I live in the US now where many states have different alcohol regulations not unlike in Canada. I have family in Montreal and Toronto and always find it amazing how different the beer/wine sales are with Ontario beer stores having such a monopoly. Good news that they are moving away from that by allowing grocery stores to sell beer and wine. Unfortunately, it looks like these permits are likely going to be bought up by large corporations with the small stores losing out. In Quebec, the small convenience markets (like the depanneurs) sell the vast majority of alcohol. Here is the article: http://www.thestar.com/news/queensp...ried-about-losing-out-on-beer-wine-sales.html Interested to hear the thoughts of some fellow BAs up north. Cheers!
It's a step in the right direction, but sadly, I doubt big grocery stores are going to carry local craft. What should have happened is brewers, or a group of brewers can apply for their own stores.
I think almost any change to the current set-up will be welcomed by most in Ontario. I would assume the better supermarkets like Pusateris and Whole Foods will offer a decent selection of craft beer. Perhaps some Loblaws and Sobeys as well. If this is the only change coming, I would imagine the LCBO will still offer the best selection for consumers of craft beer, mediocre as it is, outside of the breweries themselves. The only changes that would ever satisfy the type of people that use a web-site like this, would be either OCB or private beer stores and perhaps more importantly, importation that does not have to go through the LCBO.
I think it entirely depends on the recommendations put forward. There may still be a requirement for these stores to purchase all their stock via the LCBO, which would essentially mean zero difference, except perhaps a bit more convenience for some people.
There's been talks of switching things up as Micros have been complaining (rightfully so) about the price for space at the beer store. This is a pretty in-depth article on this, and of the options proposed, the one with specialty stores for micro brews is by far the most interesting. Ontario's system is so dumb, I simply can't fathom having to go to a beer store every time I want beer (I'm a Quebec resident) http://ottawacitizen.com/business/l...ye-ontarios-beer-store-debate?__lsa=5927-3807 On another note, I've heard Quebec is considering allowing more beers to reach the shelves of corner stores. Seeing as how much beer they move, the tax returns would be so much higher. In other words, you could walk into a corner store and purchase a Rochefort 10
Yes, but the convenience would translate into more beer sales, more beer sales will translate into more importation (and a wider variety) etc. The government simply isn't seeing the dollar potential of craft beer sales right now, but there's a massive change happening now and I'm confident they'll adapt at some point.
Hey i'll be visiting Toronto in a few weeks and was wondering how accessible beers like Peche Mortel are at the LCBOs in the area? I would also love to try some other microbrews from your great country as well so any advice is greatly appreciated!
Peche Mortel is usually never available at the LCBO.......but you are in luck! It was just released this past week. Also noticed you have Ola Dubh in your wants.......you might be interested in this: http://www.vintages.com/lcbo-ear/vi...earchResults.do?language=EN&itemNumber=410662 That Vintages website is much easier to use for searching LCBO stock than the LCBO website is. It's the same shit. There is a post on some thread in this section that has everything you need to know about visiting Toronto.
Here is a slightly edited, copy/paste of suggestions I made in another thread about where to go in Toronto for good beer. I hope it helps: _______ Bellwoods is the place to make sure you visit. They are generally recognized as brewing the best beer in the city. Their bottle shop opens at 11 AM. The pub is open from 2 PM on week-ends. If you only visit one brewery, this is the place to visit. Unfortunately, none of the limited bottling stuff that has helped to give them such a great reputation is currently available to take away. Check their website for an up-to-date listing of the beers available in the pub and bottle shop. Some of the limited release barrel aged goodies are always available to enjoy on-site. http://bellwoodsbrewery.com/ For good local selection on tap - and downtown - you might want to check out BarHop. You can check their twitter feed for a photo of the current tap menu. They usually have a couple casks on too. http://barhopbar.com/barhop/home.html Barvolo also has a great selection, usually with a little more on offer from Quebec breweries than Barhop. Again, you can see a photo of the current tap list on their website. Good bottle selection there too. http://barvolo.com/ I like Indie Ale House. They are a little west of Downtown. http://www.indiealehouse.com/#slideabout Amsterdam's Brewhouse is a lot nicer place to visit in the summer time, but depending on how close you are to the water, it may be a good place for a quick visit. http://amsterdambrewhouse.com/ Other breweries in the city that may be of interest: Great Lakes Brewery. No relation to the Ohio brewery of the same name. Check them out for IPAs as several of the ones they make are stalwarts in the Canadian BA Top 100. http://www.greatlakesbeer.com/ Junction Craft. Near Indie Ale House. Nothing earth shattering, but they always have 10-15 different beers available to either try on site or take away. A reasonably up to date list of what is available is on the web-site. Maybe worth a visit if you are in the area already. http://www.junctioncraftbrewing.com/jcb/ The Granite Brewery. Again, if you are in the area it may be worth a visit. Check the web-site for their offerings. Nothing groundbreaking here, but they usually have three beers on cask. http://www.granitebrewery.ca/ There are other places in the city, but most of what they offer is either available at the liquor store, or, the more interesting stuff can be had at one of the better craft bars. If you are interested in heading out of the city, send me a BM and I can give you a few more suggestions. Most would say our scene is generally ten years behind what is happening in the States. Keep that in mind if you decide to take the time to get to a place that is a little out of your way. There is a lot that is good here, but only a small portion is world class. Cheers, and enjoy your visit.
Nice. Any way to see a list of all beers they carry or do you have to do a name search for each? And KJ, Had that Ola Dubh this weekend. Light mouthfeel but very tasty
Good to here Jerk Store and great name. Thanks to all of you for the info on places to go and beers to try. I will certainly put this to use in my time visiting Toronto. I'm also spending a day in Niagara Falls as well but I imagine Toronto is where I will find the best stuff. Coronaeus thanks as well for the detailed post. That's a huge help as well.
Unfortunately you'll have to individually search for whichever SKUs you're searching for, then scroll through the list of LCBO outlets that have it in stock, in order to determine if there's anywhere nearby that you can purchase it. This is one area where the LCBO is really backward. Even the Beer Store has a decent inventory tracker on their website.
If you have an iOS device the LCBO On The Go app lets you do that if you search for the store, then go to Search Products on the Store Detail page, then Browse Products.
It's working fine for me. Here's a link to the search results for Red Racer IPA : http://www.drinkvine.com/drinkdetail.php?type=ont&productID=376285 Lots of stock all over the province.
