Bourbon is considered America’s liquor

Bourbon making in Kentucky has grown to a $9 billion industry.

It generates more than 23,000 jobs in the Bluegrass state with bourbon production steadily increasing from 3.8 million barrels in 2000 to over 12 million barrels in 2022. Kentuckians have been making this whiskey for more than two centuries.

Spectrum News reporter Katie Kapusta spoke with Michael Jones, PhD, associate professor in the Linder College of Business, about what’s considered America’s liquor.

“It is in terms of exports. The way we define bourbon and whiskey is closely tied to how we tax it,” Jones told Spectrum News. “In terms of exports it is the most exported spirit so it is a distinctly American type product.”

Kapusta asked about the impact of tariffs that were put on bourbon exports in 2020.

“Those tariffs were in response to the Trump administration’s increase on tariffs to steel and aluminum so the EU responded by increasing that tariff rate to 25% and as a result we did see exports of bourbon to the EU decline by about 30%.,” says Jones. “One of the impacts of tariffs is it creates a lot of economic uncertainty for those distilleries.”

View the Spectrum News story online.

Learn more about Michael Jones, PhD, online.

Featured top image of Bourbon barrels courtesy of Istock.