<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Popular Kentucky bourbon maker Jim Beam plans to pause production at its main distillery on January 1, according to the James B. Beam Distilling Co.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The decision comes as Kentucky faces an increasing supply of aging barrels and uncertainty over President Donald Trump's trade wars.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Kentucky has an all-time high of 16.1 million aging barrels of bourbon in its warehouses, the Kentucky Distillers' Association </span><a href="https://kybourbon.com/industry-news/the-bourbon-state-challenges-continue-amid-record-barrel-inventory-skyrocketing-taxes/"><span>said in October</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/whats-inside-the-epstein-files-released-by-the-justice-department/aa0fbe68-620e-4807-ae31-124c47ea71ed" rel="" target="" title="What's inside the Epstein files released by the Justice Department"><strong><span>What's inside the Epstein files released by the Justice Department</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Distillers are paying for that supply, since the state charges taxes on aging barrels of spirits.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Kentucky distillers paid $US75 million ($113 million) ageing barrel taxes this year, up 27 per cent from 2024, according to the trade group.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Jim Beam, which is owned by Suntory Global Spirits, intends to pause production at its main distillery on the James B. Beam campus in Clermont, Kentucky, while it invests "in site enhancements," according to a company statement.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/jim-beam-pauses-production-at-main-distillery-as-bourbon-inventories-rise/3f93318e-e7c2-44d9-93d2-1cde6a809105" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It will continue distilling at its Fred B. Noe craft distillery in Clermont and the Booker Noe distillery in Boston, Kentucky.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We are always assessing production levels to best meet consumer demand and recently met with our team to discuss our volumes for 2026," the company said in the statement shared with CNN on Sunday.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/multiple-gunmen-open-fire-at-a-south-african-pub-killing-9-and-wounding-10/6c8b5cca-b4fc-4499-af91-8c08ce437326" rel="" target="" title="Multiple gunmen open fire at a South African pub, killing nine and wounding 10"><strong><span>Multiple gunmen open fire at a South African pub, killing nine and wounding 10</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Suntory Global Spirits has not announced layoffs.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It employs more than 1000 people across its Kentucky sites, according to the company.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Bottling and warehousing will continue in Clermont, according to the statement, and Jim Beam will continue talks with employees represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers union as it determines the impact on its workforce.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Union representatives have not responded to CNN's request for comment.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>Alcohol on the front lines of the trade war</span></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Whiskey and spirit makers have had to deal with retaliatory tariffs from the trade war sparked by Trump's tariffs, and with consumers pulling back on discretionary spending amid an affordability crisis.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The trade fallout between the United States and Canada has also impacted whiskey and spirit makers. In March, Canadian officials </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/10/Tv/video/bourbon-maker-canada-retaliates"><span>banned American spirits</span></a><span> from stores, a rule that is still in place in some provinces.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The European Union in March </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/12/business/spirits-bourbon-tariffs"><span>threatened</span></a><span> to increase tariffs on American whiskey to 50 per cent in retaliation for Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs, but in August the EU announced a six-month suspension of retaliatory tariffs on US imports, including distilled spirits, wine and used barrels.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Long-term planning for a product that won't be ready for years is already tough enough. We need the certainty of tariff-free trade for America's only native spirit to flourish," Kentucky Distillers' Association president Eric Gregory said in October.</span></div></div>