Overview
- Beam Suntory will halt distillation in Clermont beginning January 2026 for an indefinite period described as at least a year, while bottling and aging continue and smaller sites in Clermont and Boston, Kentucky, stay open.
- Kentucky distillers are sitting on a record roughly 16.1 million aging barrels, adding storage and tax burdens that are pressuring producers to slow output.
- Export sales to Canada have plunged during recent tariff fights, with observers citing steep declines, though experts differ on how much tariffs versus demand shifts are to blame.
- Beam Suntory employs about 1,000 workers in Kentucky and is in discussions with the United Food and Commercial Workers union about how the pause will affect staff, raising concerns for local economies and tourism.
- The sector faces broad headwinds with U.S. spirits consumption falling in 2025, multiple distillery bankruptcies and cutbacks reported, and industry watchers warning of potential ripple effects across supply chains.