This is Jason Haas.

He's a co-owner of Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles.

He says he's seen two straight years of declining wine consumption in the US for the first time in two generations.

That, he says, shows up in less tourism, fewer people visiting wineries or buying wine online, and less sales through wholesalers for both restaurants and retail.

There's an ecosystem of thousands of wine importers and distributors.

The US Wine Trade Alliance and other industry groups say that ecosystem will feel the pain if European wine prices rise because of tariffs.

Not everyone in the wine industry feels the same.

Some of the state's grape growers say that higher tariffs on the competition might actually help them.

The growers, too, are facing increased costs because of other tariffs.

For now, the EU says 15% tariffs that went into effect this month apply to wine, though its negotiations with the Trump administration continue.

California, the nation's leader in wine-related tourism and exports, could be most affected.

WineAmerica said California's wine industry generated about $88 billion in economic impact in 2022.

The state's wine exports that year totaled $1.3 billion.

Some winemakers say the distributors that sell their domestic wines need revenue from selling Europe wines as well, that their ability to distribute domestic wine is tied to how much other wine is coming in.

The US alcohol industry has a three-tier structure.

Winemakers and producers are the first tier, followed by distributors and retailers.

All three are facing uncertainty brought about by tariffs.

Some wine imports are on hold, meaning less revenue for distributors and retailers.

For CalMatters, I'm Levi Sumagaysay.