math.
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If you love bourbon, check out John Sleeman & Sons traditional straight whiskey. It's produced in Ontario and like a bourbon. The producer said in a presentation that he had some bourbon producers come taste test and they ended up being furious that it tasted like a bourbon.
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Commenters cite shifting consumer habits beyond tariffs as factor in bourbon sales
Discussion turns to broader consumption trends unrelated to tariffs, with one commenter noting personal shifts away from bourbon consumption post-pandemic due to cannabis legalization and lifestyle changes, suggesting the industry faces headwinds beyond trade policy.
“California sober and not drinking anywhere I used to post-pandemic, and bourbon used to be my primary. Now it's the occasional, single beer at the soccer match…”
— audihertz -
The 51st state rhetoric is one thing, but cannabis legalization is another. California sober and not drinking anywhere I used to post-pandemic, and bourbon used to be my primary. Now it’s the occasional, single beer at the soccer match or even rarer visit to an actual brewery. Think they need to pivot and scale down for the long term.
1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch
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I have a friend that lives in Texas. Pretty liberal social views on a lot of stuff, smokes weed etc Votes down ticket Republican because "My family would never vote Democrat" He doesn't even like Trump, he openly admits he is an idiot, but he acts like voting for Dems would cause his body to spontaneously combust in the booth
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Critics question whether one small distillery represents Kentucky's bourbon industry
Commenters argue CTV's approach of profiling a single tiny distillery may misrepresent the overall industry state. One notes that large bourbon distilleries saw full parking lots even on weekday afternoons during summer, questioning whether the narrow focus tells the full story.
“Or why not profile a bunch of different bourbon companies instead of going to one tiny distillery and implying that they represent the entire industry and state?”
— Gunslinger7752 -
It was both. If both things had not happened it wouldn't have led to that one weekend (it was a Saturday night just before Hockey Night in Canada I'm pretty sure) where Trudeau and members of his cabinet spoke to the country about retaliatory tariffs. That was the moment that crystalized the sentiment, IMO, but both elements led us to that point.
2 more of the top 3 · 5 posts in this stretch
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From the article: “Kentucky bourbon and other Kentucky whiskies exported to Canada dropped 42.4 per cent last year, going from US$43.7 million in 2024 to US$25.2 million in 2025, according to the Kentucky Distiller’s Association.”
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Bourbon is popular in the US generally, so no surprises there. This story was specific to the impact of the unwarranted trade war against Canada and its corresponding impact to the bourbon industry.
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Commenters debate whether tariffs or other factors explain the decline
Reddit discussion splits on whether the tariff impact is the primary driver or whether CTV's reporting method—profiling a single small distillery—misrepresents the broader industry health. Some argue tariffs are genuinely hurting, while others point to changing consumption patterns and question the sample size of the reporting.
“It is because of the tariffs. That's a real measure hurting us. The talk about 51st state is insulting, but just talk.”
— Euler007 -
Or why not profile a bunch of different bourbon companies instead of going to one tiny distillery and implying that they represent the entire industry and state? I was in Kentucky for meetings in the summer and stopped at one of the big bourbon distilleries, both the main visitor parking lot and the overflow was full at like 2pm on a Wednesday.
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CTV News reports on tariff impact in Kentucky bourbon country
CTV News traveled to Kentucky to assess whether Canada's bourbon bans are harming the local industry. The reporting found that Kentucky bourbon and whiskey exports to Canada dropped 42.4% year-over-year, falling from US$43.7 million in 2024 to US$25.2 million in 2025 according to the Kentucky Distillers Association.
“Kentucky bourbon and other Kentucky whiskies exported to Canada dropped 42.4 per cent last year, going from US$43.7 million in 2024 to US$25.2 million in 2025…”
— Kentucky Distillers Association -
3 outlets CTV News went to Kentucky to see if Canada’s bourbon bans are hurting them. Their response was blunt
first by BNN Bloomberg, 14d ago · also CP24, CTV News
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What people are saying 8 voices from 1 site · best of 19 · verbatim
- Nov 7
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Isn’t it concerning that the president has so many connections to an infamous pedophile? It’s truly a bizarre Emperor’s New Clothes situation when a proven rapist isn’t being held accountable.
- Nov 5
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Join me on the mescal side. If you want to taste the terroir of a place, no better way than with a spirit made from a plant that grows and ages in the ground for 16 years before harvest instead of a spirit from a plant that only spends a couple of months in the ground.
- Nov 4
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Um yeah. That’s what we are talking about here. The impact of Canada not importing US liquor.
- Oct 31
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This is exactly why Canada has hyper-targeted red states with retaliatory tariffs. We have no quarrel with blue states for the most part
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Ah yes if someone disagrees with you, politics is beyond them. Quite sound logic, you have yourself a very special day.
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Trudeau was the worst PM in history and the vast majority of the country was ready to make PP the next PM if he didn't step down. You can't deny.
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Trudeau is far worse than Harper by so many measures. You don't have to agree with equating Trudeau to Trump but you need to stop denying how bad Trudeau was.
- Oct 30
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There is but In typical corporation fashion, they overcharge for those products. You can't find a "Canadian bourbon" for under $55