We know D.C. Get our free newsletter to stay in the know.

Unsubscribe any time.

THE NEWS:

Wine is getting more expensive in some local spots—you aren’t imagining this!

Cork Wine Bar & Market’s Diane Gross, for one, had to raise prices on about 30 percent of her wines since October, when the Trump administration imposed 25 percent tariffs on numerous goods imported from Spain, Germany, France, and Britain. 

It could get worse. The administration is now threatening 100 percent tariffs on hundreds of products from all European Union nations. The proposal, which includes wine, is still going through federal rulemaking, but could take effect in early 2020. The tariffs are in response to a World Trade Organization decision that found Airbus was receiving unfair subsidies that put the French company at a competitive advantage over U.S.-based Boeing. 

Meanwhile, D.C. winos are bracing for terrible times, reports City Paper’s Laura Hayes.  

“D.C. drinks more wine per capita than every state except Idaho, according to 2018 data from the National Institutes of Health,” writes Hayes, noting that comparing a city to states doesn’t yield perfect data. “City Paper sought to understand the current impact of the existing 25 percent tariff as well as the potential consequences of the widely expanded 100 percent tariff. Among wineries, importers, distributors, retailers, restaurants, and consumers—no one escapes unscathed.”

Anxious business owners are trying to get creative, but it’ll undoubtedly be harder for them should these wine tariffs actually take effect in early 2020. One thing that’s certain in this very uncertain time: D.C. small businesses are faring worse under Trump’s trade war.

—Amanda Michelle Gomez (tips? Email agomez@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

  

CITY DESK LINKS, by Amanda Michelle Gomez:

  • Man who stays at a homeless shelter at St. Elizabeth campus in Southeast contracts Legionnaires disease. The shelter shares a site with the city’s only psychiatric hospital, where the water supply was contaminated with legionella bacteria in September. [WJLA, DCist]

  • DMV seniors are working longer, and not by choice. [WAMU]

  • The Women’s March returns to D.C. next week, with a twist. [Post] 

LOOSE LIPS LINKS, by Mitch Ryals (tips? mryals@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

  • The director of the Office of Government Ethics Brent Wolfingbarger resigned. [WCP]

  • Sources tell the Washington Post that Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans may run again even if his colleagues vote to kick him off the Council. [Post]

  • The D.C. Chamber of Commerce, led by former Councilmember Vincent Orange, is in financial trouble. [WBJ]

YOUNG & HUNGRY LINKS, by Laura Hayes (tips? lhayes@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

  • Course of Action: Why you should try the oxtails at Cane from Chef Peter Prime. [WCP]

  • Fish By José Andrés will close inside the MGM National Harbor on Jan. 15. [Washingtonian]

  • Inside the first permanent Sweet Science cafe located in NoMa. [Eater]

ARTS LINKS, by Kayla Randall (tips? krandall@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Miles Ryan, owner of 7DrumCity, opens up about his new venue, The Pocket. [WCP]

  • The National Building Museum’s next summer blockbuster exhibit will bring you A Midsummer Night’s Dream. [DCist]

  • D.C. has an acting workshop for lawyers. [Washingtonian]

SPORTS LINKS, by Kelyn Soong (tips? ksoong@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • The Nats are bringing back reliever Daniel Hudson on a two-year deal and his teammate, Sean Doolittle, could not be more excited. Doolittle was in the middle of a podcast appearance with NBC Sports Washington’s Todd Dybas when he found out the news. “No way! Are you serious?!” Doolittle replied when Dybas informed him. [NBC Sports Washington]

  • For the second time in three nights, the Wizards beat one of the best teams in the NBA without their best players, including Bradley Beal. By the end of the team’s 99-94 win over the Boston Celtics, fans at Capital One Arena began to chant “MVP!” at backup point guard Ish Smith, who scored 27 points. [AP]

  • Kaila Charles scored 28 points to lead the Maryland women’s basketball team over Ohio State, 72-62. [Testudo Times]

MAKE PLANS, by Emma Sarappo (Love this section? Get the full To Do This Week newsletter here. Tips? esarappo@washingtoncitypaper.com)

Sign up: To get District Line Daily—or any of our other email newsletters—sent straight to your mailbox, click here. Send tips, ideas, and comments to newsletters@washingtoncitypaper.com.