MONTREAL – The head of the Sour Puss liqueur brand says he had no choice but to move part of the production line north of the border to Montreal amid the Canada-U.S. trade war.
Andy England, chief executive of Phillips Distilling Co., says it lost virtually all of its business in Canada after U.S. President Donald Trump set off a tariff tit-for-tat that prompted provincial alcohol distributors to clear their shelves of American booze.
He says nearly 98 per cent of the one million Sour Puss bottles it sold last year were in Canada, amounting to Canadian sales of $23 million.
The Minnesota-based distiller kicked off production of Sour Puss in Montreal for the Canadian market on Wednesday.
It says the raspberry-flavoured liqueur will be made at the city’s Station 22 distillery under a multi-year deal, with bottles slated to hit store shelves next month.
The move represents a rare win for Canadian manufacturing amid a tariff spat that has seen automakers and others announce plans to move some production south of the border.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2025.
