SFR Distillery in Ottawa had planned a major push into the American market with its flagship whiskey. Instead, general manager and master distiller Adam Brierley said it will be 'illegal for us to export our goods to the United States' as of Tuesday. The whiskey was developed as a bourbon alternative and won shelf space at the LCBO after bourbon was removed from Ontario stores.

The distillery will now pivot to Europe. It plans to attend several large trade shows there and hopes to ship 'whole sea containers of whiskey over to Europe all at once'.

The ban takes effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Sept 29, following proclamations announced around Sept 8. It covers beer, wine, cider, whisky, vodka and other spirits. More than half of all spirits made by Canadian distilleries go to the US, making distilleries one of the hardest-hit sectors.

Washington's move follows Canadian retaliatory duties earlier in the week, and Trump also linked part of the action to Canada's tariff-rate quota treatment of US cheese. Exemptions are narrow, with only large-format bottles over 4 litres spared, a size rarely sold. For now, Canadian distillers like SFR are betting Europe can absorb what America shuts out.