Ted Chudleigh, the Member of Provincial Parliament for Halton, recently published an article in the Burlington Post about how Ontario needs to rethink how the beer retailing system works. Mr. Chudleigh has indicated that he will read into the record at Queen’s Park the petition collected by Derek Forward about breaking up the current system. […]

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It’s been a little while since my last post, so it’s good to be back.  This one is about a little place you might have heard of called California. California is the most populous state in the U.S. and home to much glamourous American culture – Los Angeles, Hollywood, San Francisco, Napa Valley, etc.  I […]

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Oftentimes it’s easy to believe that if something is a certain way here, it must be that way everywhere else.  But we all know this is certainly not the case with local customs and cultures.  However, sometimes we fall into this trap when it comes to alcohol in Ontario.  Today I’m writing a new article […]

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One of the often overlooked problems with our beer system in Ontario is how the rest of our great country is generally omitted. To a casual beer drinker in Ontario, the craft beer selection consists of beers from Ontario and the rest of the world. Not, however, from the rest of Canada. Canada has thriving […]

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I was tipped off to a story from Ottawa about Steve Beauchesne from Beau’s on the CBC this week (MP3 file) discussing their challenges with The Beer Store and bottle deposit returns. Beau’s recently began offering their Lug Tread Ale in 750mL ceramic swing-top bottles at the LCBO.  This bottle is certainly a premium bottle and costs […]

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Stephen Beaumont, acclaimed beer writer whose 10-year old article about Ontario beer retailing I have already linked to, has just posted a new article on the subject in light of the recent groundswell.  Stephen’s opinion echoes my own, which is to allow speciality beer retail stores, which can happily co-exist with The Beer Store and […]

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Troy Burtch, an all-around nice guy and author of the excellent beer blog Great Canadian Pubs and Beer, has posted an extensive perspective on the beer retailing system in Ontario in light of all the recent happenings in this area.  Be sure to give it a read.

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The Toronto Star continued its coverage of the recent groundswell of support about reforming the beer retailing system in Ontario. The article centers around a recent online petition created by an Ontarian named Derek Forward, which to date has received over 3,700 signatures. Every little bit counts in raising the awareness of how our beer […]

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Continuing its series on the beer retail system in Ontario, The Toronto Star published some quotes from Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty today about his thoughts on the issue. He said, “I like the system as it’s found at present” and continued to use the social responsibility excuse as a reason to prevent change. How unfortunate […]

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Recently I came across an article, still online, written by Stephen Beaumont entitled “The Trials of Beer Buying”.  Stephen is one of the most respected beer writers around, an successful author in both the printed and virtual worlds. In this article he discusses the ownership of The Beer Store and suggests some changes that could […]

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