Besides steel and aluminum, the European Union has targeted many other American products including cranberries, peanut butter, cigarettes and whiskey. US President Trump has said his protectionist measures against the EU steel and aluminum are meant to protect national security interests, but what American whiskey makers have dreaded is becoming a reality.

Foreign markets are lucrative for American whiskey makers. Data shows export revenues for bourbon, Tennessee whiskey and rye whiskey products topped $1 billion in 2017, continuing a strong trend in recent years. Four of the five top growth markets by dollar value for American distilled spirits were in Europe - the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Spain.

American distilleries large and small have watched warily as the threat of tariffs from Europe ratcheted up in recent weeks. And while larger, corporate-owned facilities tend to do the most business overseas, small and mid-sized companies could be especially vulnerable, since they lack the ability to stockpile reserves and take other protective steps.

SCOTT HARRIS CATOCTIN CREEK DISTILLERY "So a $50 bottle of whiskey in Europe now, instead of being 50 euros, would be closer to $62.50. And that's a big that's a big change in price. There's not much we can do except for you know refactor our business. So you know, take our existing inventories and look for more markets here domestically, for instance, to sell them. But you know, the difficult thing about being in the whiskey business is, you know, we've laid down whiskey years ago in anticipation of markets for today. And so, you know, this is a big boat to shift around very quickly."

In Germany, some whiskey retailers predict consumers will probably refrain from buying expensive American whiskey and go for cheaper alternatives once the tax is added to US spirits. Some retailers also said they are not concerned about the new tariffs on Bourbon whiskey imposed by the EU.

JUERGEN HAHN WHISKY RETAILER "At the moment there are none. I am sure that our suppliers and wholesalers are still having huge supplies. We will see effects later, in a few weeks, when there will be new deliveries from the US which only then will probably be taxed. We haven't heard a lot so far, we are still relaxed."

American whiskey has also been targeted by other countries embroiled in trade tensions with the US, including China, Canada and Mexico.